PAWS files animal cruelty complaint vs Manila City Pound officials

The Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) filed an animal cruelty complaint against officials of the Manila City Pound for allegedly cramming 60 cats into a 2 x3 foot cage and subjecting the animals to starvation and dehydration.

In a Facebook post, PAWS further claimed that sick and injured cats and dogs in the pound were not provided veterinary treatment, including one severely disfigured dog missing the right half of its face.

"The number of diseased, dying, and dead animals the Complainants observed within the facility, as well as social media reports showing the empty cages of the Manila Pound shortly after the imposition of the Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) indicated that the animals were not euthanized but were left to die from neglect and disease 'perhaps to spare the City of the expense of having to euthanize them,'" the animal welfare group said.

The respondents will face charges of violation of the Animal Welfare Act or RA 8485 (as amended by RA 10136) as well as charges of grave misconduct, gross neglect of duty, and conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service, as punished by the Revised Rules on Administrative Cases in the Civil Service (RRACCS).

PAWS Executive Director Anna Cabrera said they appealed to Manila Mayor Isko Moreno to help their group uphold the Animal Welfare Act.

"While we lodged the case before the Ombudsman, we trust that Mayor Isko would take urgent action and stop the ongoing inhumane practices towards animals being committed by the officials in charge of Manila’s very own city pound."

GMA News Online has sought comment from the Manila City government through the Manila PIO, which had yet to respond as of posting time. — DVM, GMA News