A Sunday of pet blessings
It’s October one of the biggest months as far as animal welfare groups are concerned. Let’s see, there’s the feast of pet patron saint Francis of Assisi, which also coincides with World Animal Day.
It is also a good time to consider adopting a pet, if you want to get another one, or if you want to get your first one. PAWS also calls for animal lovers to be more responsible.
Here are some suggestions from PAWS:
1. Adopt from an animal shelter or from a rescue group. In Metro Manila, the PAWS Animal Rehabilitation Center on Aurora Blvd., QC is a great place to visit and look at the many animals in need of loving homes.
2. Spay or neuter your pet or sponsor the sterilization of an indigent pet owner’s pet. This is the surest way you can help the cause of animal welfare as this cuts down on the number of unwanted dogs and cats who are the foremost victims of cruelty and neglect.
3. Lobby with your local government officials to subsidize the spay-neuter of pets in a particular community. Many happy owners will find that they have pets that are better behaved, healthier and not having unwanted puppies or kittens.
4. Teach by example. By being a responsible pet owner and taking good care of your own pet, you become a wonderful ambassador for animal welfare.
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The weekend starts off with the Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) two-day event. The first event will be held today at the Mall of Asia where “The Great Dog Dash,” a fun race for small dogs (16 inches and below) will kick off at 3 p.m.
Pet owners who want their little doggies to join the event can register at the PAWS booth at the Mall of Asia Music Hall between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. Make sure you bring along your pets’ updated vaccination papers. After the fun with the doggies there will be a free concert, “Voices for the Voiceless,” featuring performances by animal-loving artists at 5 p.m.
The event is held in cooperation with SM Mall of Asia, Alpo, Friskies and Koko Krunch.
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The annual pet blessing will be held tomorrow at the Eastwood City Open Park at 5 p.m. For anyone who would like to join the procession of the life-size statue of the animal-loving saint around Eastwood with your pets, must be at the Fountain Area (Eastwood City New Mall) at 3:30 p.m.
The event is co-sponsored by Pet One and Frontline Plus and The Philippine STAR Pet Life Section.
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On Oct. 3, Monday at the Discovery Suites, Pasig City, animal welfare groups will come together in a conference that will serve as a platform for the exchange of ideas among these groups to enable them to help more animals.
The Philippine Animal Advocates Conference for Transformation (PAACT) is organized by three of the leading animal welfare groups in our country namely Animal Kingdom Foundation (AKF), Compassion and Responsibility for Animals (CARA) and The Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) with support from The International Fund for Animal Welfare or (IFAW).
“We’re very happy because more than 10 animal welfare groups from as far as Palawan and Cebu have already confirmed their participation. We believe that big or small, old or new; animal welfare groups can learn a lot from each other,” said Luis Buenaflor, external affairs director of AKF.
The animal welfare front has changed considerably over the past 13 years since the Animal Welfare Act (RA 8485) was signed into law. There are now many animal welfare organizations that are trying to make a difference by alleviating animal suffering through rehabilitating, re-homing and spaying-neutering of animals.
The conference will discuss topics that are important to all animal welfare organizations such as animal welfare legislation in the Philippines, innovative techniques for humane education, successful spay-neuter and sheltering programs and how to establishing disaster-relief and evacuation programs for animals.
PAACT is part of the Philippine World Animal Day celebration and will also be attended by some representatives from the government and veterinary schools.
