Amidst the whirlwind of emotions Robyn Thomson has grappled with since this past summer, disbelief remains the most persistent. “You never think it would happen to you,” Robyn reflected. “You don’t really think it happens to anyone.”

This disbelief stems from the tragic loss of her mother, Yvonne Ford. After a seemingly uneventful trip to Morocco in February, where Yvonne enjoyed the warmth and hospitality of the country, her life took an unforeseen turn. While basking in the Moroccan sun, a trivial interaction with a puppy left a small scratch—a scratch with consequences far greater than anyone could have imagined.

The months following Yvonne’s holiday passed without incident, giving no hint of the lurking danger. It wasn’t until June that the first signs of illness appeared, initially resembling a common flu. However, the symptoms quickly intensified, with severe headaches and fever escalating to the point where the 59-year-old could no longer walk or eat.

As a trained nurse, Robyn was at a loss. The cause of her mother’s rapidly declining health puzzled her as well as the medical professionals involved. By the time Yvonne was hospitalized and diagnosed with rabies, it was too late to intervene effectively.

“It didn’t feel real,” Robyn recounted, her mind struggling to reconcile the fatal outcome with the innocuous scratch. “I remember thinking it had to be something else; she hadn’t been bitten or attacked.”

Yvonne’s passing on June 11 marked her as only the seventh person in the UK to succumb to rabies since 2000. Rabies, a virus transmitted through saliva that leads to brain inflammation, claims around 60,000 lives annually worldwide, with the disease being nearly invariably fatal once symptoms manifest. In honor of her mother, Robyn has vowed to contribute to efforts aimed at eradicating rabies deaths by 2030.

Yvonne, a Barnsley native, died in hospital in Sheffield. “They have an infectious diseases specialist area and one of the consultants there knows the CEO from Mission Rabies,” Robyn said. “He got in touch with me and asked if I was interested in doing anything with their group and I just said absolutely. It felt like something I had to do, I felt like I needed to do something to help and make a difference.”

Partnering with Mission Rabies, Robyn has committed herself to travelling abroad and immunising dogs in countries where the disease is prevalent. She believes that because “it’s on the other side of the world, people don’t care that much, you don’t see it in the newspapers or on the TV because it doesn’t affect people here. But it affects people somewhere and that’s why we’re doing this.”

Her first stop was Cambodia, where she and her husband, Andrew, volunteered in October. The goal, the couple say, is to immunise 70% of the local dog population, which should break the cycle of transmission. It was a lot of work, but the couple kept themselves motivated by seeing who could deliver the most vaccines each day.

“It became a bit of a challenge to see who could get the most dogs done between us,” said Robyn, who could not recall who won. “It’s a bit of a blur because we did so many. We had a target this year that was 10,000 dogs in one day, which we achieved, and it’s a record for the most dogs ever immunised in one area.”

The couple’s plan to visit Malawi next year is dependent on fundraising, but Robyn hopes that, in memory of her mother, they have created a new annual tradition.

“I’d love it to be a thing we do every year, helping different people every time,” she said. “I want to turn what happened into a positive, and I want to help people like Mum.”

Luke Gamble, the chief executive of Mission Rabies who first contacted Robyn, has lauded the work that she and her husband have done, and praised them for turning their grief into something that helps other people.

“Both Robyn and Andrew have been an inspiration to all of us. They worked tirelessly and were a huge asset to the charity,” he said. “This isn’t easy work – it’s going door to door, from dawn until dusk in intense heat, to reach every dog we can. I’m so incredibly grateful to them and all the other amazing volunteers who make this possible.”