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Irish Examiner
3 hours ago
- Irish Examiner
From Kilkenny to Sri Lanka: Meet the vet helping to care for three million street dogs
A Kilkenny woman who moved to Sri Lanka last summer to work as a veterinarian described how it felt like she was 'regressing back into her teens' after living at home with her parents in Ireland. Sarah Rochford, aged 37, said she had always been travelling and had only moved back home to live with her family in Kilkenny after the covid pandemic. 'I was renting and then living at home, and I felt like I was regressing back into my teens,' she told the Irish Examiner. 'I had eventually saved up for a deposit, but once I saw the first house, I just could not do it. 'I was weighing things up, and it felt like signing up for a mortgage was signing up for a lifetime. I just did not know if I wanted to do that,' Ms Rochford added. Ms Rochford said she decided to apply for a job as a vet in Sri Lanka after seeing a post on Facebook. 'I did not know anything before I came here,' Ms Rochford said, 'but I always knew I wanted to travel.' Sarah Rochford said: 'We catch them, neuter and vaccinate them before releasing them.' She now works in a mobile unit for a charity on the south coast of Sri Lanka, looking after street dogs. WeCare, the charity, was established 11 years ago by British veterinarian Dr Janey Lowes, who was backpacking in Sri Lanka in May 2014. According to the charity, while these dogs love their freedom and often have a safe place to sleep and a guardian who feeds them, the real problem that stray dogs face in Sri Lanka is the lack of access to 'even the most basic of veterinary care'. The charity helps catch and neuter stray dogs. Sri Lanka has some three million stray dogs, according to Ms Rochford, and the goal of the mobile unit is 'no rabies, no babies'. 'We're tipping away, and we give these animals a UK standard of care,' Ms Rochford said. 'We catch them, neuter and vaccinate them before releasing them, and that's our work down in the mobile van.' The 37-year-old added that she could see herself in Sri Lanka 'for the foreseeable'. The climate was tricky to adjust to at first, especially being pale Irish. I got heat rashes, I get dehydrated and migraines as well. 'But it was easy enough to adapt to the lifestyle and local culture here. The fruit is unbelievable, it is so fresh and tasty. However, I do miss curry chips and salt and vinegar crisps,' Ms Rochford added. She said that while she does not make Irish wages in Sri Lanka, the cost of living is quite low, and that the country had a 'better way of living'. 'They live day to day, there is no set goal,' Ms Rochford said. 'I do miss home the odd time, and the longer I am away, it is hard to keep in touch with day-to-day life of people back home. 'I do miss my family, my mam, the cat, but I also do love it here.' Read More Report makes recommendations to increase the welfare of horses
The Irish Sun
a day ago
- The Irish Sun
Tattoos can boost body positivity and even heal trauma, mental health experts say
THE great British High Street may be in decline but there's one type of shop that is still firmly making its mark – the tattoo parlour. In the past decade the number of inking businesses has soared from 1,637 to 3,394 — up 107 per cent — and 14million of us now have one, nearly a third of all adults. Advertisement 5 The number of inking businesses has soared from 1,637 to 3,394 in the past decade 5 The tattoo parlour is still firmly making its mark on the British High Street Credit: Refer to Source - Alamy 5 14million of us now have a tattoo, nearly a third of all adults Credit: Alamy The tattoo market was worth around £659million in 2023, rising to £702million in 2024. Experts say that although tattoos may seem unsightly to some, for those who have them, they can boost positivity, provide a sense of security, help people cope with depression and even help to heal childhood trauma. Dr Mark Griffiths, Distinguished Professor of Behavioural Addiction at Nottingham Trent University, told The Sun on Sunday: 'Most people who get tattoos experience positive benefits. 'For example, someone who is experiencing depression or anxiety may feel empowered by a tattoo, or view it as a way of demonstrating control in their life. Advertisement READ MORE ON TATTOOS 'Bad infections' 'A tattoo can help some individuals feel better about their body and help them feel as though they are part of a community. 'Tattoos may help promote body positivity, boost self-confidence and, for a minority, help to lower stress levels. "For a small minority, tattoos may also be a symbol for trauma survivors, for example of PTSD, sexual assault and healing from childhood trauma.' Derby-based tattooist Kevin Paul, who has inked dozens of celebrities including Ed Sheeran, Harry Styles, Lady Gaga and Rhianna, says that being tattooed is so 'powerful' it is like a medicine to some. Advertisement Most read in Health Exclusive He said: 'People use tattoos now as a therapy or a way to bring families closer or to mourn the loss of a loved one. "A lot of people have tattoos to mark traumatic things they have been through. I'm tattooed all over & even removed my NOSE to keep in a little jar… people can't believe the difference 4 years makes 'The majority of people I see are using it as some form of therapy. 'I had a customer with a history of self-harm and when I covered her scars she said it gave her her life back.' Advertisement Prices for a tattoo start at £50 for a tiny design but can rise to well over £2,000 for a larger work covering the limbs or back — and there is no shortage of takers. The UK currently ranks as the third most-inked nation in the world, accounting for almost eight per cent of all tattoos globally and we are only out-tatted by the US and Germany. However, the trend has also led to a rise in unqualified and inexperienced would-be 'artists' cashing in. Unlicensed tattoo artists, often referred to as 'scratchers', operate outside legal regulations and do not register with their local said: 'Tattooing is being pulled apart by everyone thinking they can just have a go. Advertisement 'People will go to the closest and normally cheapest place so it's much harder for real, trained artists to get customers through the door. 'There will be a lot of people needing cover-ups [of bad work] in the future. 5 Derby-based tattooist Kevin Paul has inked dozens of celebrities including Ed Sheeran Credit: Getty 5 Former 1D singer Harry Styles has also been inked by him Credit: Getty Advertisement "Hygiene should be the biggest part of your training, but I have seen so many bad infections come from dodgy tattooists who don't know what they are doing.' Research last year suggested that as many as four in ten of us had considered getting a tattoo removed. The most likely reason is going off the design, poor quality, fading work or having made an impulsive decision to begin with. And another expert warned that getting tattoos may not always combat major self-esteem issues. Advertisement Aleksandra Pamphlett, a psychotherapist specialising in body image, said: 'I've had many patients describe their tattoos as part of their healing journey — daily reminders of survival, identity, hope and self-worth. 'There have been quite a few studies suggesting that body modifications can serve as a coping mechanism or form of self-expression for people with trauma histories. 'IT'S MY LIFE STORY IN PICTURES' TATTOO fan Chesney Wright, 29, has spent more than £4,000 on her 200 inkings, which she describes as her 'life in pictures'. The mum-of-three, from Grantham, Lincs, admits some are 'horrified' by her heavily inked look but she has no plans to stop. Chesney said: 'I've been told the tatts are disgusting. That I'm a bad example to other women and a bad mum. Tattoos are like Marmite, you love them or hate them – I'm obsessed with them. 'OAPs are often horrified and tell me off, but I just smile sweetly. My body art is my history.' Ex-barber Chesney has tattoos of everything from a ghost to SpongeBob. She added: 'Most women get flowers and butterflies – I have a different approach. Each tattoo holds a story of love, happiness, mother- hood, sometimes grief.' 'Most of my patients with tattoos related to past trauma found them helpful and empowering, but there was one case where the tattoo became a painful reminder — less a symbol of healing, more a flashback to a time they wanted to move past.' Anna Woolley spent years struggling with substance addiction and poor mental health, leaving her with scars on her arms that were so obvious she was ridiculed about them while shopping in Primark. Advertisement It led the 35-year-old to cover them with a 'sleeve' design with butterflies and branches in 2016. The move gave her such new-found confidence she is now preparing to become a support worker in a rehab clinic to help others. She told the Sun on Sunday: 'I'd gone through a lot of past trauma and I'd caused damage to my arms from lashing out during night terrors over several years. 'I just felt horrific, I was so full of self-doubt. Advertisement 'Before getting the tattoos I wouldn't have dreamed of wearing a T-shirt but now I wear what I want to. People say it's just a tattoo but it's changed my life.'
RTÉ News
3 days ago
- RTÉ News
Israel will let foreign countries drop aid into Gaza, Israel army radio says
Israel will allow foreign countries to parachute aid into Gaza from today, Israeli army radio has said, quoting a military official. An Israeli military spokesperson did not immediately reply to a Reuters request for comment on the report. The Gaza health ministry has said more than 100 people have died from starvation in the Palestinian enclave since Israel cut off supplies to the territory in March. Israel lifted that blockade in May but has restrictions in place that it says are needed to prevent aid from being diverted to militant groups. In the first two weeks of July, the UN children's agency UNICEF treated 5,000 children facing acute malnutrition in Gaza. World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Wednesday that Gaza was suffering man-made mass starvation caused by a blockade on aid into the enclave. Aid groups have warned of surging numbers of malnourished children in war-ravaged Gaza as a trio of European powers prepared to hold an "emergency call" on the deepening humanitarian crisis. Doctors Without Borders (MSF) said that a quarter of the young children and pregnant or breastfeeding mothers it had screened at its clinics last week were malnourished, a day after the United Nations said one-in-five children in Gaza city were suffering from malnutrition. With fears of mass starvation growing, Britain, France and Germany were set to hold an emergency call to push for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas and discuss steps towards Palestinian statehood. "I will hold an emergency call with E3 partners tomorrow, where we will discuss what we can do urgently to stop the killing and get people the food they desperately need while pulling together all the steps necessary to build a lasting peace," British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said. The call comes after hopes of a new ceasefire in Gaza faded yesterday when Israel and the United States quit indirect negotiations with Hamas in Qatar. US envoy Steve Witkoff accused the Palestinian militant group of not "acting in good faith". More than 100 aid and human rights groups warned this week that "mass starvation" was spreading in Gaza. Israel has rejected accusations it is responsible for the deepening crisis, which the World Health Organization has called "man-made". Israel placed Gaza under an aid blockade in March, which it only partially eased two months later. The trickle of aid since then has been controlled by the Israeli and US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, replacing the longstanding UN-led distribution system. Aid groups have refused to work with the GHF, accusing it of aiding Israeli military goals. The GHF system, in which Gazans have to travel long distances and join huge queues to reach one of four sites, has often proved deadly, with the UN saying that more than 750 Palestinian aid-seekers have been killed by Israeli forces near GHF centres since late May. An AFP photographer saw bloodied patients, wounded while attempting to get humanitarian aid, being treated on the floor of Nasser hospital in the southern city of Khan Yunis yesterday. Israel has refused to return to the UN-led system, saying that it allowed Hamas to hijack aid for its own benefit. Accusing Israel of the "weaponisation of food", MSF said that: "Across screenings of children aged six months to five years old and pregnant and breastfeeding women, at MSF facilities last week, 25% were malnourished." It said malnutrition cases had quadrupled since 18 May at its Gaza city clinic and that the facility was enrolling 25 new malnourished patients every day. Israel's military campaign in Gaza has killed 59,587 Palestinians, mostly civilians, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory. Hamas's October 2023 attack that triggered the war resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures. Of the 251 hostages taken during the attack, 49 are still being held in Gaza, including 27 the Israeli military says are dead.
