PAWS

PAWS

How to report Animal Cruelty

If you see animal cruelty in progress (such as persons in the act of a 'dog katay' or selling and buying dogs for the dog meat trade, or inflicting harm to animals), please report the incident immediately to your barangay officials and/or to 117. PAWS needs citizens like yourself (witnesses) to be taking steps in filing charges so that we can prevent this cruelty from happening again.

In order to prosecute criminals for the violation of the Animal Welfare Act, PAWS needs the complete details (date, time, exact location, people involved). If you are not willing to execute an affidavit, please recommend another eyewitness who will.

CALL 117

If the persons committing the crime are not known, the best we can do is alert police officers to the exact location in the hope that they will be catching the criminals in the act. Kindly call 117 immediately if you see a 'dog katay' in progress or anybody selling dog meat. Take down the name of the one receiving your call. From our experience at PAWS, all "117 officers" treat these reports seriously and send a mobile patrol right away (but it would be good to take down the name in case you end up with an uncooperative call-taker).

OTHER OPTIONS

OPTION 1: Warning letter from PAWS

First off, has anyone tried to warn these people that what they are doing / planning to do is against the law? (Or is everyone just keeping quiet?) Ignorance of the law excuses no one but it would be a good start to send them warning.

If you could email their full names and complete address to philpaws@yahoo.com, PAWS can send an official letter to them through the barangay (Please provide the contact info of the barangay captain/officers.)

OPTION 2: File charges - either file a court case or complain at barangay level

FISCAL LEVEL (CRIMINAL CHARGES)

Click here for a sample format of an affidavit. What should be on your affidavit are the circumstances that led you to believe that such persons will inflict harm or intend to inflict harm to the dogs (whether abuse or slaughtering for pulutan). Have you seen them hurt/slaughter dogs in the past? Was there anything they said? How did they act that convinced you that they were going to slaughter?

Note: There are no expenses involved with filing a case except perhaps for a filing fee of about P100 when you go to the Prosecutor's Office. PAWS volunteer lawyers can help you review your affidavit.

BARANGAY LEVEL

Report them to the barangay so that the barangay will likewise be watching over them. Furnish barangay officials with a copy of RA8485 (The Animal Welfare Act). Please note that PAWS gives free barangay lectures on animal welfare and they need only to contact us ahead of time and arrange for our transport.

If your barangay officials refuse to act during the time that you reported the crime to them, please execute an affidavit re: their names, what happened, etc. so that we can file administrative charges against them.

PAWS needs and encourages everyone to take action: report cases and/or file charges against cruelty. Verbally complaining (even through email) is not enough.

Click here to download the Sample Affidavit, Animal Welfare Act and Anti-Rabies Act.

PAWS
Tel # 475-1688
Email philpaws@yahoo.com

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Justice for Kevin

PAWS helped Ms. Marian Yutuc of Montalban when she filed a case before the Prosecutor's Office against Christopher Babe and Gilbert Babe. The two men beat her leashed dog (a gentle aspin named "Kevin") to death before her very eyes, even as she pleaded for them to stop.

According to her testimony and... affidavit, the intoxicated Babe brothers have been asking her to give Kevin to them as 'pulutan'. Now the case is Criminal Case No.0912-273 in the Municipal Trial Court of Rodriguez, Rizal - People of the Philippines versus Christopher and Gilbert Babe for violation of RA 8485 or The Animal Welfare Act.

With the help of PAWS volunteers, a dozen more criminal cases like Kevin's have been filed in Court. While the low fines have not been a deterrent for RA8485 violations, the animal offenders - rich or poor - are afraid of the criminal record. Violation of the ANIMAL WELFARE ACT is a criminal act.

Has your animal been wronged? Are you a witness to animal cruelty? If you file an affidavit checked by our dedicated and competent volunteer lawyers, you will have your day in Court.

Email philpaws@yahoo.com

Download a sample affidavit (which can be written in English or Filipino) here.

paws

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