More often than not, my love for my dogs  is met with a few laughs and more ridicule than appreciation. While I don’t want to admit it doesn’t affect me, it does, and sometimes I wish I had more friends, or people around me who feel the same way I do about dogs.

I’m not one to say I’ve loved dogs as a child – I’ve had several bad experiences with dogs (dog chasing me, dog chasing me while I biked, dog barking at me till I nearly curled into a ball on the ground… and the list goes on) and one of them involved needles =( boo.

Last May 20, our dog Pam gave birth to 5 beautiful puppies and in the process of selling them, I couldn’t help but think what the future holds for my puppies. Would their new owners love them as much as we did? Would they still love them after losing their puppy cuteness? Would they ever experience living on the streets as many of their unfortunate comrades have been doing? It breaks my heart to imagine one day, they might be shown the cruelty man is famous for or worse, be the “lucky” pulutan of the night

Which brings me to my first visit to Paws, the animal rehabilitation center in Quezon City.

I’ve been wanting to visit the place for years now, and only had the time to do so a few weeks ago. As you know, I only venture out of the house every so often, so since we would be in the QC area that day, I asked my dad to bring me to PAWS.

Tip: visit the place during the dead hours of the day, or week, unless gusto nyo ma-trap sa traffic ng ateneo, C5, at Marikina.

Of course, I didn’t come to PAWS empty handed. I brought 2 bags of  dry cat food, and 2 bottles of zonrox (the biggest ones).

Tip: PAWS needs your help – in money or in kind. In-kind donations for animal rehabilitation include: Medicines – cat & dog food – food bowls – old towels – collars & leashes – detergent.

Not to sound melodramatic, but I could feel the tears coming when I visited the dog pens. There were 2 – and it was feeding time so you could imagine the dogs jumping, running up and down, waiting for their food. I had 2 major feelings at that moment – happy because they were in a good place, well taken care of, and they were eating dog food!  I felt sad too – everyday these dogs are hoping the next visitor who comes to PAWS would be their brand new parents, so they can start living & loving again.

Don’t forget the cats! There were cats everywhere! On the steps, in the office, and in a separate space of their own. There were 4 kittens up for adoption in the office.

Somehow, knowing PAWS exists gives me comfort there’s a group of good good goooood people rescuing and rehabilitating stray dogs/cats. I know in the event my pets not in my care anymore find themselves abused or left alone to fend for themselves, there’s a group who just might be able to help them(although I told the buyers of the puppies if they can’t take care of the puppies anymore, to just bring them back to us).

“Animal lovers are a special breed of humans, generous of spirit, full of empathy, perhaps a little prone to sentimentality, and with hearts as big as a cloudless sky” – Marley and Me.

I  pray Pinoys would be more responsible with their pets. I’m guilty of that – we didn’t intend to have puppies but we now have 5 adorable puppies chewing my jeans away. I know selling them is against the principles of PAWS(as they espouse adoption), and because of that, we’ve had an agreement here in the house not to have any more puppies. The 2nd step is to get more information on neutering/spaying  our dogs. To be honest, selling my puppies is a very painful, heartbreaking process for me and my family, and we don’t sell for profit.

“Someday, I’ll be able to put up an animal shelter in Las Piñas… “

I’m still hoping I’ll be able to do more for PAWS; whether it’s adopting or making a donation, I’m still not sure. I just know that by writing about PAWS, I’m already showing my support.

PAWS is open from Mondays – Saturdays, 10 am – 5 pm.  Quick, schedule your visit today! You may also visit their website at http://www.paws.org.ph/.