First in his CLASS: Miko

MANILA, Philippines - “We get a lot of calls from people wanting to abandon their pets at the Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) shelter,” says Charlene Laxamana, PAWS shelter administrative officer. “This is not allowed, of course, and we inform people that there are many solutions available to a pet owner who has a biting or ‘misbehaving’ dog. For one thing, there are already many canine behavior-training schools in the country. People also should take steps to create a healthy relationship with their pet right from the start — from the time that they adopt or acquire a dog — by socializing and training their dog or puppy. A dog’s needs do not stop at food, water, shelter and rabies vaccinations.”

What people do not realize is that proper dog training and socialization can reduce the number of dog bites in communities, and create healthier relationships between dogs and owners. This decreases the number of dogs turned in to pounds every year.

In the Philippines, there are no shelters that take in pet abandonments. Only city pounds receive unwanted animals and the often-sad ending is euthanasia for many dogs or an average of 200 dogs in every city.

What PAWS does is try to help pet owners keep their pets by giving information on the many dog-training schools in the country and campaigning tirelessly that a pet is a lifetime commitment, appealing to the public not to buy or take in a pet if they are not prepared to pay for training or learn about training their dog as they spend time with their dog.

“We have to do away with the mentality that dogs are just bantay ng bahay that are to be tied at the gate to guard our houses. This has been the prevailing Pinoy attitude on dogs for the longest time and this has got to change. Dogs need intellectual stimulation and interaction with their owners,” said Anna Cabrera, PAWS executive director.

Perhaps this is why PAWS also puts an emphasis on training and socialization of its shelter dogs, not just physical rehabilitation and putting them in cages. The organization has an active Canine Enrichment Training (CET) team of volunteers, which is responsible for teaching dogs basic obedience and socializing them to make them more adoptable.

Recently, PAWS announced that Mikko, the longest-staying shelter dog — has been awarded the first-ever CLASS (Canine Life and Social Skills) certification in Asia by the Association of Pet Dog trainers.

Mike finished the course with honors with the help of PAWS CET volunteer, John Tangkeko. Mikko is the only dog in Asia, the only dog outside of the US, and only the sixth shelter dog in the world to graduate and get certified.

“We cannot express our pride and joy enough,” says Laxamana. “From his rescue in 2007, Mikko has transformed from a fearful dog who had given up on humans, into an agile, playful, and happy canine with a wide repertoire of skills and tricks.”

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