A heartening letter from an animal lover

This joke was texted to me by a friend:

A boy in a mall swallows a coin. His mother cries for help. A lady appears, pats the boy on the back, he coughs and spits out the coin.

Mother: “I don’t know how to thank you, Doctor.”

Lady: “I am not a doctor. My name is Kim Henares and I know how to make people cough out their money.”

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It is heartening to know that there are people in the Philippines who love animals, to balance those who are cruel to them. I received a lot of comments, some from overseas, on my columns on how to be responsible pet owners. This one, from a resident of Tierra Pura, Diliman, Quezon City, who does not want to be identified, is typical of the letters:

I have read your two columns about how to be responsible pet owners, and I very much agree with you that those who want to have dogs or cats as house pets should indeed know the conditions that they are getting into.

Yes, they have to know not just to love these dogs and cats while they are still puppies and kittens, but also to love them even when they grow old, to their dying day.

I never did like dogs or cats or any kind of animal before but, at a late stage, I have learned to love three dogs that became my house pets. I hope you do not mind if I tell you a brief story on how I got into loving these dogs.

Hannah, the pet poodle, a runt I got as a graduation gift for my granddaughter in elementary school, would usually be brought to my home every weekend, when the grandchildren would come to visit me. Hannah would keep following me and would try to lick my feet, and I would shoo her away. She would then just run back a little and then would continue following me.

One time, my granddaughter put her on my lap, and even if I did not like it, I just left it sitting on my lap and looking up at me. Then she curled up and slept. That was the first time I ever patted a dog, letting my hand run through her fur from head to tail.

This happened for maybe two or three weekends. Hannah seemed to like staying in the house and did not want anymore to go back with my granddaughter to their house, which is just a block away from mine.

Hannah would make the funny sound of crying and tears would appear in her eyes when she would be taken away. My granddaughter noticed this and asked, “Mamita, do you like Hannah?”

I replied, “I do not know, but she seems to like it here with me.” So starting that day, Hannah was left with me and never did she want to be taken away from my house.

As a replacement, I gave my granddaughter another pet poodle, also a runt. The same thing happened, as they would bring her to my house to play with Hannah. She also did not want to go back with my granddaughter. So I told her that it would be good to leave her so that Hannah would have a playmate.

Suki, the Maltese, was a different story. Many times, she would escape from my daughter’s house and play with the other dogs here. My oldest son has three dogs, although they are confined in their yard just across the alley from my house. My second son also has four dogs.

My daughter at present has eight dogs and sometimes around 20 cats in their house, and she rescues dogs and cats that she would find left on the street dying, many of which she nurtures to better health. She posts their pictures on Facebook, and friends would learn that she wants to have them adopted by responsible families. And they get adopted.

My daughter is a member of a dog and cat rescue organization, for which reason she picked up from the street a dirty and almost blind kitten that had been brutalized by cruel owners. Now, after her eyes were treated, she has become a very beautiful and lovable cat.

I also then had a big dog named Brutus, a black Labrador. He died recently at the age of 11 due to kidney problems. We had him cremated and we keep his ashes in an urn in the house.

And yes, as you said, all these animals need as much care as any human. They need the right kind of food, a comfortable mat to sleep on, and regular vaccinations every year, particularly against rabies. They also have to be taken to a vet when they get sick. Even if it is just a stomach problem. They need to be body-scratched and cuddled. They need to be bathed two or three times a week and groomed once every two weeks.

This is how we should treat our house pets. That is how to be a responsible pet owner. I hope that many animal lovers and irresponsible pet owners would read your columns so that they would know what they are getting into before they take pets home. Your columns should also be read by people who are not pet owners but who are cruel to animals, so that they know that they can be put in jail for that.

I wish animal rescue organizations remain steadfast in their advocacy to care for unwanted dogs and cats which are often left in places away from home in the belief that they would never be able to find their way back, or left to die in dumpsites or the streets. I wish responsible pet owners would give assistance to animal rescue organizations.

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While all the dogs mentioned in the reader’s letter happen to be purebreds, I would like to add that Aspins (asong Pinoy or native dogs) are as good and maybe even better pets. They are as cute and lovable, are loyal, easier to train, and more resistant to disease. Filipinos should have Aspins and Puspins (pusang Pinoy or native cats) as pets.

In a perfect world, all pet owners are responsible and caring, and the dog and cat pounds are empty. No dog or cat roams the streets. There is no rabies. Is that too much to ask for?