DROWNING, a method used by the Cagayan de Oro City Veterinary Office (CVO) to euthanize stray dogs, is illegal according to animal rights advocates.

Luis Buenaflor Jr. of the Animal Kingdom Foundation Inc. said the CVO, which is in-charge of the City Pound, has "violated almost all provisions" in the Animal Welfare Act of 1998.

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He said CVO officials can be held liable under the law.

"Lahat ng kanilang ginagawa mali. Sa animal facilities pa lang ng City Pound, lagpak na (Everything they are doing is wrong. Their failure can be seen even on the facilities at the City Pound)," said Buenaflor, who is also a member of the technical working group of the Committee on Animal Welfare of the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI).

Buenaflor was in Cagayan de Oro last week to head the fact-finding group that investigated the alleged illegal practices of the CVO in disposing of stray dogs.

The Committee on Animal Welfare, a multi-sectoral body tasked to oversee the compliance of Animal Welfare Act, learned of the CVO's practice of drowning dogs in Sun.Star Cagayan de Oro's series of reports last August.

Chief City Veterinarian Perla Asis said they immediately stopped using the method after getting flak from different animal welfare groups in Manila -- including Buenaflor's group.

Asis explained that they resorted to such method because of budgetary constraints.

They now use, she said, a wooden gas chamber to euthanize stray dogs.

But Buenaflor said the procedure remains questionable because wooden materials burn the dogs before they die of suffocation, making the process painful.

The Animal Welfare Act, he said, allows only painless forms of euthanasia for animals.

Animal facilities inside the CVO and City Pound were also found wanting, said Buenaflor, who conducted ocular inspections early this month.

Citing an example, he said the City Pound's holding area for animals was found to be neither adequate nor unsanitary -- in violation of Sections 2 and 4 of the Animal Welfare Act.

He suspected that animals living under these conditions might have been euthanized almost immediately after they were seized.

The law, he said, gives pet owners three days to reclaim their animals.

Buenaflor said the Committee and Animal Welfare would assess the findings and may recommend administrative charges against Asis and other CVO officials if they are found guilty of disregarding the provisions under the Animal Welfare Act and the Anti-Rabies Law.

For more Philippine news, visit Sun.Star Manila.

(November 24, 2008 issue)
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