We’ve spoken about the new Treatment Centre currently being built in Concepcion, Tarlac in the Philippines.
In the last update, we spoke about the new kennels which have started to be built on site.
This time we wanted to touch on why we have designed the centre and kennels in the way we have in order to manage our bio security.
What is bio security?
Bio security is the processes you put in place to minimise the spread of infection or disease. Diseases can be transmitted through equipment, or from contact with people or animals. As a busy treatment and rescue centre, we see hundreds of animals each week. Therefore, we need to ensure we are doing all we can to minimise the risk of infection entering or remaining on the premises.
Our measures:
Currently, we have existing bio security measures in place for both animals and people. All staff, pet owners and personnel must wear a face covering and show Covid vaccination status. Social distancing is difficult when handling animals and we want to protect our staff and pet owners by reducing the risk of contracting Covid.
For the animals, we encourage dogs to be vaccinated with the 5 in 1 vaccine. We also offer the rabies vaccine for free. If a dog is suspected to have a contagious disease, the team will see it at the end of the clinic. This means no other patient will be seen in the consultation room until a deep clean has been completed.
All our veterinary equipment is sterile. Surgical instruments and needles are single use. A new pair of gloves are worn by our vets when examining each patient.
Going another step further:
You may recall we are installing a separate quarantine kennel at the new Treatment Centre.
This kennel will be separate from the others where new rescues will remain in isolation until it’s confirmed they are not suffering from any contagious illness. By doing so we will be protecting the other resident rescue dogs as well as those visiting the Centre.
Furthermore, any staff in contact with dogs in quarantine will wear separate overalls and footwear. The dogs will have their own collar, lead, food and water bowls, not shared with others. The quarantine kennel will have it’s own cleaning equipment, such as broom and mop. This reduces the risk of staff or equipment passing on any bacteria to the rest of the Centre.
Even the regular kennels will separate drainage tunnels to the main waste system. This means that there will be no cross contamination of excrement. Around the centre both inside and outside there will be several hand sanitiser stations. Dog excrement will be collected and disposed of in receptacles.
At IWCT, we are proud of our work and expertise to protect animals and owners. We promote responsible pet ownership. We have lots of information readily available for owners who are unsure about infection control. You can email us for more information or explore the topics we discuss on our website and Facebook page. Please share our content to promote responsible pet ownership.
