PAWS puts down 16 rescued dogs

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) yesterday said that only 16 dogs earlier rescued from a dogfighting ring were put down Tuesday and their bodies buried in Laguna.

PAWS initially plans to put to sleep some 70 dogs that were victims of dogfights.

“The process is not easy. Before they can be put to sleep, we would have to calm them down first. We stopped when it became dark already. We were only able to put down 16 dogs,” said PAWS executive director Ana Cabrera.

The dogfighting compound in Laguna, which served as the dogs’ jail, also became their final resting place.

Cabrera said that an animal welfare group, Island Rescue Organization (IRO) based in Cebu, would check on the dogs’ condition to determine if some of them could still be rehabilitated.

“The IRO wants to assess the situation and see how many dogs can still be rehabilitated,” said Cabrera.

She said it was not possible to care for all the dogs that were rescued and it would be irresponsible to give away for adoption the animals that have not properly healed.

Roughly 300 dogs were rescued in separate raids in San Pablo City and Calauan, Laguna last Friday.

Seventeen with the worst injuries were put down over the weekend, and the health of the living dogs and the progress of rehabilitating them will determine how many of them will ultimately survive.

Some of the dogs rescued Friday were saved from another facility in Cavite in December, Cabrera said. She said the dogs were “recycled” – adopted by people who resold them to the suspects to continue fighting.

The Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG), in coordination with PAWS personnel, is looking after the remaining dogs in a compound in Laguna.

Cabrera said the 16 dogs were put down in a gentle and humane manner.

“A PAWS veterinarian injected them with sodium pentobarbital that would make them sleepy, then their heartbeat would slow down, they would become unconscious then their heartbeat would stop. This would all happen in a span of less than 60 seconds. They would die in the arms of a PAWS volunteer,” she added.

Welfare society veterinarian Wilford Almora said they selected the most sick, emaciated and aggressive animals to be put down first. Some of the dogs were too weak to stand, he said.

Almora said they were taking time to carefully assess each dog before finally deciding which ones to put to sleep.

Suspects under tight watch

The Department of Justice (DOJ) has issued a lookout bulletin order (LBO) against the eight South Korean nationals arrested for running online dogfighting in Laguna to prevent them from leaving the country. 

Justice Secretary Leila de Lima ordered the Bureau of Immigration to keep a tight watch on the suspects “should any of them pass through immigration counter in any of the international airports or seaports.”

De Lima also directed the Laguna Prosecutor’s Office to apply in court for issuance of a hold departure order (HDO) against Lee Gwi Woo, 21; Jeong Yeon Hwal, 31; Noh Min Chul, 44; Lee Kyung Won, 31; Kim Young Hwan, 29; Hyun Ho Han, 45; Hong Jeong Oh, 43; and Kim Do Kyung, 41.

The DOJ cannot issue HDO due to a temporary restraining order (TRO) by the Supreme Court on DOJ’s Department Circular No. 41, which empowers De Lima to issue HDO.

LBO is the temporary measure of the DOJ to prevent the flight of the suspects. – With Edu Punay, Ed Amoroso, AP