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

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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.

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