African Conservation Experience

I did most of this experience with my friend Madeline who I met on the project! We travelled separately for this experience and had never met each other before, but bonded quickly during our time on the Shimongwe Veterinary EMS placement when I spent three weeks on the project and Madeline joined for the final two weeks. On Madeline’s first day, we were taken to a reptile centre with 150 different species of venomous snakes. Wow. That was incredible. These snakes and lizards were from all over the world, and the staff there collect venom from them every week! This was purely observational for us because they do have some dangerous snake species there, so we were kept safe at all times. We learned about how there is an antivenom shortage in South Africa, which is what made this so interesting, because there is a real need for this work. Instead of working directly with the snakes, we drew blood from different lizards for DNA testing. We split into teams of two and ended up being much faster than we expected. We got to work with geckos, Sungazers and lots of other types of lizards. We called this ‘Lizard day’, and it was so cool to work with so many different species. The vet placement was amazing, and we ended up working on over 140 buffalo in one week! The project staff were constantly on the move to help us, as there was a lot of work to do. There was darting, loading the buffalo into trailers and moving them to different farms. Every time the vet darted them, we did injections of dewormer, medication, or vitamins. Some of them needed to be microchipped, some of them needed to be checked for pregnancy, some needed tuberculosis testing and brucellosis testing, so we drew blood for analysis too. We even found some pregnancies and could see them through the ultrasounds. My main hope before going was to see a lion, and during my time on the project, I got to work with one! I even had the rare opportunity to give a lion an injection, which was my favourite part of the whole experience! Madeline hadn’t worked on big animals very much before going on this experience, so she thought the darting, anaesthesia, and learning how to handle these big, dangerous animals was really worthwhile. During the weekend, we went to Leshiba Wilderness, which is a private game reserve that has lots of rhinos. We got to go for a hike through this incredible environment, and it was so fun. We had a good view of the valley, went on a night drive, and saw a bunch of rhinos. We really appreciated the project helping to organise this excursion for us. The farm day with one of the vets was really fun. We had more of a quiet day in terms of the workload on Friday, so the vet found some work for us to do on his farm involving working with different animals, then helping to move them to the stables. After a long day of work, the vet organised a braai (traditional South African barbecue) for us and we got to eat it in the bush, which was pretty cool. We never knew what we were going to get, but we loved everything we did. Madeline says that after this experience, she definitely wants to pursue a career in wildlife. This experience helped her understand which areas she’s less experienced and less knowledgeable in, so she knows what to work on if she moves forward with this career path. I felt this experience was really valuable, and I really enjoyed it. I definitely want to do more of it in the future! Madeline felt management of wildlife is pretty different than in the U.S. It was really eye-opening to learn about the farms that people have in South Africa and the conservation work that’s done. Before I organised my placement, I didn't know what to expect, but when I booked a call with ACE, we spoke a lot about how conservation and vet work is done in South Africa. It’s hard to understand until you see and experience it for yourself. When we went out to do the vet work, we were in huge areas that aren’t just enclosures with animals, so I really understood how the whole ecosystem functions once we saw it and got to work in it too. I am really happy that I have more knowledge on the reality of vet work now, because when I was looking on the internet at the different options, I just did not understand how vet teams and procedures worked. Now I know why the unique work we did was so important! It’s similar to back home in Canada, except more exciting as we swapped deer and moose for buffalo, impala and sable!

From the moment I landed, everything ran perfectly. I was met at the airport by the African Conservation Experience (ACE) staff, and they immediately made me feel welcome. Even the drive out to the project was fantastic. Our driver was hilarious and knowledgeable, telling stories about the country, which set the tone for the trip ahead! Shimongwe Wildlife Veterinary Experience itself was incredible. As a small animal vet, it was such a precious opportunity to work with large wildlife species, as we worked with some rare and beautiful animals. For example, one day we darted and treated a roan antelope (locals even told us they’d never handled one before!), another day we treated sable and nyala bulls and helped relocate them safely to other farms. On our final day, we darted a nyala, administered injections, and helped load him into a trailer for relocation. Watching how smoothly the team worked together was truly impressive. You felt part of something meaningful every single day, and I loved getting to know the dedicated people behind the conservation efforts! We also worked with an incredible number of buffalo. By the end, I was joking that I’d become a buffalo specialist! We helped the vets take blood samples for tuberculosis testing on the buffalo and also gave vitamin and anti-parasitic treatments, and assisted with relocations. It was physical, sometimes chaotic work, but in the best possible way. Every day was different. I can’t say there was one special day, I loved all of it! One day drawing blood, another treating, another relocating, never boring, never repetitive. The sunsets after long field days were something else, too. By the end, I lost count of how many times we just stopped to take it all in! In the clinic, the team was also brilliant. For students, it’s an incredible learning environment where they deal with everything: coughing, diarrhoea, vomiting, wounds, you name it. The vets, nurses, and technicians were all so kind and open. They shared everything: dosages, protocols, and their reasoning behind treatments. Even though I already work as a vet, I loved hearing their different approaches and seeing how they worked with wildlife species. They were also just genuinely fun people to be around, warm, professional, and easy-going. The accommodation was great too. It was clean and comfortable, with our own kitchen, bathroom, and even a terrace to relax on. There was a pool to cool off in after long days, and our host was super friendly! On weekends, we went exploring. Our first trip was to the famous Kruger National Park, my first time there! We saw so many elephants (they were everywhere), giraffes, birds, and even a lioness. Then another weekend, we visited Leshiba Wilderness, which was one of the most magical places I’ve ever seen. We went hiking during the day, and in the evenings, we could sit by the pool with a view over the bush, watching rhinos, giraffes, and zebras walking past. It honestly felt surreal! The people I met made the trip even more special. There were volunteers from the UK, the US, and a few other Czechs, too, which was such a nice surprise! One of the Czech girls and I are still in touch. We text and call all the time. Everyone at the project was like a supportive, funny family, and I would work with them again in a heartbeat! When I had to leave, I cried. That’s how much I loved the people there! I came home, went straight back to small animal practice, but a part of me stayed in Africa. I still think about it every day: the people, the animals, the sunsets, the feeling of purpose. I honestly think my friends are tired of me always talking about it! If anyone’s thinking about going, just do it. It was organised perfectly, the team was professional and kind, and the experience itself was everything I hoped for and more. I am already in talks with ACE to plan my trip out with them again next year, and I absolutely can’t wait!

I grew up in a family that loved animals, and I’ve always felt a deep connection to the natural world. I’ve always found rhinos adorable, but to actually see them up close, to work with them and play a part in their recovery… it was beyond anything I had ever imagined. One of my fondest memories was bottle-feeding milk to a younger rhino at the orphanage. To know that I was making a difference to her life was incredibly moving. What I loved the most was how I was made to feel like such a valuable member of the team. Before arriving, I worried that we would be treated like tourists, but that couldn’t have been further from the truth. The staff were warm, welcoming, and treated us as part of the team. Whatever they did, we helped too. It was totally different from visiting a zoo or going on a safari. As a volunteer, you get really involved, not only in the fun stuff like feeding rhinos, but in all of the real, behind-the-scenes work that is necessary to care for orphaned rhinos. There was a lot of hard work, from cleaning up after the rhinos to unloading gigantic grass bales. There was only one day when I was physically unable to help with lifting the grass bales as they were too heavy for me, and I have had some back problems in the past, but the staff were extremely understanding and accommodating; they really could not have been any kinder. We learned so much during our stay, and even had some fascinating talks from the orphanage’s founder. It was great learning about every aspect of rhino rehabilitation, from how precise you have to be when preparing milk formula for the babies, to all of the extensive measures taken to reduce the risk of poaching. One day, the staff took us for a three-hour hike through the reserve surrounding the orphanage. It was one of the most beautiful places I have ever been. We spotted incredible wildlife, including a baby giraffe and, my favourite sighting, a baby rhino calf, only one month old, with its mum! This experience changed me. Working alongside such dedicated staff and being so close to the rhinos reinforced my connection to nature and deepened my respect for the remarkable people fighting to protect it. I really can’t thank the staff at the orphanage enough for everything that they do!