Lawmakers approved on Tuesday, Nov. 26, the amendment to the Adopt-a-Dog Ordinance, which now also covers the feline friends.
“Instead of dogs only, the City Council approved that cats will be included in the ordinance,” Councilor Melchor Quitain told reporters in an interview after the regular session on Tuesday.
According to Quitain, cats are among the domestic animals that also need to be taken care of.
Among the provisions of the Adopt-a-Dog/Cat Ordinance are the protection of dogs from abuse, the promotion and rehabilitation of dogs, and ensuring a “dog-friendly” environment in the city. It was also cited in the ordinance that the city shall exhaust all means to save the life of a dog and shall resort to euthanasia only “as the last and desperate resort.”
Quitain, in realization, said that cats deserved the same treatment as dogs.
“There are a lot of street cats that also need to be adopted, as the city has many dog and cat lovers around,” he said.
As of now, the amended ordinance awaits the signature of the City Mayor.
“The next step after the City Council approved the amended ordinance will for the Mayor Sara Duterte to review and hopefully sign it,” he said.
Quitain, however, conceded that the Implementing Rules and Regulations of the said adoption ordinance has not been implemented. The IRR will also include the period to rehabilitate the animal before adoption.
“The IRR has not been done yet, we have some matters to discuss for its effective implementation,” he said.
