By Heather Walker (Communications Officer)
04 Feb 2011

Today’s first stop is to talk to one of the brick kiln workers , Ahmed, who is 17 years old and works at a kiln in Helwan province, 40 kms south of Cairo.

While most boys of 17 in the UK are in education, Ahmed has never been to school ; he’s been working full-time in the brick kilns since he was 12. Despite his hardships, he is very upbeat and smiley, happy to be interviewed. He says he enjoys his job as he’s working with his friends. It makes you wonder what teenagers in the UK complain about.

He gets up at 5.30am and is in the brick kiln by 7am, driving donkey carts after giving them a drink and harnessing them up. “The animals in this factory are in a very good condition. The owner asks us never to beat or overload them. We can use two animals rather than one if we need to.

He said it was difficult when the drying area was so far away from the furnace because he had to drive longer distances. “It’s more difficult to work in the summer than the winter as it’s much hotter and we work longer hours,” he said. “If the cart is big, then we increase the load and if it’s small then we have a smaller weight.

After about five minutes chatting, his boss arrives and tells Ahmed to go back to work. He’s told to redouble his efforts to make up for the time he’s spent talking to us. So we leave and move on to see the brick kiln owner.

Sheikh Ali is sitting in his air conditioned office on a nice comfy sofa….we’re offered cool lemonades. He tells us he’s in the middle of building a mechanised factory using lots of employees but no animals. He credits the Brooke with building strong relationships with his workers and encouraging them to practice good animal welfare. He says he tells his workers not to beat their animals and to use two animals instead of one.

“Animals are part of life and their lives are just as important as the lives of people,” he says.

It’s good to see good animal welfare practices in operation as a result of the Brooke’s work.

We go to the stables and talk to Sherif, who looks after 12 donkeys and nine mules. He’s worked in the brick kilns for nine years now. “This factory is better than the one I used to work in because they are using mules and donkeys in better condition,” he says.

“When I started eight years ago the condition of the animals was not as good as it is now. There’s definitely been a decrease in the amount of wounds.” Sherif has built up a good relationship with Brooke vets who have taught him how to treat minor wounds on donkeys and mules. If he can’t treat an animal, he phones the mobile veterinary team and they usually arrive the same day.

“I became a stableman by chance. I came to this area looking for any job I could find and got this.  It is easy compared to loading bricks, but still, there is a big responsibility with looking after the animals. “The reason I am believed to be one of the best stablemen here is because the positive impact I have had on the animals. Previously there was a high mortality rate. When I joined, I changed this and now it’s obvious that the animals are in better condition.  Dr Ammr from the Brooke was there to teach me about animal welfare.

“The most common problems are beating wounds but I keep asking people to stop beating the animals and to not use sticks at work because I don’t like to see the animals wounded. Dr Ammr gave me with a first aid kit so that I can perform minor treatment on wounds, if he is not here.”

Sherif’s two children poke their faces through gaps in the stable wall attached to the house where they live, on-site. I meet them after the interview and they are so joyful and happy, running around barefoot in the rubbish without a care in the world.

Today has been physically and mentally exhausting but only serves to spur me on. Tomorrow I will be following a mobile veterinary team for a day as they treat donkeys and mules in more brick kilns across Helwan.

Check out the photo gallery on Flickr or visit the Brooke website