300 pitbulls saved from Philippine dogfighting arena

2:49 pm | Sunday, April 1st, 2012

Manila, Philippines – An animal rights group in the Philippines said Sunday it helped police bust a South Korean syndicate operating a massive dog fighting ring and rescue 300 pitbulls.

Two South Korean nationals and several Filipinos were arrested in the Friday raid at a two-hectare farm in the city of San Pablo just south of the capital Manila, the Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) said.

Many of the dogs were severely injured, with ripped ears and tongues, including 20 that needed to be euthanized, it said.

“This appears to be a large operation and these South Koreans need to be punished,” PAWS program director Anna Cabrera said.

Those arrested were part of the same South Korean group whose operations were busted in December in a nearby province and who later posted bail, PAWS said. About 240 dogs were also rescued in that raid.

“Too many animals have already suffered, and criminals are becoming bolder, taking only two months after arrest to get back into their illegal operations once they have posted bail,” the group said as it urged tougher laws to protect animals.

Those found guilty of animal cruelty can be jailed for between six months and two years, but suspects can go free on bail as the often-lengthy legal process continues.

PAWS said many of the dogs in the latest bust were not properly fed and sheltered, and showed scars and wounds from recent fights. The contests are broadcast online to a betting audience.

A picture released by PAWS on its Facebook page showed one emaciated dog chained to a tree in open grounds. In the background, steel drums were used as dog kennels.

Police were not immediately available for comment.

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Tags: Animals , Dogs , Laws , Philippines

parefrank

It will harden the image of filipinos as being animal torturers who enjoy to see animals being afraid and feeling pain. It is the same at cockfights and whereliving animals are fed to big snakes while a paying crowd is happy to see the cat, pig or dog being squeezed to death while pityful screaming.
It will not stop with a small bail, only with harsh penalties. There are millions of animal loving tourists who avoid such countries. It was shown when Spain had to stop theslaughtering called bullfight where the bull has no chance. With dramatic dwindling tourists, it had to be changed and is now mostly total banned.

1VeritasAequitas

@parefrank, where does this most cruel, gruesome, and inhumane slay of cats, pigs, and dogs take place? Please post it here so that the PAWS, Animal Kingdom Foundation, and other animal welfare gorups will know and be able to save those hapless and helpless animals.

I am glad that there are still many Filipinos, like you, who have compassion and concern for animals unliike the majority of Filipinos, who is so very cruel and abusive of these most unfortunate creatures…
.

Victoria

Shameful! I’m guessing that these SoKor are of the same pack that were caught trying to export St Bernard puppies from NZ to Korea for human food consumption. What a low-life bunch!
OlliuQ

These people should be put not in jail but in cage together with the pitbull. Or maybe not it is shameful for pitbull because this kind of people are worst than animal.
Ommm

Tourists to the Philippines should well consider a country that turns a blind eye to cockfights,dogfights and animal cruelty does not place a high value on human life either….

1VeritasAequitas

@Ommm, there is a grim truth in your statement. The Philippines is populated by mostly cruel, greedy, and violent people, so crimes, mostly heinous and in such tremendous numbers, happen everyday in this forsaken and accursed country. The cruelty of Filipinos to animals is unparalleled and unspeakable.
And yet our government officials and most of the Filipinos do not care about such cruelty and violence. What are the Senators, Congressmen, Governors, Provincial Board Members, Mayors, Councilors, Barangay Chairmen, and Kagawads, as well as the Police and other law enforcement authorities doing? Are they never tired of stealing from the government coffers, accepting bribes, and getting involved in anomalies and other crimes? The Philippines is supposed to be a Christian country, but its people, most of them, are the worst kind of humans this world has and will ever have known.

1VeritasAequitas

Deterrents should be effective. Punishments or penalties for such gruesome cruelty to animals should be increased to 10 years-30 years and to 100,000-50 million pesos according to case-to-case basis. The animals, like humans, are living creatures. Like humans, they experience pain, hunger, loneliness, fear, hopelessness, and even love and gratitude. But unlike humans, they are not blessed by God with the facility to speak.

God has appointed humans as the guardians or custodians of animals, but over the centuries, humans have treated these hapless and helpless creatures with utmost disdain and cruelty. The abuse, cruelty, and exploitation of animals are rampant and worldwide. It is heartbreaking to think of their tremendous, protracted, and unabated sufferings from cruel and heartless humans. But there are still people like those in the PAWS, Animal Kingdom Foundation, and other animal welfare groups, who advocate the right of the animals to co-exist and live happily with humans.

The United Nations should pass a law that protects the animals from human cruelty and greed, and recognizes and safeguards their right to a safe and peaceful co-existence with humans. .

300 pitbulls saved from Philippine dogfighting arena

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