Natucate
Volunteering Thailand – Lea and Katharina
Katharina and Lea traveled to Thailand together to dedicate themselves to taking care of street dogs and cats in need on the beautiful island of Koh Lanta. Learn more about their time as volunteers in Southeast Asia.
Volunteering in Thailand
After graduating from high school, me and my best friend decided to spend some time abroad in our gap year.
We did a bit of research and came across this project. It became clear that this was the project we wanted to be part of. On the one hand we could imagine to travel around Thailand and get to know the country, on the other hand we wanted to help the animals, which were rescued from different and often tragic situations and needed to be taken care of in the shelter until they find a new home.
The next day after our long arrival the project started with an introduction meeting where we got introduced to the facilities and all the animals at the shelter. During the first week, we had some difficulties because we had a lot of new and different tasks to do, which especially in the beginning required a lot from us. But quickly we settled into a routine, because there are many jobs which are repeated daily, you start to realize the progress you make and the work becomes more fun each day.
The daily tasks are for example cleaning the cages, preparing the food, feeding, to give medication to the animals, bathing the animals, walking the dogs, spending time with scared and injured animals to build up their trust towards human beings again and playing with the puppies and kitten.
Even though working in the heat is very exhausting, you enjoy the time with the animals, which you will start loving, with the other volunteers and of course the beautiful ocean, beaches, amazing sunsets, delicious food and the fascinating culture and people.
Also, the first couple of days can be hard, which was not only our impression but also from other volunteers, it is definitely worth it to take your time. Because as soon as you have settled in a bit, you will notice the love and affection the animals give back to you, you will make many new and once-in-a-lifetime experiences, meet many amazing people from different countries and will be happy to be able to support the project and animals with your help.
