Report: 65 dogs rescued in Pampanga

At least 65 dogs, allegedly being transported to northern Luzon to be butchered and sold as meat, were rescued in Pampanga province early on Tuesday. Radio dzBB's Manny Vargas reported that three of the dogs were already dead when they were found packed inside a white van (with plate number XRS-114). The police intercepted the van at the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) and arrested a helper but the driver and another helper eluded arrest. The report cited initial information reaching the Philippine Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals that the van was intercepted near the Angeles, Pampanga exit of the NLEX. The helper arrested was Rolando Maravilla, who had been caught in a similar operation also along the NLEX in Angeles, Pampanga on November 18. Maravilla managed to gain temporary liberty by posting bail, the dzBB report said. The initial investigation showed that the dogs were to be brought to Pangasinan and Baguio City. Maravilla's gang reportedly planned to sell the dogs from P100 to P200 each. The rescued dogs were brought to a shelter in Manila. The police are now looking for the two persons who eluded arrest. The two were not immediately identified. Animal welfare act Republic Act (R.A.) 8485, or the Philippine Animal Welfare Act 1998 prohibits the killing of any animal other than cattle, pigs, goats, sheep, poultry, rabbits, carabaos, horses, deer and crocodiles with exemptions for religious, cultural, research, public safety or animal health reasons. The law seeks to "protect and promote the welfare of all animals in the Philippines by supervising and regulating the establishment and operations of all facilities utilized for breeding, maintaining, keeping, treating or training of all animals either as object of trade or as household pets." It states that it is "unlawful for any person to torture any animal, to neglect to provide adequate care, sustenance or shelter, or maltreat any animal or to subject any dog or horse to dogfights or horsefights, kill or cause or procure to be tortured or deprived of adequate care, sustenance or shelter, or maltreat or use the same in research or experiments not expressly authorized by the Committee on Animal Welfare." – VVP, GMANews.TV