Michelle Gauthier
In 2008, Michelle and her husband Adam went to Vientiane Laos to volunteer as project managers for a social enterprise called Digital Divide Data (http://www.digitaldividedata.org/). She was stunned by the poor state of the dogs and cats in Vientiane and many close to death. While she and her husband were trying to save cats in the street, many succumbed to traffic, starvation and often just plain ignorance. They managed to save two; Djileet and Lightning which she brought home with her. There were many others she could not save.
When Michelle returned to Canada, she vowed to start an organization to help save the malnourished and sick animals she saw during her stay.
Michelle is the founder of Pet Awareness in Laos (PAL), a grass-roots project that aims to improve animal and human health in Laos. Through time and dedicated effort, she has managed to organize Laos’ first ever spay/neuter drive. She has brought together veterinarians from Canada, Laos and Australia to collaborate on this project and has the support of Vets Without Borders.
She is also the founder of another grass-roots initiative which works to collect and distribute sports clothing for female athletes in Laos.
To learn more about Pet Awareness in Laos visit the website.
Photo by Jennifer Churchill
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