When in Manila, a day in the life of a lazy animal welfare volunteer can be roller coaster-like. Sometimes in a good way. Other times not.
I volunteer for CARA Welfare Philippines, an animal rescue group in the Philippines. As much as I would like to do more, I find that the demands of work, family, friends and other activities leave me little time to contribute to animal welfare and rescue. Compared with other volunteers who march undeterred through storm and flood to help animals in distress, I’m a bum calling myself an animal welfare advocate.
So I volunteer to cover pet adoption events and write about it afterward for the group’s website. Minimal effort, one would say. At one of our recent cat adoption events, the others have been at the venue as early as 8 a.m, setting up, doing heavy work. I just have to show up and enjoy the show.
The day went like this.
Around noon, I spied a kitten lying by the side of the road as I was about to get on a taxi. Couldn’t ignore it, and brought it with me to MOA where the cat adoption event by CARA was being held. I didn’t get to cover immediately because I had to rush Dolly to the vet clinic at Pet Express. The vet said Dolly was male and he was suffering from malnutrition and ear mites. Dolly was renamed Dado.
At the vet clinic I encountered the story of a rescued dog. The lady on the right has rescued this dog from a life of abuse and neglect. She nursed the dog back to health. Now the CARA volunteer on the left is going to adopt her furry foster child. While relating her story, the rescuer could not help but get teary-eyed.
Finally, I get to cover the adoption event. Meet playful Charlie.
Buttercup, gentle and loving
Bleaky, with Phoenix eyes
Basu the Wisecat, always composed
Akihiro, exotic and magnetic
The event, held in partnership with PET Express, also offered a seminar on cat nutrition and health. Make sure your cats are dewormed, vaccinated and given a varied diet to prevent nutritional deficiency. Also, the pet store and clinic also advises neutering or spaying. Cats multiply at an alarming rate, leading to the growing population of strays worldwide.
Sadly, when I got home, Dado was dead inside the carrier. Did he die from the trauma of being transported inside an enclosed space? The ride home took only an hour in a cab. Poor dearest Dado. He had already won the hearts of the volunteers. He had touched mine.
When in Manila, the life of an animal rescue and welfare volunteer, lazy or not, is filled with success stories and sad ones. Â We try to recover from the sad ones and take heart from each little life that we change for the better.
View the cat adoption event details by clicking this link. You may also find information there on how to adopt rescued pets.
You may also enjoy reading these stories:
https://www.wheninmanila.com/rescuing-pacman-a-dog-rescue-story/
 Thanks to Aliza Conde for Buttercup’s picture.
What’s a Day Like in the Life of a Lazy Animal Welfare Volunteer?
