‘Yolanda’ pet survivors in Leyte receive veterinary care

Who let the dogs out?  Super Typhoon Yolanda did!

Tacloban City was swallowed by the rampaging waters of a storm surge in 2013 that killed thousands of humans and let lose thousands of dogs  into the streets and killed them. It has been one-and-a-half years since this major tragedy, and the city and lives of her citizens are slowly being rebuilt. Even Pope Francis visited the Philippines last January, specifically to be with the broken and beloved in Tacloban.

Dogs receive free vaccination, deworming, and tick and flea control during the Global Animal Outreach.

It is now the turn of the four-legged dog citizens of Tacloban, Leyte, to receive their much needed veterinary care , medical attention and rehabilitation. The Philippines has an alarming increase in the number of roaming and stray dog and cat population, and has a high incidence of deaths in both humans and dogs from rabies. All collaborative efforts  are needed to help the government to address these issues.

May 8 ushered in a new wave of help to our four-legged friends.  Dog owners and roaming dogs from the cities of Tacloban, Tanauan and Palo were treated to a first and one-of-a-kind veterinary medical mission, aptly called the Global Animal Outreach. This is a first international and local collaboration involving many veterinary associations, international animal welfare groups and the city and provincial government.

This outreach project was conceived by the World Small Animal Veterinary Association (Animal Welfare and Wellness Committee (WSAVA AWWC) in 2014 . The first outreach was held in Johannesburg, South Africa.  WSAVA chose Tacloban for its 2015 project.

This project would not be made possible without the major collaboration and partnership with the key associations & sponsors – Waltham,  the Philippine Animal Hospital Association (PAHA), the Humane Society International (HSI), the Philippine Veterinary Medical Association (PVMA), the Friends of  Animal Welfare, the World Animal Protection and the City and Provincial Veterinary Office of Tacloban and Leyte.

The meticulous planning and coordination was able to bring in local veterinarians and foreign veterinarians with permits, with the aim to spay and neuter 300 dogs, vaccinate 500 dogs for rabies and infectious diseases such as distemper, hepatitis, leptospirosis and parvovirus. As of the two days of love-filled labor, 103 dogs have been neutered and 349 dogs have been vaccinated. Medications were also provided  for internal and external parasite control (worms , ticks and fleas) . The outreach also provided awareness and education lectures, videos and reading materials on the importance of spay and neuter, vaccination for rabies and infectious diseases and being a responsible pet owner.

Lectures and handouts were translated into the local Waray dialect to educate owners on disaster preparedness. The city and municipal government kindly lent their  halls to be used as the site of the activities. The municipalities of Palo and Tanauan do not have veterinary clinics and do not have a city veterinarian.

With two more days to go, the WSAVA Global Outreach has put a spark of hope back into the lives  and hearts of the Leytenos. The smile and  thank you each volunteer received from the locals have showed that helping the needy pets is akin to helping people who are in need.  This clear vision and commitment of this first massive collaborative local and international partnership will continue to be remembered and appreciated …..that the world cares.

So who let the dogs out? The citizenry who clamor for a safer and healthy city where humans and animals live in harmony.