OFTEN we rescue strays and we don't know what happened to them, what life they had been living, bad experiences they had encountered, how many people had hurt them, and the unforgettable monstrous traumas they had gone through before they were rescued and given new shelter.
Boomer is a 10-year-old senior dog that has been at the shelter since 2016 when she was rescued and brought by one of the original rescuers (OGs) and animal welfare advocates of the city. She has been at the Community Animal Rescue Efforts Inc. (Care) shelter for years before the rest of the other rescues arrived.
Days, months, and years passed, hundreds of people visited while she waits at the corner trying to charm her way through their hearts, hoping and wishing that they would pick and adopt her.
She aged at the shelter while looking at the other dogs get adopted. She had lost hope that someone someday would love her.
We have only several non-government organization shelters which are personally owned and that rely only on donations and their financial funding to maintain the daily food supplies and medical expenses of their rescues.
Unfortunately, the community is still unaware of the difference between Bacolod City Pound and the non-government organizations' privately owned shelters. To ease their inconvenience, most of the people still call the Bacolod City pound to surrender or have their dogs or stray dogs impounded expecting that they will be washed off of their responsibilities. Thousands of impounded dogs are euthanized.
Boomer's patience had finally paid off early this year when she finally found a new dad, or so we thought. As they all thanked the adopter for giving Boomer a loving family that will embrace her fully with love and attention throughout her remaining years, unknowingly Boomer became a house guard dog, guarding an empty house only with the security guard at night to accompany her and feed her once or twice a day. She was left throughout the day alone in a big house.
Boomer was adopted on March 7, 2021 (Day 1), and the area was checked by the Shelter Manager, Helen Costo, who advised the adopter to make sure that the gates and fences are well secured as she attempted to bite off the gate to escape.
Boomers adopter has kept it a secret that Boomer was already missing for 3 months. He was reminded to send photos of Boomer for update but failed to send it every time despite messages and calls.
Then May 16, 2021 (Day 71) came. He said he was going to the house where Boomer lives and then reported that Boomer got out of the house and escaped.
Everyone helped looked for Boomer, independent animal welfare advocates, animal welfare groups, and community individuals who were actively sharing her photos, going around looking for her in the last location she was seen. Tina Montinola Monfort has appeared on social media platforms while other individuals offer rewards to find Boomer.
One time, one of the animal welfare advocates Maritess Mendell was driving along Sta. Fe doing her errands she miraculously spotted Boomer and so together with Liza Villanueva and Aiai Gamboa, they rescued her.
After three months Boomer is now safe and back at the shelter where she will be able to enjoy the rest of her senior years together with her friends.
Having the rescue dogs at the shelter and local city pound get adopted helps save more lives and an opportunity for other dogs to be rescued and saved. The reason why we need to have a series of questions and interviews before having our rescues get adopted is to make sure they don't return to the streets neglected and abandoned due to irresponsible pet ownership.
We have seen how strongly the community has worked together on one mission, to make sure Boomer doesn't go back to being a stray dog. Working on one mission and one goal, we found Boomer.