Janey Lowes

21/09/2024

🙌🏼🤪🛺 THE PARTY BUS IS HERE 🛺🤪🙌🏼

Happy 10th anniversary to uuuus 🤗 We now have this beautiful animal ambulance in our possession, crafted from an everyday Sri Lankan tuk tuk/three wheeler by the geniuses 🤓

This ‘Three-Healer’ (incredible name was suggested by 🙏🏼) was very kindly donated by the Jean Sainsbury Animal Welfare Trust and we are already noticing a huge difference in the quality of care we can offer our patients from the very second we lay our hands on them, all the way through to handing them over to the hospital team for further diagnostics and treatments 🏥❤️‍🩹

It’s difficult to count the number of times that animals have died on our lap in a tuk tuk racing to the hospital over the years.. or taken their last breath as soon as we enter the building 😔 BUT we hope we’ve turned a corner now that we can at least get our patients on fluids and oxygen as well as running some basic lab tests and initiating treatment (including pain relief) as SOON AS WE GET TO THEM 🤗🤗 This will make the world of difference and ensure so many more animals survive their ordeals out here on the streets of Sri Lanka.

Thank you to everyone who helped make this dream a reality 💫 We still can’t actually believe it 😱😱

21/09/2024

10/09/2024

06/07/2024

Sooooo I know this looks small but this piece of hardware is something I’m just a teeny bit proud of 😊 This is Sri Lanka’s very first ‘Tap to Donate’ system and, even though I just had a small part in its development (the team did aaaalll the legwork 💪🏼) I am so excited to finally get it out there!

Nothing in Sri Lanka is easy 🤪 and this was no different! Every single project takes a lot of input from start to finish- from finding someone who could make a stand for this thing to designing it from scratch (ain’t no product designers on ’s books 😅) to running sample after sample… as time-consuming as it can be, it’s actually one of the things I love most about my job- the variation!

Who would’ve thought when I was training to be a vet all those years ago that I would be pulling maggots out of a dog’s head one day and whizzing through some graphic design the following day! Definitely keeps things interesting and I’m so chuffed to have helped to create something that can hopefully, not only help Sri Lanka’s street dogs, but also that can ultimately help many charities across Sri Lanka 🤗🤗

18/06/2024

Tick picking is one of my favourite activities… it’s ridiculously therapeutic 🫣 Given that each of these little suckers has the ability to end a dog’s life, it feels prettttyyy good to remove them! I think I see more ticks in one day in Sri Lanka than I have seen in my whole career in the UK… and I might even be talking about on myself at the end of a CNVR day 🤭
~
~
~
~
~

24/04/2024

It’s been a MASSIVE few weeks and to be totally honest, I am completely shellshocked by it all 🫣 SO many ups, a couple of downs and a lot of hope for the future but brewing alongside that is a lot of paralysis 🫠 Decision paralysis, overwhelm, directional paralysis- whatever you wanna call it- I have frozen in the face of magnificent things 😅

So here’s an update to clear out my brain and take away the conundrum of which piece of good news to focus on 🤪 what an amazing problem to have!!

1. We FINALLY have a vehicle of our own after 10 years 🙌🏼🙌🏼 This beauty will be a dog-catching vehicle and run alongside our CNVR lorry to deliver 20-30 doggies per day safely to their ‘spa day’ (neuter, vacc, microchip, nails, massage 💅🏼😂). This is courtesy of an incredible grant from Jean Sainsbury Animal Welfare Trust- thank you x a million ✨✨✨

2. teamed up with .harbison and to plot a better future for street dogs worldwide 🤓🤓 With 75% of the world’s dog population being labelled as ‘roaming’ we have our work cut out buuuut by teaming up we hope we can maximise our impact AND our stress levels by having each other to whinge to on the tough days 🤗

3. I’ve started the next mission on the list which is getting us a hospital that doesn’t leak, isnt overflowing with people and dogs, isn’t falling apart and one that we can’t be chucked out of any day now (it’s rented 🥴). It’s a massive project and one that I have NO idea how we will fund buuuut where there is a will there is a way and, as we know, I don’t let things go easily 🦴🐕 More to come on this soon! Huge thanks to for getting us off the ground on this 🙌🏼🙌🏼

4. Another beauty funded by JSAWT 🛺 This lovely tuk is undergoing a transformation and will soon by a fully-functional animal ambulance with all the mod-cons to save animal’s lives on the way to the hospital (we often get to patients when they are very much on the brink and they will die on the journey to the hospital 🥺🥺). This is a GAME CHANGER 🙏🏼🙏🏼 (though we could probably do with another 3 🥴😅).

My blabbering continues in the comments 👇🏼

06/04/2024

This week has been the absolute stuff of dreams and I’m pinching myself at the incredible response we have had to our New Lives in the Wild episode 🥹🥹🥹

Thank you so very much- I don’t quite have the eloquence to say this more empathically without swearing 🫣 but please do know that I have never been more grateful in my life for all of the support!

And particularly, the support gifted to us by and his incredible team who have, and continue to, go above and beyond for us 🫶🏼 Ben has a million things he could be doing, and a million causes he could be supporting and yet here he is, giving his energy to something that he really has no obligation towards beyond the end of filming… He is an exceptional human and he may well have just saved my life’s work from extinction 🥹

I’m taking a day today to let this all sink in, to really enjoy all of these incredible highs and to thank the universe for having my back 🤗🤗 I’m also reflecting on how far we have come- this is me in my very first week living in Sri Lanka back in 2014 vaccinating a beautiful street dog named Boola on a hotel building site… little did I know I was about to have the adventure of a lifetime (and Boola would go on to be adopted by a fancy 5 star hotel- WIN 🙌🏼)!

I thiiiiink with all the drama of the last few years, it may be indeed time for a second ‘Janey the vet’ book… Whaddya reckon?! ☄️😝

02/03/2024

Basking in a different pool this week 🌝 Just arrived in the Mentawais for a week of wiggling with some epic humans- could not feel more fortunate than I do right now ✨🌼
📸

05/02/2024

Many of my loves in one snap 🫶🏼🫶🏼

📸

23/01/2024

Something we see a LOT of is jaw fractures... Given the nature of where we are and how the dogs live here (like they're the kings of the road 🙄), a whack on the face by a vehicle is not too uncommon unfortunately 😣.

The severity of the injuries vary but sometimes we get away with a dislocation at the back of the jaw and/or a fracture between the bottom incisors at the symphysis. Both of these are relatively easy to sort with reduction, wires and sometimes plates.

The difficult part comes in the days and weeks to follow as we apply support bandage and muzzles to prevent the jaw from moving too much and we feed a liquid diet through a tube that we surgically insert into the side of the neck (an oesophagostomy tube or 'O tube'). These both involve a lot of faffing, especially given that we can't get the liquid diet here in Sri Lanka or indeed the bandaging material 😫.

Dressing changes are very frequent as the layers become soaked through with saliva and feeding is 3-4 times per day with multiple stages involved to check the patient is getting the correct number of calories at the correct stage (this is increased in dogs that are recovering but should be decreased when beginning tube feeds so as not to overwhelm the system 🙄 ), the feed is being delivered into the correct place and isn't causing irritation, and also that the stoma (hole in the side of the neck leading to the oesophagus) is clean, dry and free from inflammation and infection.

In summary, the vets get the easy job of swooping in and doing the quick fix; it's the nurses and ACAs (animal care assistants) who pour their heart and soul into these guys, ensuring they can return to full function and essentially saving their lives over the course of a very arduous 4-6 weeks 🫶🏼 Absolute heroes and I am forever in awe of our nursing team!!

21/01/2024

I can't believe I got so lucky as to swim with these big, non-nippy fish 🤗 It was incredible how close they would come, brushing up against my leg and trusting me as I trusted them. We definitely had some kind of Dr. Doolittle understanding I'm sure of it 😏 Next step is taming a great white... I really shouldn't jinx myself just as I've arrived in Western Australia should I?! Oh well... it might bring in some donations at least 🤣

15/01/2024

This is my beautiful Belley-girl who some of you may know from my book 🫶🏼 She provided me with one of the biggest learning curves of my career and has lived an amazing 7 years owning the street before she retired to the comfort of my sofa in 2022!

She is a bit uncouth and my dogs often give me a look as if to say 'why have you brought this heathen into our civilised space?!' 😂 She's constantly kicking off and loves to snitch on the other dogs by barking at me until I stop them doing whatever naughty thing it is they are doing (including coming too close to 'her' mum). She is such a character and, although our lives would be much more simple without her chaos, we love her to bits and wouldn't change it for the world 💛

You can still get your hands on my book (link in bio 👆🏼) aaaand I can also gift you a 3 legged dog so you can join the tripod parent gang if you're keen! We have a few beauties at the hospital who will be up for international adoption over the next few months- keep your eyes peeled for updates; we are desperate to get them the most loving homes in the kingdom 💫

12/01/2024

Definitely not miserable 🌝
📸

27/11/2023

Please someone invite me to something lavish so I can dress up again… Nothing like full Disney princess vibes (Princess Fiona maybe but I’ll take it!) ✨💛

26/11/2023

Over-reflection in those rare quiet moments 🌝

I don’t know how when my weekends look like this but I’m reallyyyy ready for a holiday.. It’s been a long old year- an incredibly exciting one but also one of the toughest on record (and that’s saying something after the drama of the last 3 years in Sri Lanka 🥴). I can’t wait to get some headspace, regroup and dig out my magic which has been buried for a little while now… and- for once- not feel in the slightest bit guilty for taking the break! Is anyone else sneaking off over the Xmas break? Tell me about it LOUD and PROUD… 🫶🏼 ~
~
~
~
~

12/11/2023

As wild as a glass of water 💦✨

21/10/2023

That is one strooooong side eye 😒 disdain.. contempt.. disgust.. embarrassment… the list goes on 😅 sorrrrrrry I just love you all TOO MUCH, I can’t help myself 🫶🏼🫶🏼

06/10/2023

Throwing back to a time when I didn’t have trench foot and my Birks had soles that were actually attached… 🌧️

02/10/2023

🫶🏼 She’s just the sweetest little thing on the planet and I keeeeeep forgetting how terrible her skin was when we first met 😱

It’s so good to look back and see the transformation from the skinny, mangey, TVT-ridden pooch that she was to the new fluffy, chunky and oh-so-delicious girly that she is today 🤗💛

It’s also wild to think how affectionate Pebbles was, despite probably being sore in every single spot that you touched her 😔 Honestly, these dogs just defy all the rules and it certainly keeps our days exciting (and filled with cuddles!) 🤗💛

Not sure I can even imagine going back to a ‘normal’ job now.. though at times, I would give my left arm for just an a**l gland consultation- no complications, no legs hanging off, no blood transfusions, no spinal fractures- just plain old a**l glands 😅 Give them to meeeeeeee 🤗🤗

25/09/2023

The beginnings… ✨✨

These are the magical moments for me- those times back in the day when was being born and I had nooooo idea what it would become 🌼🌸

This is me as a 26 year old naive young vet back in 2014, with my eyes full of adventure and my mind full of dreams treating one of the OGs, Joy, in the street by torchlight 🌙

Little did I know what was to come, but I knew I had to throw everything at it then, just as I do now 💛 I’m from a quite humble background, so I reallllly didn’t have much to throw at it from a financial perspective but I knew it was worth giving everything I had, and more, and that mindset hasn’t changed to this day.

I think it’s easy to see and think it has always been that way- a fully-equipped, leading veterinary hospital, a magnificent team, a fancy new neutering lorry but trust me, all of those were ground out of nothing. Not a single thing has been handed to us on a plate and I’m so proud of what we have built based on just the dreams of a naive little 26 year old vet 💛✨
~
~
~
~
~

20/09/2023

I went to Italy for a minute once. It was splendid. Lucky old meeeee 🫶🏼🫶🏼

12/09/2023

The work goes on 🙌🏼🙌🏼

Whilst we are up against a huuuuuuge number of hurdles at the backend, the demand at the front end doesn’t stop and the WECare Team just keeps on doing me proud 💛🙏🏼

As a group, we cannot thank you all enough for getting behind us and responding so positively to our recent cry for help 🥹🥹 What the team does out here in Sri Lanka is phenomenal, seeing some of the worst stuff you can ever see as animal lovers, yet digging deep and pushing through all the emotional torture to ensure the animals come out on top.

It really is awe-inspiring 🫶🏼 BUT NONE OF IT WOULD BE POSSIBLE WITHOUT YOU 🤗💛🤗 Genuinely. I know that sounds cliche but it is so true… you don’t know the power you hold. One kind comment or small donation can really boost us at the end of a difficult day so please never underestimate what YOU do!!! And please don’t stop supporting us, we are nowhere near out of the woods but we have a lot more hope than we did this time a few weeks ago… all thanks to you lovely people 🙏🏼💛

BIG few weeks at this end with exams, grant applications and finalllllly the OFFICIAL LORRY LAUNCH 🙌🏼🙌🏼🙌🏼🙌🏼 This bad boiiii will be on the road at the start of October and it is just so very exciting! Hopefully onwards and upwards from here 🙏🏼🙏🏼
~
~
~

09/09/2023

Sometimes, if I’m feeling really spicy, I wash my hair and wear nice clothes 🌻✨

28/08/2022

Howwww were these Glasto times over 2 months ago?! 😱😱 2022 is flyyyyying but we still have so much to fit in by the end of the year 😬

We are about to start a 6 month mass rabies vaccination programme here in Sri Lanka to help protect the communities who are currently suffering from a shortage of treatment options should they get bitten by a rabid dog (🙄 yes, it is 100% fatal!!)… this will push our resources to the absolute limit during this economic crisis but we can’t stand by and watch people die from rabies, knowing it is ENTIRELY preventable via canine rabies vaccination 🥺 So despite being stresssssed about the full hospital, our imminent stock count (over 1500 lines on a spreadsheet 🥵), getting our lorry up and running.. oh and inflation being 90% this month 😣 WE ARE DOINGGG IT 💪🏼💪🏽

We plan to vaccinate and microchip over 7,000 dogs in the coming months and would lurrrrrrrrve help if anyone is interested in the data management/education/logistics side of things. Even a couple of months would help us no end 🤗 So, if anyone is between jobs (or fancies sacking off their 9-5 😅), then hit me up- your help will literally be lifesaving… and may well save our team from having a complete and utter meltdown 😂
~
~
~
~
~
~