Kapon and Care

BACOLOD. Spaying and neutering are surgical procedures done under anesthesia to remove reproductive organs of animals.
BACOLOD. Spaying and neutering are surgical procedures done under anesthesia to remove reproductive organs of animals.

THE greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way in which its animals are treated. This quote is usually attributed to Mahatma Gandhi, but no matter who said it, it is something we need to think about.

That is, if we all agree that humans are not the only important residents of this planet. Awareness of that basic notion that other species matter as much as we do is so vital, that without it, we do not survive. In our often anthropocentric worldview, perhaps we will care only when something could impact our human lives. Do we care about stray dogs and cats? Maybe we care about getting bitten and infected with rabies by strays, so we would act on making sure that does not happen.

But what is often forgotten is that the overpopulation of unwanted or abandoned pets (mostly cats and dogs) out in the streets is not a reason to hate these animals, or worse, to be cruel to them. They are mere victims of irresponsible pet ownership, which I think circles back to the anthropocentric view that animals are here solely to be in our service. Stray populations exist because of cruelty, to begin with, and it is so inhumane that sometimes the only solution we could think of is a final act of cruelty – to kill them.

Getting educated by Bacolod City’s nonprofit Community Animal Rescue Efforts (Care) would bring out other solutions, and we need to make these efforts mainstream until it becomes embedded in our culture. I had the honor to meet noble Care volunteers Tonette Chavez, Aiai Gamboa, and Cherry Cha in November and I’m here to share what I learned from them.

First, we need to talk about responsible pet ownership. We need to make sure families in our community understand that adopting a pet dog or cat is a responsibility. We cannot just treat them like material gifts or household accessories. Although they need to have collars (so they do not get taken away as strays), we need to remember they are living beings, and we build deep relationships with them. They become part of our family. Once we have this mindset, we will never abandon them and leave them out in the streets.

Second, when strays reproduce, their populations explode and it costs money, time, and effort for the society to manage this issue. In a time of seven years, one unwanted female dog can produce 508 unwanted puppies, while one unwanted female cat can produce 4,948 unwanted kittens. Stray populations of dogs and cats pose threats to public health and safety. The government is required, as part of social services mandated by law, to capture stray animals, keep them in pounds, and kill them when after a period of time nobody claims or adopts them. The killing of dogs and cats in pounds cause outrage all the time, and so we need to realize that controlling their population by removing their capacity to reproduce offspring is a more humane approach.

Care advocates spaying and neutering for both pets currently in households’ care, and strays rescued from the streets. Last November 4, Care held a Free Kapon with a team of volunteer veterinary doctors, veterinary nurses, and assistants that they have flown in from Manila, after coordinating with Li-An Ascalon of Help Mandaluyong Animal Shelter Dogs (Help MAS Dogs). The event was also attended by other animal welfare advocacy groups like the Strategic Power for Animal Respondents – Philippines (Spar), Bacolod Aspin Rescue Kennel (Bark), and the PAWssion Project.

For 16 straight hours, at the Care Clinic in Kametal, Mandalagan, the team was able to spay and neuter 49 cats and 51 dogs, and have prevented an estimate of 2,000 unwanted pregnancies. This, in turn, prevents more resources to be wasted on managing overpopulation of strays.

“Kapon” is a term in our dialect, and its proper meaning is the surgical procedure under anesthesia removing the animals’ reproductive organs (spaying for females, or neutering for males). These procedures are considered to be the most sustainable management interventions to prevent the public health and safety issues brought out by stray dogs and cats. We prevent rabies cases too, as stay numbers decrease, and as spayed or neutered animals become less aggressive. We also prevent or manage imbalance in food chains of urban ecosystems in the process.

We should commend Care for their Free Kapon program; thank you to all the volunteers of CARE for the work you do, and to Dr. Candice “Spay Bae” Solis (head surgeon,) Dr. Mayem Yao, Dr. Tisha Canzon, Dr. Daphne Gelera, Li-an Ascalon, Mike Magpantay, Jaz Aquino, Manuel Ramos, Jonie Mariano, Mac Millares, and all the sponsors for making the 1st Free Kapon Program possible. Care also has other activities like the Bacolod Animal Welfare Awareness Week (Bawaw) and Asong Pinoy (Aspin) Training Challenges. People can learn more about Bacolod’s Care by liking their Facebook @CAREBacolod.

But aside from commending animal welfare groups, a better action is to do our part by asking our government for programs like spaying and neutering to be more accessible, by putting more resources to it than just catching strays and killing them in pounds. We can also sponsor, donate, or volunteer for spaying and neutering efforts. We also need to take our own pets to be spayed and neutered if they haven’t been. It is humane and responsible to do so.

Lastly, rescuing a dog and cat or adopting one from the shelter, and making sure they are spayed/neutered when ready, would be a good practice of our humanity. I have questions about the ethics of pet breeding, and with Care, I understood that adopting rescue cats or dogs is the best way to choose a non-human companion or friend. I finally felt that it is time for me to take care of a rescue cat. I want to adopt and call others to do the same if they are absolutely sure they are committed to that other living being.

I feel that my own moral progress will be measured by how I treat a non-human companion, and so I am looking forward to learning how to be a better person through a journey with a rescue cat that I will soon welcome to my life. Hopefully, this will also inspire you to share your rescue pet story or start one.

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