Court finds couple guilty of animal cruelty after performing DIY dog operation

MANILA, Philippines — The Metropolitan Trial Court Branch 136 in Quezon City has found a couple guilty of animal cruelty for performing a do-it-yourself (DIY) Caesarian procedure on a dog that died after the operation.

The court said Jonathan and Evangeline Galguerra, who used a kitchen knife and scissors without anesthesia to conduct the operation, violated Section 6 of the Animal Welfare Act of 1998, the Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) said in a Facebook post.

Section 6 of the law states that: “It is unlawful for any person to torture any animal, to neglect to provide adequate care, 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.”

PAWS said the couple was slapped with a fine of P36,000 and an arrest warrant was issued against Evangeline, who is at large.

“#JusticeForMamaDog has finally been served! The couple has been fined 36,000php, and there is an outstanding warrant against Evangeline Galguerra, who is currently at large. For any news or leads of her whereabouts, please get in touch with us at https://paws.org.ph/contact/,” read the statement.

https://www.facebook.com/176442875734699/posts/3461392257239728/?d=n

Aside from performing the irregular procedure, the couple also recorded their act on video and shared it on social media, which was later deleted. The controversial incident was reported on June 25, 2019.

The suspects also shared photos of the mutilated carcass of the dog as well as the poodle’s puppies.

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