Mê Thú Cưng - Pet Magazine for Vietnam | Số 5 | Issue Five | Animal Welfare Vietnam | Page 49
Features 40 61
this process.
It would be unbalanced to
avoid a few small points of
critique about the event as this
was the first conference and
a great learning experience
for us all. For this, I have only
a few remarks. Firstly, there
was simply not enough time.
I recognize that this was an
expensive conference for many
and taking off time during the
week is very difficult for those
for whom this is a second line
of work. This will always be a
limitation for people working
in animal welfare since we all
know we will never be taking
home a doctor’s salary and
many will never be paid at all,
but I do wish we had more
time to hear speakers, ask
questions, and discuss more
detailed solutions as working
groups. Secondly, aside from
the time constraints, I was sad
to see that there were many
organizations not represented
at the conference. I say this
under the assumption that
the invitations to the event
were sent to all organizations
in Vietnam and that some
were unable to come or chose
not to come. I would hope
that all people working in
animal welfare in Vietnam
can see the value in attending
a conference. Like all other
professions, conferences are
an opportunity to network
and learn and in order for the
animal welfare movement
to grow in Vietnam, there
is a lot more learning and
networking that needs to
happen. I would have also
liked to see significantly more
interest from the veterinary
community. Nam Long
University and Hanoi
University of Agriculture both
Mê Thú Cưng
had representatives for at least
the first day, but I saw no other
veterinarians in the audience
or a representative from the
vet faculty in Hue. Without
veterinarians committing to
being a part of the animal
welfare movement, I fear our
work and our mission will not
be able to progress.
At the end of the day, I feel that
a huge first step was made
towards professionalizing the
animal welfare movement
in Vietnam. The event was
well-organized, the food was
spectacular and plentiful, and
just being in the room with
such amazing people in the
animal welfare industry was
motivating and educational.
I look forward to the next
conference and hope to see the
attendance doubled in size in
those twelve months that I will
wait anxiously.
Issue 05 | Setpember + October + November 2014 | petmagazine.vn
47