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From August 15 to 22, 2024, the College of Veterinary Medicine at JNU, led by Dean Cheong Jong-tae, conducted animal treatment volunteer work in Ulaanbaatar and surrounding areas of Mongolia during the summer vacation. Additionally, the Mongolian government's Veterinary Bureau, led by Director of Veterinary Affairs Dr. Narantuya, invited the JNU volunteer group to the government building to express gratitude for their medical volunteer work over the past decade and to discuss future cooperation. The group also visited the Moriton Horse Specialty Animal Hospital, Mongolia's only horse hospital, where JNU Professor Jeong Hyo-hoon, head of the JNU Horse Specialty Hospital, had the opportunity to exchange clinical knowledge and share insights on medical treatment with their Mongolian counterparts.

The volunteer activities spanned four days and involved three teams of 10 members each: the Large Animal Team (led by Professor Jeong Hyo-hoon), Small Animal Team 1 (led by Professor Kim Myung-chul), and Small Animal Team 2 (led by Professor Cheong Jong-tae). The Large Animal Team treated 77 horses, the primary livestock in Mongolia. Small Animal Team 1 focused on vaccination, parasite prevention, and treatment of dogs and cats at abandoned animal shelters, while Small Animal Team 2 performed neutering surgeries on 22 dogs and cats.

Given the location of the horse breeding ranches and abandoned animal shelters—mostly situated outside Ulaanbaatar—travel to these sites took over an hour. The lack of standardized treatment facilities posed additional challenges. Nevertheless, the JNU volunteer group successfully carried out their work by leveraging their previous experience.

The success of JNU's medical volunteer activities in Mongolia was significantly supported by generous donations of free drugs and diagnostic reagents from leading domestic animal drug and diagnostic reagent companies, including Dongbang Pharmaceutical Co., Verbac Korea Co., Boehringer Ingelheim Zoological Pharmaceutical Co., BioNotes Co., Korea Elanco Animal Pharmaceutical Co., Zoetis, Green Cross Veterinary Pharmaceutical Co., Samyang Anifarm, Central Vaccine Research Institute, and ELT Science.

Unlike other veterinary universities in Korea, JNU operates both a pet hospital and a horse hospital. Therefore, it was particularly meaningful that a clinical professor specializing in horse medicine helped form the Mongolian medical volunteer group. During the treatment period, active volunteering in both large and small animal care was carried out.

All participating students, including Kim Ki-hyun, a fourth-year veterinary student, found the experience highly rewarding. They valued the opportunity to engage in direct animal treatment under the guidance of professors and graduate students while also gaining insight into the traditional Mongolian lifestyle.

JNU continues to expand its medical volunteer activities each year, building on the experiences gained from the past decade of volunteer work in Mongolia. This ongoing commitment enhances both Korea's and JNU's reputations. Based on this year's experience, further advancements in JNU's volunteer activities are anticipated.