{"id":11174,"date":"2022-03-21T11:12:34","date_gmt":"2022-03-21T15:12:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.porticomagazine.ca\/?p=11174"},"modified":"2022-03-24T09:50:07","modified_gmt":"2022-03-24T13:50:07","slug":"u-of-g-veterinary-grad-on-animal-rescue-mission-for-ukrainian-refugees","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/porticomagazine.ca\/2022\/03\/u-of-g-veterinary-grad-on-animal-rescue-mission-for-ukrainian-refugees\/","title":{"rendered":"U of G Veterinary Grad on Animal Rescue Mission for Ukrainian Refugees"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As Dr. Cliff Redford <\/a>prepares to take his veterinary skills into a war zone, the thing he\u2019s most worried about is crying.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The owner of a veterinary clinic in Markham, Ont., and graduate of the University of Guelph\u2019s Ontario Veterinary College <\/a>(OVC) will volunteer in Poland in late March and early April at refugee shelters near the Ukrainian border.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He and his daughter, Emily, will work with the ADA Foundation \u2013 a charity shelter in Poland \u2013 and with DIOZ, both organizations tending pets of refugees fleeing the Russian invasion of Ukraine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Redford \u2013 known as \u201cDr. Cliff\u201d \u2013 said, \u201cI know how quickly I cry when things become emotional. Anytime I talk about my daughter and my pride in her, or if I see a kid crying\u2026. I\u2019m sure I\u2019ll be falling asleep crying a few times.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He plans to spend two weeks in Poland, including potential forays into Ukraine as far as Lviv to retrieve injured and traumatized animals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After he announced his plan in mid-March, donations of money and medical supplies began pouring into Wellington Veterinary Hospital, which he has owned since 2000. By St. Patrick\u2019s Day, a GoFundMe campaign had raised $5,000 for travel costs and another $10,000 to buy an animal ambulance for DIOZ.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Redford expected to raise another $10,000 before leaving for Poland on March 21.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

His plans drew widespread media interest, including Global News <\/a>and CTVNews<\/a>.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

He said several local animal rescue groups have also volunteered to take in patients if Redford manages to arrange their transport by the time he returns to Canada. \u201cIf we arrive with 50 animals at Pearson Airport, there will be a slew of cars to drive them to rescues in the York area.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As of March 21, more than 3 million people have fled Ukraine since the war began in late February.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Redford said hearing about the plight of many refugees and their pets \u2013 and the challenges faced by veterinarians in Poland \u2013 stirred him to action. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt was stressing me out, I was feeling anxious and upset and wished I could do more.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He talked with colleagues who urged him to act on his feelings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAlthough I\u2019m still feeling a lot of stress, it\u2019s a different stress. I\u2019m feeling so much better. It\u2019s only going to be a bit of help in the grand scheme of things, but a little bit of help is a decent thing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beginning with animal rescue groups in Jamaica in 2016, Redford has volunteered abroad in several countries, including Greece, Egypt and Panama. He volunteers weekly at a local wildlife refuge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Emily, who is training to become a veterinary technician, has accompanied him on several assignments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a>
Dr. Clifford Redford, DVM ’98, and his daughter, Emily<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cShe\u2019s better at a lot of things than I am. We\u2019ve never gone to a country neighbouring a country at war.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From animals suffering from hunger and dehydration to pets with burns and broken bones, he said, \u201cI expect there are going to be a lot of trauma cases.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Redford completed his DVM in 1998.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He said attending veterinary school at U of G equipped him for tackling challenges of all kinds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cGoing to vet school and graduating with a DVM grants you a very specific set of skills that allow you to analyze problems and find solutions. It allows you to \u2018MacGyver\u2019 up solutions with limited materials, teaches you to keep calm when problems occur, and then it gives you a polite, loving push out the door into practice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt teaches you very quickly to sink or swim. If you can swim, what a great life this is.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He credits biomedical sciences professor Dr. Peter Conlon, OVC associate dean of students, with providing open-door advice and encouragement during his studies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThose were the greatest times of my life,\u201d said Redford. \u201cI love the place.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As Dr. Cliff Redford prepares to take his veterinary skills into a war zone, the thing he\u2019s most worried about is crying. The owner of a veterinary clinic in Markham, Ont., and graduate of the University of Guelph\u2019s Ontario Veterinary College (OVC) will volunteer in Poland in late March and early April at refugee shelters<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":11176,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_FSMCFIC_featured_image_caption":"","_FSMCFIC_featured_image_nocaption":"","_FSMCFIC_featured_image_hide":""},"categories":[370],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nU of G Veterinary Grad on Animal Rescue Mission for Ukrainian Refugees -<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/porticomagazine.ca\/2022\/03\/u-of-g-veterinary-grad-on-animal-rescue-mission-for-ukrainian-refugees\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"U of G Veterinary Grad on Animal Rescue Mission for Ukrainian Refugees -\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"As Dr. Cliff Redford prepares to take his veterinary skills into a war zone, the thing he\u2019s most worried about is crying. 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