Running 600km for Sri Lanka's Street Dogs: The Extraordinary Story of Dr Janey Lowes

British vet Dr Janey Lowes has dedicated more than a decade to saving Sri Lanka's street dogs. Now, she's taking on an extraordinary 600km running challenge to raise money for a desperately needed veterinary hospital. Wellbeing Magazine spoke to Janey midway through her journey about resilience, grief, purpose and why every dog deserves access to veterinary care.

Want to help Janey save Sri Lanka's street dogs? Donate directly to Janey's Dog Jog fundraiser on JustGiving. Every contribution helps WECare Worldwide work towards building a new veterinary hospital, rehabilitation centre and training facility.

Meet the British vet running across Sri Lanka to save street dogs

When I spoke to Dr Janey Lowes, she was halfway through a challenge most of us would struggle even to contemplate. Having already run approximately 340 kilometres across Sri Lanka, she still had hundreds more ahead of her, tackling intense heat, humidity and physical exhaustion to raise funds for the animals she has devoted her life to saving.

Yet, as she appeared on my screen in the late afternoon, what struck me most was how fresh-faced, smiley and positive she looked. There was little outward indication of the extraordinary physical demands she was enduring, and throughout our conversation she laughed easily, spoke passionately and radiated an energy that left me in awe of her resilience.

Janey is the founder of WECare Worldwide, a UK-registered animal welfare charity providing veterinary treatment to Sri Lanka's estimated three million street dogs. Her mission is to raise funds towards a £1.5 million project to create a purpose-built veterinary hospital and training centre that could transform the future of animal welfare on the island.

But as our conversation unfolded, it became clear that this was about far more than running. It was an extraordinary story of compassion, personal loss, determination and discovering a purpose so powerful that walking away is no longer an option.

How a surfing holiday changed Janey Lowes' life

Originally from County Durham, Janey trained as a veterinary surgeon in the UK and was working in a small-animal practice in Newcastle when she travelled to Sri Lanka for a surfing holiday in 2014.

Having previously travelled and worked in parts of Asia, she was familiar with seeing street dogs. However, she was shocked by the number of injured and sick animals she encountered in Sri Lanka and the lack of veterinary assistance available to them.

Despite being a qualified vet herself, she found it incredibly frustrating that she couldn't help without access to the necessary equipment and facilities.

Returning to England, Janey couldn't forget what she had witnessed. She spoke to her boss, who encouraged her to follow her instincts, offered to support her financially and promised that her job would be waiting for her if she returned after a year.

Twelve years later, Janey is still in Sri Lanka.

What began as an attempt to help a handful of injured dogs has grown into WECare Worldwide, a charity that has provided treatment, neutering and vaccination programmes for tens of thousands of animals.

For Janey, returning to her previous life is no longer something she can contemplate. The suffering she has witnessed, the animals she has saved and the communities she now calls home have become part of who she is.

Why Sri Lanka's street dogs need veterinary care, not necessarily new homes

One of the most thought-provoking moments of our interview came when Janey challenged the way many of us think about street dogs.

In Britain, we often associate stray dogs with abandonment, neglect and the need to find a loving home. Our instinct is to rescue them, place them in shelters and find families willing to adopt them.

But Janey explained that Sri Lanka's street dogs often have very different lives.

Many are loved and cared for by the communities in which they live. Local families leave food for them, shopkeepers recognise them and dogs develop daily routines around the people and places they know.

"You'll see them sitting and waiting at the bus stop for their kind of guardian to come home from work," she explained.

The dogs understand their environment, know where to find food and have considerable freedom. Forcing them into shelters is not necessarily the compassionate solution we might initially imagine.

"I think street dogs' trait is freedom," Janey told me.

It was a perspective I hadn't previously considered, and one that highlights the importance of understanding different cultures and communities before assuming we know what is best.

The real problem, Janey explained, is not necessarily that these dogs don't have homes. It is that they don't have reliable access to veterinary care.

An ear infection that would be easily treated by a British vet can become life-threatening for a Sri Lankan street dog. Without treatment, relatively minor injuries and illnesses can develop into severe infections, prolonged suffering and potentially fatal complications.

For those of us who share our homes with much-loved pets, it is difficult to imagine being unable to obtain even the most basic treatment when they are ill.

WECare's approach is therefore built around providing high-quality veterinary treatment, vaccination and neutering programmes, while allowing healthy dogs to remain within their familiar communities.

Why WECare Worldwide urgently needs a new veterinary hospital

The charity's existing veterinary hospital was never originally designed to become a medical facility.

In the early days, Janey was caring for so many injured animals that she found herself with 13 dogs recovering in her own home. She eventually rented an old primary school, attracted by its affordable rent and enclosed grounds, where dogs could recover safely following surgery.

As word spread, increasing numbers of animals began arriving at the door.

Today, that original building is struggling to meet demand. Janey described leaking roofs, black mould and cramped conditions, with as many as 70 patients being cared for at one time.

The hospital is simply too small, and the charity faces the heartbreaking reality of being unable to accept every animal that needs treatment.

Janey's goal is to create a purpose-built veterinary hospital and rehabilitation centre capable of helping approximately 3,000 additional animals every year.

The plans also include a training facility where Sri Lankan veterinary professionals can develop specialist skills, helping improve access to animal healthcare throughout the country.

This long-term approach is particularly important. Rather than relying indefinitely on a small number of people, Janey wants to build a sustainable system in which local veterinary professionals have the training, resources and facilities to support their own communities.

The project also has implications for human health, with WECare's rabies vaccination and population-management programmes helping to reduce risks associated with the disease.

Support the new WECare veterinary hospital by donating to The Dog Jog.

From heartbreak to hope: The personal story behind Janey's 600km run

One of the most moving parts of our conversation was discovering why Janey had decided to undertake such an extraordinary physical challenge, particularly as she readily admitted that she wasn't a runner.

Around a year before the challenge, Janey lost her own beloved dog at just five years old.

The grief was overwhelming.

"I can't really explain what happened in the aftermath of that," she told me. "I don't know if it's a midlife crisis or what. I was trying to run away from the grief."

Somewhere within that sadness, the idea of running the length of Sri Lanka began to take shape.

It was an ambitious undertaking for someone who hadn't run regularly for many years, but perhaps it also offered a way to channel an incredibly painful experience into something positive.

There is something deeply moving about transforming personal loss into an opportunity to help others. Anyone who has experienced the death of a much-loved pet knows that grief can be every bit as profound as losing another member of the family.

Janey's response was to turn that love and sadness into action, taking on a challenge that would test her physically and emotionally while raising awareness of the millions of dogs who desperately need veterinary treatment.

As we spoke, she was already hundreds of kilometres into her journey, and despite the exhaustion she must have been experiencing, her enthusiasm remained infectious.

It was difficult not to be inspired.

What Janey Lowes' story teaches us about resilience and purpose

Having watched Janey speak so positively about her work, I wanted to understand how she maintained that outlook while witnessing so much suffering.

Her answer was refreshingly open.

There are difficult days, moments of exhaustion and times when the scale of the problem feels overwhelming. But there are also moments of extraordinary happiness when a critically injured animal recovers, a frightened dog begins to trust again or a patient gets a second chance at life.

"I have the most fulfilling job, in inverted commas, that is possible," she told me. "There's so much loss, which is really, really, really hard, but oh my gosh, the highs are so high."

She explained that knowing she has helped an animal who might otherwise have had no chance of survival gives her an enormous sense of fulfilment.

Janey also believes in approaching her patients with hope and positive energy, particularly during the most difficult moments. While she acknowledges that positivity cannot solve every problem, she feels that maintaining an encouraging atmosphere helps her and her team cope with the emotional demands of their work.

What particularly stayed with me was her belief that the mission is bigger than any individual.

When we find a purpose that genuinely matters to us, challenges that once seemed impossible can begin to feel worth tackling. Resilience doesn't necessarily mean never feeling tired, sad or overwhelmed. Sometimes it simply means finding a reason to continue despite those feelings.

For Janey, that reason is the dogs.

How can you help Janey Lowes and WECare Worldwide?

Janey's Dog Jog is not just about one woman running hundreds of kilometres. It is an invitation for animal lovers everywhere to become part of something much bigger.

WECare Worldwide is a registered UK charity, number 1162386, and relies on donations and fundraising to continue providing veterinary treatment to Sri Lanka's street dogs.

There are several ways to make a difference:

1. Donate to Janey's Dog Jog. Support the hospital fundraising appeal through Janey's official JustGiving page. Donations of any size contribute towards the charity's plans for expanded veterinary care.

2. Make a monthly donation. Regular donations help the charity plan treatment programmes and meet ongoing costs. Visit the WECare Worldwide donation page to support its work.

3. Sponsor a dog. Help care for one of the charity's resident dogs through WECare's sponsorship options.

4. Take part in The Dog Jog. You don't have to travel to Sri Lanka to participate. Dog owners can organise a sponsored dog walk, take on a running challenge or raise money in their local community. Find out more through the official Dog Jog fundraising campaign.

5. Spread the word. Share Janey's story with friends, family, dog walkers, veterinary professionals and fellow animal lovers. Raising awareness can help the charity reach new supporters.

Can small donations really make a difference to street dogs?

Yes. Even relatively modest donations can contribute to the veterinary services that WECare provides.

The charity's JustGiving page gives examples of what different donations could support:

• £10 could fund ten rabies vaccinations.

• £25 could fund a dog neutering procedure through its mobile programme.

• £50 could contribute towards emergency treatment for a severely injured dog.

• £20 a month could help feed a hospital patient for a week.

These examples demonstrate how individual contributions can support practical, essential care. While the ambition of building a new hospital requires substantial funding, ongoing donations are equally important for the charity's day-to-day work.

Make a donation to WECare Worldwide

One woman, three million street dogs and an extraordinary determination to make a difference

As our interview came to an end, I found myself reflecting on the extraordinary things people are capable of when they discover something they care deeply about.

Janey had already run hundreds of kilometres, yet there she was, smiling, laughing and talking passionately about the animals she hoped to help. Her resilience was remarkable, but what moved me most was her genuine sense of purpose.

She didn't speak about becoming famous or achieving some extraordinary sporting accolade. She spoke about helping dogs, building a hospital and creating a future where animals don't have to suffer simply because they were born somewhere without access to veterinary care.

It reminded me that making a difference doesn't always require us to do something enormous ourselves. We don't all have to leave our careers, move countries or run the equivalent of multiple marathons. Sometimes the most meaningful contribution we can make is helping someone else achieve something extraordinary.

If you're reading this with your own dog curled up beside you, perhaps take a moment to consider the animals who aren't fortunate enough to have