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Animal rights group comes to the rescue of typhoon Yolanda's furry survivors


Unlike human survivors who can cry for help after surviving a natural disaster, pets can only bark, meow or chirp to express their distress and need for aid.

In the aftermath of typhoon Yolanda, several companion animals such as dogs and cats have been seen in videos and photos roaming the streets for food, separated from their human masters.

A volunteer from HSI vaccinates a dog that survived typhoon Yolanda during the group's outreach in Leyte. All photos by Tonee Despojo, courtesy of HSI
The plight of the typhoon's furry survivors has received little attention both from the media and the national government as resources became focused on human victims still struggling to survive.

On November 11, three days after the super typhoon barreled through Central Philippines, an 11-man team from the global animal rights group Humane Society International (HSI) flew to Tacloban City in Leyte to set up a mobile veterinary clinic where survivors can go with their wounded pets.

But what immediately caught the team's attention instead when they began their assessment were dozens of cats and dogs foraging for scraps amid the rubble in the city.

In an interview with GMA News Online, HSI-Asia director Rahul Seghal said volunteers were moved upon seeing several hungry dogs—some of them pure breeds such as German Shepherds and Labradors—sniffing trash and empty food containers scattered on the streets for a few morsels.

"You can see that the animals were also affected by the typhoon because they lost their usual sources of food, their human shelters and human masters. A lot of people can't see it, but animals do experience trauma after calamities such as this," he said.

According to the Colorado State University-Veterinary Teaching Hospital, a stressed and anxious pet may exhibit erratic behaviors such as excessive licking or self-grooming and increased startling response after a disaster.

200 kilos of dog food in eight days

Children watch as a volunteer from HSI feeds a hungry dog found on the streets after typhoon Yolanda.
The sight of so many hungry canines and felines in the typhoon-stricken areas drove the team to set up feeding and watering stations at a total of 14 towns in Leyte aside from a mobile veterinary clinic based in Tacloban.

Seghal said the HSI team, composed of eight veterinarians and three support staff, has been able to use up over 200 kilos of dog food and several packs of cat food eight days since their relief operations began in Leyte.

The team also dewormed and vaccinated animals to protect them from diseases, the director said.

In addition to these services, Seghal said HSI has begun transporting abandoned pets to a temporary shelter in Cebu where they can be taken care of until their owners retrieve them or until they find a new home.

"Our hotline has been ringing non-stop these past few days with people asking us if we found their pets. We really hope we can reunite the owners with their animals because they (pets) will recover faster from their trauma if they're with their masters," he said.

Focus on companion animals

As much as HSI would like to extend aid to all the animals affected by the typhoon, Seghal said his team's focus at the moment is on the welfare of companion animals because the organization lacks the manpower to care for "hundreds, if not thousands" of farm animals such as chickens and cows that were also affected by the typhoon.

"Right now, we can't handle looking after farms where there are lots of animals. We've decided to look after abandoned pets at the moment because they have virtually no way of sustaining themselves for long and because they have nowhere to go but the streets once they are parted from their masters," he said.

Owners who wish to locate their lost pets may call HSI's rescue hotline at 0916-386-9126. The HSI team will request details, addresses and photos of their pets. The organization said its team on the ground "will do everything possible to find the pets and reunite them with their families."

The director said the HSI contingent will continue providing assistance for pets affected by the typhoon "for a minimum of two months or as long as we're needed by the animals and the people." — VC, GMA News
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