Katherine Polak, DVM, MPH, MS, DACVPM, DABVP (Shelter Medicine Practice) is Head of Stray Animal Care – South East Asia – for charity FOUR PAWS International, based in Bangkok, Thailand. She is a member of the WSAVA’s Animal Welfare and Wellness Committee.
Could you introduce yourself briefly to our members?
I am an Iowa State University veterinary graduate and am double-boarded in Shelter Medicine and Preventive Medicine. I completed both an internship at Colorado State University and residency at the University of Florida in Shelter Medicine and currently live in Thailand with my dog, Mangosteen Queen.
What is your day job and what do you enjoy about it?
I work for the international charity, FOUR PAWS International, managing our companion animal work in South East Asia. We run an exciting South East Asia Partnership Program which helps to capacity-build local animal welfare groups, train local veterinarians and operate community engagement programs. I am extremely fortunate to have the opportunity to work with incredible individuals and groups and watch them grow, improving their veterinary capacity and creating visible change for both animals and communities alike.
Dr Katherine Polak
What led you to get involved with the WSAVA?
Working in South East Asia, I encounter severe companion animal welfare issues almost daily, many of which stem from poor or inadequate veterinary training. I felt compelled to get involved with the WSAVA in an attempt to help improve animal welfare by reaching small animal practitioners around the world and promoting sound welfare, both in the clinic and beyond.
You’re a member of the Animal Wellness and Welfare Committee (AWWC) – what projects are you working on?
The AWWC is focused on capacity-building activities for animal welfare. As such, we are planning an animal welfare track for the 2020 WSAVA Congress, along with a Shelter Medicine workshop for local practitioners and animal welfare professionals. We are also in the early stages of planning outreach projects to accompany the WSAVA Congress in Hyderabad, India, in 2021.
Why do you think that the WSAVA’s work is important?
Animal welfare is at the core of what we strive to promote as veterinarians. The goal of the AWWC is to integrate animal welfare with the work that veterinary practitioners do. The WSAVA’s work as a whole is vital to improving veterinary care around the world through events, the provision of resources and educational opportunities to a global network of veterinarians and associations committed to improving the health and welfare of companion animals.
Could you tell us something about you that may surprise us?
Despite two torn ACLs and multiple orthopedic surgeries, I still love to ski. Living in Asia allows me to find incredible snow in beautiful Japan.
Dr Katherine Polak