Paws up to Francis M

I will not claim to have known Francis Magalona, although I did see him at quite a few pet events I covered for PetLife. But, if there is one thing I did notice about Francis during these events was his love for his kids and his dogs.

Funny how during these events I never saw the Master Rapper that he was known as. I saw a guy who loved to be with his kids and play with the dogs.

“Dogs are such great companions,” Francis Magalona said. “They don’t complain and they love to play.”

That was the Francis M. I saw. The guy who always asked me to take a shot of his kids and his wife with the doggie instead of him. Although he never said no when we asked him to join the photo. He laughed easily at the antics of his Dachsund Coolie. And smiled even wider when his daughter Clara was not in the mood to be photographed.

“Have you ever taught your dog how to rap?” I asked.

“No,” he said. “But, I should try.”

And then he got up and tried to coax Coolie to do a few steps.

I always got the impression that Francis was having more fun than his kids were during pet events. He genuinely liked dogs — not just his own but any dog for that matter.

After seeing him a couple of times at pet events, we were on smiling terms with each other, and each time, he made sure he said hi to the doggie companion I had brought along to the event.

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Francis, who has the same name as St. Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals, was one of the celebrities that the Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) could easily approach to participate in its fundraising events. I was told by Anna Cabrera of PAWS that Francis loved animals so much he also wanted to help in increasing awareness of animal rights.

 PAWS’ first major attempt to raise funds was through a pet fashion show called ”Furry Tales” in 2004. When invited to the event, it was Francis M and his son, Arkin who were among the first dcelebrities to confirm their participation.

Furry Tales was held at Megamall and true to his word, Francis and his son Arkin showed up with Coolie in tow. The trio came dressed as characters from the movie Lord of the Rings.

Backstage, the Magalona family showed that they were true-blue animal lovers in their conversations with the other human “parents” and by calling out gently to the other canine models as they waited for their turn to go onstage.

The Magalonas also participated in PAWS’ The Great Dog Dash event where they entered their Poodle, Fifi.

Gorby, my Toy Poodle, and I had the opportunity of taking the lane beside Francis, Pia and their kids Arkin and Clara. Our job was to coax our doggies to cross the finish line faster. I had a hard time competing against the Magalonas as they were a family of four who shouted their lungs out for Fifi.

Francis was like that. He put all that he was into everything he was doing at the moment. And, for the Great Dog Dash he was the doting Papa of Fifi, the shy Poodle. Although Fifi did not win the race — the Magalonas had a blast cheering for her.

* * *

I saw the Magalonas in a few more PAWS’ events after that. Francis was always so game to have his family photo taken. He never made it hard for me to get him to pose with his wife, kids and doggie.

“Hirap ng trabaho mo,” he once said. “I was watching you and your photographer trying to get us and the other people and their pets here to pose for the shots.”

And, yes, Francis always had his own camera, taking his own shots.

A few more Furry Tales and Dog Dashes later, PAWS was able to build new structures for animals who were victims of cruelty and neglect from the funds raised from the events.

Francis, Pia, and their kids Elmo, Arkin, and Clara were definitely among those celebrities who helped raise the need for more care for abandoned and neglected animals.