Several dogs in Taal island are traumatized, hostile to rescue ops

The rescuers of dogs left on Volcano island after the Taal volcano eruption had a difficult time retrieving the animals because of the lack of equipment, China Gaston reported on 24 Oras on Thursday.

The rescue groups such as Orange Family Shelter, Tails for Freedom and Bayanihan for Furbabies approached Gaston, who referred them to the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) in retrieving dogs.

However, the dogs would not go near the rescuers.

"Mailap na sila super. May trauma na sila. Hindi sila malapitan," said Orange Family Shelter member Clarizza Lagmay.

The rescuers then opted to leave food for them.

"Hindi maexpect na lalapit kaagad sa atin 'yung, pag may rescue tayo. Ang pinakapwedeng gawin ay maglagay tayo ng trap, Sir, na 'yung safe naman sila," said PCG CGK9 Force member Lt. Kirk Acdal.

Lagmay added that they were also looking into using tranquilizers, to keep the dog calm, put them to sleep before they can be transferred.

According to the report, the group saw a black dog  was swimming towards their boat. The rescuers decided to use a trap to lure the dog into a cage.

The dog may have been traumatized and rescuers had to calm him down, feed, and train to adapt to its new environment.

Aside from dogs, there are also cows and pigs who were still roaming around the island. At present, the provincial government said that it had plans of rescuing them.

As of Thursday, Alert Level 3 remains in place at Taal Volcano. — Angelica Y. Yang/BAP, GMA News