Volunteering abroad?

Have any of you ever volunteered abroad for a charity?
I have been thinking about doing some volunteer work with animals again.
I have volunteered in various places: Groomers, kennels, vets, Rescue centers… I have done photo shoots for various rescues to try and get the dogs re-homed…

Now I am thinking maybe somewhere abroad working with animals for a week or two would be interesting… good and bad experience as I know they treat the animals different from the UK.

Whilst I lived abroad I worked for charities in those areas. Now I am in the UK I support UK based ones.

Do it!! You will not regret it. However, you need a strong constitution because no matter where you are in the world animal cruelty is still animal cruelty and it's very very hard to come to terms with the idea that people do this stuff. However if you can overcome that with thoughts about how you are helping then I think you'll find it one of the most rewarding things you can do.

Go for it, just be careful! Where were you thinking of going?

Major Eco tourism really winds me up. £2,000 to spend a week with elephants It's massively overpriced and I'm not convinced all that money goes to the right places....

Check out Green volunteers, lots of projects to choose from and lots if little places who charge less but genuinely need the help from volunteers

I volunteered with Animals Asia Foundation bear rescue in China. I was THE most rewarding experience of my life and how I got my job in Vietnam.

What area were you thinking of going to? With what animals? I have contacts in animal charities in Asia do I might be able to help give some guidance

If you want dogs, there's a lot of worthy projects closer to home in Europe.

Agree that you need to research the charity very carefully before committing yourself. There are real charities that are committed to improving the lives of animals whether it be rescue & rehome or educating the community on animal husbandry etc but then there are other bodies which should be treated with caution.

One thing with volunteering work of any kind - you would be wise to check with the Home Office or British Council about your chosen destination just to make sure that a) there's nothing untoward happening or on the horizon, B) that it's a 'safe' place for you to be and c) to find out what potential hazards there might be in working in such a place. Always make sure that your family and close friends have a detailed itinerary of where you are going to be and if you deviate from that in any way communicate it to them no matter what.

Thanks for all of the advice...

I'm not sure where I am planning on going yet, going to do some more research on different places...

I have been thinking about Greece to help the rescue dogs... Somewhere a bit closer to home.
But I have also thought about doing something totally different... For new experiences.

It would be a bonus if it opened new doors with regards to new jobs.

I would also like to do a documentary though photos to show my experience in my destination... To highlight an important message...

What kind of things did you do for the Animals Asia Foundation bear rescue in China Moon's Mum?

They take two kinds of volunteers, vet nurses and behavioural volunteers. I was a behavioural volunteer. I spent the first few weeks monitoring certain bears behaviours and writing reports. Then we had a rescue of twelve bears and my then partner and I were the sole carers for them Of course we were supervised by people and the vet monitored the bears on a daily basis, but we were lucky enough to be the ones to clean them, feed them, do enrichment etc. I got to design toys and enrichment ideas which was fun. I also got to watch all of the new bears operations (they all need their infected gall bladders removed after being tapped for bile) and got to hug them while they were sedated but on top of all that I got to know the Chinese staff really well and it was also a very social and fun experience. They also help out with feeding, welfare and neutering of street dogs. Then when I got offered the job in the new Vietnam centre I was able to help set it up from scratch, which was brilliant.

It was a very rewarding experience, and I feel privileged and lucky. But you don't necessarily need to go do far, there are some good opportunities in Europe. Or I volunteered at a British wildlife rescue in Scotland which was great fun too.

Do check out Green Volunteers. Let us know what you decide

With big boy Agathon during his op



With cub Mausi, who we hand reared in Vietnam (sadly they get cubs in yearly, but it almost guaranteed there will be cubs in around April)

Wow sounds like an amazing experience.