A recent news item about the murder of domestic cats in Dasmarinas Village in Makati brought sadness and much trepidation to our cat-loving household. With the exception of myself, everyone in the house is enamored of cats, tolerating even the strays and vicious toms infesting our subdivision. “What if it happens to us?”, my daughters must have thought, as they hugged our two pampered felines.

It seems that a week or so before Christmas, a mass murderer (possibly murderers) of cats sneaked into a private cat shelter in swanky Dasmarinas Village and shot at 29 cats and kittens up for adoption as they meowed and cried piteously in their cages. Fifteen died while the rest survived through timely medical intervention. The owner of the cat shelter, the animal welfare organization Compassion and Responsibility for Animals (CARA) Philippines, has asked the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to investigate the killings. These are clearly multiple crimes under Philippine law, as Republic Act 8485, otherwise known as the Animal Welfare Act of 1998, makes it unlawful for any person to torture or kill a wild or domestic animal (with the notable exception of roosters who are routinely allowed to kill, mangle and main each other for the amusement of aficionados) or neglect to provide care, sustenance or shelter to them. So far, no suspects have been identified, much less arrested, causing fear and loathing to spread in this upscale gated community, where wealthy Filipinos and many members of the diplomatic community live. Read the rest of this entry »

The days when I used to party hardy every new year’s eve are gone, replaced by comparatively serene and quiet, or about as quiet as things can get in Metro Manila on the 31st of December, evening at home with family and friends who might want to drop by. There were still the obligatory firecrackers of course, which I set off at the proper intervals, but these were comparatively muted, the decibel level much lowered by the absence of libation. Noise increases in direct proportion to the alcohol consumed. Which is how it has been the past few years and the way I want it to be. Age, and I’d like to believe, some degree of maturity, has finally caught up with me.

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