ANGELES CITY — Putting premium on the welfare of animals, Mayor Carmelo Lazatin, Jr. has ordered the trap-neuter-release (TNR) and anti-rabies vaccination of stray dogs and cats in the premises of 53 public schools here.
This is Mayor Lazatin’s assistance to public schools’ administrations on the rapid population growth of stray animals living in the vicinity of schools, and at the same time, ensure the safety of children once classes start.
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“We understand the concerns of our schools in taking good care of stray pets practically living in the school,” Lazatin, a known animal advocate, said.
Lazatin said that with the TNR program he launched in 2020, the city has seen an effective way of helping control animal population, specifically the “unwanted animal population.”
Lazatin will deploy the officers of the City Veterinary Office led by Dr. Christian Arcilla to the 53 public schools via agreed schedules.
The TNR program is being supervised by two of the city’s known animal lovers, Chief Adviser IC Calaguas and Executive Assistant IV Reina Manuel. Calaguas and Manuel are both advocates of the TNR and are giving shelter to stray dogs and cats.
Calaguas has implemented TNR in the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency National Headquarters in 2019 and Clark International Airport Corporation in 2021.
Arcilla said the TNR is also a way to stop the increasing cases of rabies.
During the launching of the free spaying and neutering in August 2020, 671 dogs and cats were fixed, while 578 animals benefitted from the program in 2021. More than 1,000 pets have already been spayed and neutered.
The city government is also conducting an ongoing house-to-house vaccination of anti-rabies to pets in the 33 barangays. (City Information Office Angeles City)