17 Oct, 2021
Tamara Qabazard wanted to become a veterinarian ever since she was young. Passionate about being the voice of the voiceless, her love for animals and desire to help them is more than just a job, the Kuwaiti veterinarian also volunteers to treat and provide medical support to animals in need, using her Instagram account as a platform to answer medical questions about animals.
The Avenues Insider spoke to Tamara
where she shared her thoughts on adopting vs buying animals as well as provided tips on caring
for your pet (find out if you’re even ready to have one)!
4- What types of pets do you have, and
what are your thoughts about adopting animals?
I’m a pet mom of four dogs, four cats, and two horses! All my pets were rescues, either from shelters, the streets, or
work. Warda, my latest rescue was found by Kareq8 on the street, and I took her
in initially as a foster only, but we got really attached to one another, so I
decided to keep her.
One of my horses I bought to compete
since I do horseback riding. My second horse was my old horse from middle and high
school that I used to compete with. I found him again this year but he’s too
old to compete, so I adopted him. Now he’s just living his life!
I completely support adopting. We have so many animals consistently
dumped on the streets here, and these poor souls need a loving home.
5- What do you think about those who buy
and sell animals and make a business out of them?
It is up to them, at the end of the day
that’s a personal choice, but I personally don’t agree with it. I understand
people who have their animals in for show and sport, that’s different. My issue
is mainly with those who are willing to pay money to buy the animal but not
willing to pay to keep it healthy and provide treatments when necessary.
Another issue is those who breed animals, because sometimes their genetics are not
compatible, and they end up interbreeding, which results in genetic defects and severe health problems.
6- What are the factors required at
home and in people to qualify them to adopt an animal?
These factors vary according to the
animal, but generally, one of the basics is that the person who will decide to adopt
an animal must be able to fully take care of it, provide it with the proper
food, and take it to the veterinarian when it’s sick. Another basic is a clean
and spacious home, and in case you have kids, you’ll need to monitor them
around the animals to prevent any accidents.
“We
have so many animals consistently dumped on the streets here, and these poor souls
need a loving home”
7- Do you recommend serving home food
to pets or canned food?
Nutrition varies according to the type
of animal, and whether it suffers from health or internal problems. The veterinarian
should be consulted before providing home-cooked food to your pet, to ensure
that it does not suffer from any nutritional problems, allergies, or poisoning.
I often hear of people feeding their
pets onions and garlic, which can cause anemia.
8- What are the biggest don’ts to
raising pets at home?
Ignorance and lack of awareness are the
biggest don’ts in my opinion. Many pet owners aren’t aware of how to find the
right nutrition and environment for their pets.
9- One final question Tamara, what are
your thoughts on people who buy and sell wild animals in Kuwait?
I have a very strong opinion on this matter, I believe that there should be legal actions taken against them and the profit they made should be donated to wildlife groups who are trying to reintroduce these animals back into the wild. This is an international felony and wreaks havoc on the ecosystem, the Middle East is notorious for this, and people don’t understand the implications of their actions. These animals are taken from their moms when they’re only a week old and smuggled to different countries, and when they’re a year old the owners dump them at the zoo because these wild animals cannot be domesticated. Most of the time, the zoos or sanctuaries are actually full, and this entire situation adds immense mental stress on the animals, and do these owners even care? All they care about is money.
