Warih Pulung Nugrahani, Wildlife veterinarian, Wildlife Rescue Center (WRC), Jogjakarta, Indonesia, November 2019
I met Warih at Wildlife Rescue Centre (WRC) in Jogjakarta, Indonesia. I was a volunteer in the centre in November 2019. It is a centre for wild animals, which mostly come from illegal trade or used to be petted and then abandoned.
She is really special to me as she is the first person I interviewed. I thank her a lot for this. We were a bit nervous, both of us, I have to admit.
Warih always wanted to be a doctor. Firstly for humans but one day her uncle suggested to her to become a veterinarian.
After graduation, she worked for a research centre for education and human needs. She was collecting data from different schools. During that period, she has been contacted a few times by WRC to work with them. She finally accepted and started there two years ago.
In the beginning, she was afraid as it was her first professional experience with wildlife. She needed to learn a lot about wild animals. Irna, who is also working in the centre and is a friend of Warih taught her and gave her a lot of advice on how to be a good veterinarian for wild animals. She brought her support in everything and was the best partner and mentor Warih could have got. I really appreciate how grateful Warih is to the people who helped her.
It has been two years now that she is working for WRC, and she has no intention to change her job. “For the animals, I want to stay”.
“I always got some trauma with animals and I don’t always know why I got bitten, but it is fine, and it is not their fault, it is mine. Once I have been bitten by a horse and I am really afraid of them now.
Nevertheless, I still want to do this job.”
Seeing such commitment, and generosity gives you a great lesson. Warih is a truly beautiful woman inside and outside. She is passionate, ambitious, generous, and humble.
Her dream is to get a master's degree in epidemiology in order to learn more about the diseases wild animals can get and be able to cure them.
“WRC is a small centre. We have a lot of animals that really need help. For the food, cleaning…
We have a lot of projects to improve the centre for welfare. We are open to getting help from everybody.”
Having volunteered at WRC, I can testify that it was a rewarding experience and I have learned a lot.
All the staff is passionate about the animals and gives them everything they can. They are beautiful human beings with profound kindness in their heart.
I am proud of having been part of this team for a week and wish I could have stayed longer.
If you want to know more about Wildlife Rescue Centre Jogja, click on the link http://wrcjogja.org/
And please follow them on Facebook and Instagram. If you have the opportunity to go there and help, please do so.
https://www.facebook.com/WildlifeRescueCentreJogja
https://www.instagram.com/wrcjogja/
If you are interested to volunteer, you can contact Go Eco at this following link: https://www.goeco.org/