Our plan for KAT’s new Veterinary Hospital
Every month, hundreds of dogs are injured, sick, and in need of our help – we do everything we can but when we reach capacity there is no way that we can help anymore. We still carry out street treatments, but it isn’t the same as having a roof over an animals head and a safe place to recover.
That is about to change. We are expanding in order to better serve the stray animals in Kathmandu.
Our team, as well as the animals living on the streets of Kathmandu, have struggled through many hard years since the Covid pandemic. Through perseverance, hard work, and an amazing team of staff and volunteers, we are now able to take a huge leap – by moving to a larger facility that will provide the space to help even more animals. More space means more flexibility to keep a much greater range of animals from short stays to longer treatments and even permanent residents, for those dogs unable to live in their communities without specialist care.
The new location for KAT’s advanced rescue and treatment hospital is a former school, comprising 10 rooms, 3 outbuildings, and grounds large enough to build a dedicated state-of-the-art treatment block, isolation facilities, and, importantly, a training facility for local students and vets – helping to expand safe and properly managed sterilisation work. This isn’t just about numbers, it’s about quality of care and the high-standards that we feel so strongly about, and which have been the defining feature of our work in Nepal since KAT Centre was founded in 2003 by Jan Salter.
The new hospital will be an oasis in the heart of the city – free from pain and suffering – where animals will be treated, cared for, and loved. Thanks to the high walls and spacious grounds surrounding the school, dogs will have plenty of room to roam and play. Together, we can achieve our founder Jan Salter’s dream of creating a beautiful haven where abused, neglected, and injured animals will be safe and cared for.
This is an incredible opportunity and one that we are very excited about.
We’re asking our friends, families, and animal-loving communities to come together and help us equip this new facility as quickly as we can, so we can start welcoming animals as soon as possible. By the end of 2025, we aim to have already helped 1,000 animals at this facility. They are out there on the streets right now, waiting – and there is no time to lose. Together, we can make an enormous difference.
We believe in this new vision so much that we are inviting our supporters to join us for the grand opening on 20 October 2025.
Double your donation
We are very fortunate to have secured a double donation fund for donations made to support the construction and adaptation of the existing school buildings and grounds. This will apply to any donations made between April 21st and October 20th of 2025 up to a maximum of £25,000. That means for every £10 you donate, we will receive £20 towards the new hospital. In total, £50,000 will be raised, enough to fully equip the new facility and construct all of the required amenities to deliver the quality veterinary care we are so passionate about, with more details below.
The new facility has so much space and potential – providing a bright, clean, safe home for our rescued street dogs for years to come. Our head vet Dr Samir Thapa will be leading on the operational side of the project, while our international trustees from the UK and the USA will be supporting the development strategy.
The main building.
One of the current out-buildings.
Paved grounds ready for construction of additional out-buildings.
Additional land to be used for play and exercise areas.
Progress Updates
We will be keeping you updated on our progress, including through regular updates to the timeline below, which we expect to do every two weeks from April until our grand opening in October 2025.
1 May 2025
Agreeing Lease
We are have currently reserved the plot and agreed a price for the land and the general terms of the lease. We are now working on formalising this with a contract.
June – September 2025
Set-Up and Design of Veterinary Hospital
We will need to make a range of adaptations to the current site and building to make it functional. From ensuring that the walls and fences are dog-proof, to installing kennels and kitting out our treatment and surgery rooms, there will be a lot of work to do. This is the main purpose of our fundraising appeal and the step that we really need help with.
20 October 2025
Grand Opening
We will be holding a grand opening for our supporters and members of the public on 20 October, which is Kukur Tihar in Nepal, the annual religious holiday where dogs are honored across Nepal. If you would like to know more about attending the grand opening please contact us.
Why is the KAT Veterinary Hospital needed?
Every month, over 250 animals in desperate need are reported to the KAT Centre. Both of our current locations have quickly become overwhelmed by the number of cases brought in each day. On average, each case takes 5–8 days to treat. However, we receive 5–10 rescue cases per day, so the numbers are growing exponentially — the number of animals admitted far exceeds the number discharged. The demand for our care is simply more than we can handle.
It’s been heartbreaking for our team to bear. That’s why we’ve all been putting in hundreds of extra hours to try to increase our capacity and turn this dream into a reality — a dream where no animal is left on the streets to suffer.
About the Facility
This former school provides a huge amount of space for the animals to enjoy. We have negotiated a secure 10-year lease to support our ambitious targets:
For us, this isn’t just a bigger building — it’s a transformational step in our mission to build a healthy, happy, and rabies-free stray dog population in Kathmandu. Here’s what your donation will help us create:
Dedicated Isolation Wards – To care for animals with infectious diseases, keeping others safe and preventing transmission to animals on the streets.
Dog Runs and Open Spaces – So rescued animals can stretch, play, and recover peacefully without being confined to small kennels.
Shelter for Long-Term Residents – Some animals need extra time to heal, find homes, or receive ongoing care. This new facility will offer them a beautiful oasis in which to live.
A Separate Puppy Care Zone – A high priority for our vets, this area will be protected by biosecurity measures to safeguard young puppies’ health. In overcrowded shelters, diseases like parvovirus or distemper can easily spread — this zone helps us safely care for more puppies without that risk.
Surgical Training Suites – For local vets and students. A core pillar of our 10-year strategy is to improve the quality of veterinary care nationwide. By training local vets, we can prevent unsafe surgeries and increase the number of safe, successful sterilisations.
Advanced Treatment Centre – Expanding our treatment capacity will allow us to help more animals and offer a higher standard of care for those rescued and brought to KAT.
Cancer Unit Overflow Space – Our cancer unit is currently operating at full capacity and cannot keep up with the estimated 7,500 infected cases across the Kathmandu Valley. The back section of the site will provide space to safely and securely treat an additional 8 cancer cases per month.
