The UP Diliman (UPD) administration downplayed concerns surrounding the recent impounding of campus dogs. Vice Chancellor for Community Affairs Roehl Jamon stated that UP as an academic institution, is just “mandated to study, teach, [and] conduct research.”
This came after several dogs roaming around the Academic Oval and Area 2 were taken by a Quezon City-based pound on January 11. This was the first time that campus animals faced the threat of impoundment in the last eight years, only this time, it happened.
In an email to the Collegian, Jamon claimed that the health and safety dangers posed by stray animals and resident complaints were the primary reasons behind the impoundment.
However, groups were quick to condemn this move. CAPWA UP asserted that the impounded dogs are part of the community and most of them were owned and cared for by residents, students, and animal welfare volunteers.
“It must be taken into account that most of these dogs are harmless, and their presence serves as emotional support and stress relievers to the community, especially for the students and employees,” CAPWA UP said in a statement on January 16.
This action by the university also breached the negotiation between the UPD University Student Council (USC) and the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Community Affairs (OVCCA) where a student representative was supposed to be a part of the Animal Welfare Committee, based on resolutions agreed upon by the USC and Jamon during their Balay Kaibigan dialogue last December 6.
The current representative, Siege Navalta, who is the USC Environmental Concerns Committee head, stressed that the council was not consulted about the impoundment of the animals. This exclusion triggered the USC to release a statement on January 25, requesting a dialogue with Jamon.
“We emphasize that including a student representative on these committees will not only demonstrate our commitment to collaborative governance but also ensure the incorporation of diverse perspectives from the student body,” read part of the statement.
Other groups, such as Utak at Pusa, argued for more compassionate solutions than impounding, including adoptions, educational programs, and the TNVR (Trap-Neuter-Vaccination-Return) scheme.
Before settling with the impoundment of campus animals, OVCCA was known for practicing better and more creative alternatives. Such as the launch of UPD Sagip K9 in 2021 which aimed to train campus animals to respond to emergencies in the community, as well as the Cat Management in Urban Spaces webinar that consists of four talks regarding proper cat management in 2022.
Such alternative options were also actually done by the now-dissolved Balay Kaibigan, who closed down in December 2023. This closure seemingly triggered this string of unfortunate events for our campus animals ever since Jamon ordered its closure last November. Since 2019, at least 872 dogs and cats were neutered and at least 150 of them have been adopted.
The USC negotiated the survival of Balay Kaibigan in early December 2023, but its transfer to the Diliman Environmental Management Office was unsuccessful, which led to its eventual closure. Most of the animals were adopted by the Animal Kingdom Foundation, while eight emotional support dogs are still on campus under the Office of the Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs.
CAPWA UP said in their statement that if the impounded dogs do not undergo adoption or reclamation, authorities will subject them to euthanasia, permanently ending their chances of ever roaming the campus again.
“It is worth noting that there are [also] many campus cats and dogs that are considered ‘pets’ by specific colleges. They consider these colleges their home, and being already a part of college life, they are fed and cared for by their respective colleges,” Utak and Pusa said in an interview. ●
