And homes for all

MANILA, Philippines - The inherent kindness of men is all the more felt during the holiday season. Many people go out of their way feeding street children every Christmas Day. There are individuals, however, who go beyond the streets, searching far and wide — under the bridges, inside cemeteries, in densely populated communities — to feed stray animals. Yes, they become Santa Clauses to cats and dogs as they bring them food, company and joy.

For Weng Suzara, an animal advocate, this activity of feeding stray animals is just a natural order of the day. In fact, last Dec. 25, together with other animal lovers, she roamed around town to give food to wandering four-legged creatures in the city. She also visited the Mandaluyong Animal Shelter, founded in 2009 in Barangay Addition Hills, and treated almost a hundred dogs to a sumptuous carnivorous Christmas lunch. These dogs have found a home, no matter how sordid their conditions may be, after they were rescued from the streets or turned over by their “masters” who found them unnecessary in their lives anymore.

Last Christmas was not the first time her selflessness surfaced for the welfare of the dogs at the Mandaluyong Animal Shelter, whose jurisdiction is under the city of Mandaluyong. Truth is, since March this year, Weng’s weekends have been non-negotiable for they belong to the dogs at the shelter where she is a volunteer.

“I never miss a weekend coming to the shelter. I am here from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. The dogs here have become an extension of me, of my life, of my family,” says Weng, a civil servant at an international establishment geared towards uplifting the people’s economic condition.

In many ways, Weng also aims to uplift the “economic condition” of the aspins at the shelter. It does not take a genius to know that the animals at the shelter are wanting of love and care. Weng knows that the amount of love and sacrifice she puts in every weekend is not enough. She is just as grateful that the Mandaluyong Animal Shelter has voluntary support from other altruistic core volunteers like Lian Ascalon, Rebekah Synder (American), Judy Lim (Taiwanese), Okobeta Fay (Australian), Mel Roquim and her daughter Eleska and Jesse Rubi. Even Weng’s two children, Justine, 16, and CJ, 17, are so much involved in volunteering their services just to make sure the animals will be taken care of properly.

“We feed the dogs at the shelter. We bathe them. We wash the cages, we clean the matting. We play with them. We do everything we can do for the dogs,” says Weng, a certified dog lover since she was a kid. She has 10 dogs at home. She and her children continue to adopt stray dogs and cats. She is also involved in animal rescue after her meaningful experience of rescuing a puspin in a tunnel on EDSA some 10 years ago. She is a volunteer-coordinator for the Philippine Animal Rescue Team. Her first volunteer work was with PAWS.

 When dogs get into a fight, Weng and the other volunteers at the shelter risk their limbs, if not their lives, in assuaging the conflict between fanged animals. Conflicts among animals are inevitable because five to six dogs share a cage at the shelter.  The ideal number is three to four dogs in a cage. After the alpha dog wins in the fight, Weng finds herself cleaning up the blood scene. She only does that after attending to the wounds of the dogs. “If the fighting is too bloody to handle, we rush them to the nearby clinic.” The nearby private clinic is the MAZE Clinic manned and owned by veterinarian Maricel Licuanan-Ressureccion.  “She is a very compassionate animal doctor. Our agreement with her is ‘pay when able.’ We get to pay her when we get a sponsor, when we get a donation,” Weng clarifies.

If the city government will give adequate funding for the shelter, the volunteers will find it a breeze to take care of the animals. For now, however, they do the legwork of sourcing some more nourishment for the dogs. The volunteers not only give their time to take care of the dogs in the shelter, they also share their resources. And when their resources are not enough, necessity — of the dogs — forces them to go around the city in search of carenderias to source for scraps or leftovers.

But the kindness of animal lovers always warms the heart of Weng and the other core volunteers at the Mandaluyong Animal Shelter. Though it is not an everyday happenstance, there are generous souls who sponsor anti-rabies vaccines. Others give deworming vaccines and other medicines. Some help in the spaying and neutering of the dogs at the shelter. Dog food donors also abound. Others shoulder the expenses for the dogs’ microchips, which serve as the lifetime identification of the animals in the shelter. Even building security guards and janitors help in making dog tags for free. Weng can only pray that a thousand and one more sponsors and volunteers will come forward to help them help the animals at the shelter.

“I admit that from time to time, as a volunteer, I suffer from compassion fatigue,” says Weng. But she always catches herself and does not give in to her emotions. “I get up and shake my depression. If I don’t volunteer anymore to taking care of these dogs, that would mean one less person to take care of them.” She has a point. The Mandaluyong Animal Shelter, originally a pound, has a male caretaker. But he alone cannot do the job.

“I cried the first time I came here at the shelter early this year,” Weng says. Her heart becomes heavy every time a new dog is surrendered by the owner to the shelter. “It is my dream that many people will adopt dogs from the shelter. Please adopt dogs. Don’t shop,” she rues. “Adopt dogs from the shelter. Give them a chance.”

For those who will adopt dogs from the Mandaluyong Animal Shelter, the adopting partner is first interviewed and is accorded with a home visit by the core volunteers. He or she is also asked to come to the shelter to interact with the dogs, particularly to the animal he or she is keen on adopting.

 â€œI really have compassion for animals. I guess I was born with two hearts. My second heart is for animal advocacy,” Weng says.

Weng, selfless as she is, dreams for the animals at the shelter, too. She knows one day, when the right forces intervene or a multitude of sponsors, volunteers and adopting partners take the necessary steps in assuring the everyday welfare of the animals, her dreams of a good life for her four-legged friends will materialize. 

Hope floats. Even for the animals at the Mandaluyong Animal Shelter. And with animal advocates like Weng Suzara, there will always be Christmas —  even every day — for the dogs who have found a home at the shelter.

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E-mail the author at bumbaki@yahoo.com.