Dogs electrocuted at Manila pound

Manila Mayor Lito Atienza said yesterday he would ask the local government’s chief veterinarian to explain why electrocution is being used to put down stray dogs being kept at the city pound.

Atienza said he was unaware that the city pound, which is under the office of the city’s Veterinary Inspection Board (VIB), has been using a method other than injection to put the dogs to sleep.

Veterinarian Dr. Jose Diaz heads the VIB.

"It is only now that I am receiving reports from media about the VIB’s alleged use of cruel ways to put the dogs to sleep. We would ask Dr. Diaz to explain. I was not informed, but if there are violations committed then we would investigate," the mayor said.

However, Dr. Manuel Socorro, VIB veterinarian 5, said they were given a one-year permit by the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) to conduct a study on electrocution as a tool to put down dogs.

Dr. Condenio Panogan reportedly conducted the study.

This involved conducting a series of tests wherein the voltage would be set starting at 100 volts and slowly raised to 500 volts.

Since staring the program two months ago, the VIB has put down 100 dogs.

The study is reportedly part of the effort to look for less expensive alternatives to putting down dogs that have not been claimed by their owners after two weeks. The use of lethal injection reportedly costs at P250 per shot and that a dog’s suffering was longer under the method unlike electrocution which only lasts seconds.

The civic group Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) said it was appalled by the "inhumane" treatment of animals.

PAWS volunteer Emil Rabano said he was present during yesterday’s execution and said it took about three seconds to kill the dog. More than 20 dogs were scheduled to be put to sleep.

He said a dog would be placed inside a cage made of wood and metal. The top of the cage would then descend until it pins the animal to the cage floor. High voltage would then be used to kill the dog.

Ramona Consunji, a PAWS director, said that while Manila City Hall was given a permit by BAI to conduct the study, "animals should not suffer unnecessary pain."

PAWS and other veterinary organizations did not agree with the methods being used by the pound in Manila.

Another PAWS director, Ana Cabrera, said they would be sending a letter to Atienza to express their displeasure over the local government’s cruel practice of putting down strays.

They would also send a copy to Diaz and Angel Mateo, who heads the BAI-Animal Welfare Division (AWL).

PAWS lamented that this had to happen in Manila, which two just months ago had hosted the Dog Walk for a Cause on Roxas Boulevard.

Apart from attempting to beating the Guinness record for the most number of dogs to assemble for a cause, the project was also intended to boost the information campaign on animal rights and preventing animal cruelty.

"It’s embarrassing. We received a lot of e-mails applauding the Philippines for the Dog Walk. Now, we kill dogs in an inhumane way. We are going backwards," Cabrera said.

She added that electrocution, next to poisoning, is the second most cruel method in killing a dog.

The Philippine Canine Club Inc. (PCCI), which organized the Dog Walk with the help of PAWS, said 7,469 dogs gathered in Manila and 23 other designated areas in the country for a five-kilometer walk to promote dog welfare and animal rights. Their target was to beat England’s record of 5,017 dogs last year.

PCCI president Byron San Pedro said the Guinness entry was only "incidental" and that their main focus was to create awareness.

"There is an international perception that the Philippines is a dog-eating nation. We want to change that. Hopefully, with the magnitude of this event we would be known as a dog-loving nation," he had said in a previous interview.