Strays have right to stay — Manong Joe

At the electric utility firm Meralco’s sprawling headquarters in Ortigas Avenue, a movement far different from its role as an electric utility firm has taken root, and it’s all about the welfare of animals, stray cats in particular.

Street felines, or what is derogatorily termed as pusakal or pusang kalye, never received as much support as the askals or asong kalye until the launch of the CATropa program spearheaded by Meralco vice president Joe Zaldarriaga, or Manong Joe, for many electricity users waiting for price trends on their monthly bills.

In an interview on Straight Talk, the weekly online program of the Daily Tribune, Zaldarriaga cited a noticeable shift in the attitude towards animal welfare in the Philippines in recent years, which he hopes will lead to lasting, systemic change.

Growing awareness of animal welfare was particularly evident during the onslaught of typhoons. Social media during those periods was flooded with calls for the inclusion of animals, pets, and livestock in disaster preparedness and response efforts, while news reports on the impact of the storms included updates on animal welfare.

Zaldarriaga said that through the CATropa program, Meralco employees can contribute to efforts to address the overpopulation problem of stray cats by participating in spay and neutering programs.

This also contributes to improving public health conditions since controlling the growth of the stray animal population through neutering helps minimize the risk of rabies.

The Meralco head of corporate communications has a natural affinity with animals. He adopted two stray cats, but he said the population of loose animals needs to be controlled.

“CATropa,” which aims to provide a “safe space” for community cats residing within its facilities, will be expanded to benefit more animals.

Due to the growing number of community cats under its care, Meralco expanded its efforts by launching an advocacy program focused on animal welfare and public safety, which became known as CATropa.

Controlled caring

Among CATropa’s projects is Trap-Neuter-Vaccinate-Release (TNVR), which seeks to control the cat population. This improves stray cats’ well-being and contributes to public health by reducing the risk of rabies.

Last year, Meralco also held the “Spay It Forward” campaign, the only municipality in Metro Manila without its own veterinary office.

Under the program, over 120 dogs and cats received free spaying, neutering, and rabies vaccinations in collaboration with the local government of Pateros, the Philippine Veterinary Medical Association (PVMA), and Biyaya Animal Care.

Meralco also hosted its first-ever animal welfare seminar, which was attended by over 150 animal welfare advocates and led by speakers from the Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) and Biyaya Animal Care.

The event also featured an adoption booth where two Meralco employees adopted rescued cats and dogs from Biyaya Animal Care. The CATropa of the Year Award was also given to recognize outstanding dedication to animal care.

The electric distributor also officially opened the “Catio,” a company-maintained shelter for community cats inside its Ortigas compound.

Zaldarriaga said Meralco seeks to promote animal care advocacy when it partners with The Storytelling Project (TSP), a non-profit in the Philippines.

During a special storytelling session, the children of Meralco employees were taught the importance of compassion and responsibility toward animals. Through stories, this initiative planted the seeds of empathy.

To complement the efforts, Meralco launched the CATropa Facebook page to form a social media community that provides updates, educational content, and success stories related to the company’s animal welfare efforts.

Collaborations ensure sustainability

“Institutionalizing animal welfare is a significant step in addressing major challenges since it fosters collaborations between advocates and institutions capable and willing to support the cause,” according to Zaldarriaga.

In this context, the private sector can play a huge role in promoting animal welfare through its resources, infrastructure and influence.

He added that the private sector can embrace and implement animal welfare programs as part of its corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives to raise greater awareness of the cause and provide much-needed resources.

By pursuing collaborations with animal welfare groups, the private sector can help garner more community support and advocate for systemic change to ensure the program’s lasting success.

CATropa and similar private initiatives signal a cultural shift in people’s relationship with animals and emphasize the urgent need for more strategic and comprehensive animal welfare programs.

“After all, with 64 percent of Filipino households owning pets, I believe that animal welfare is a serious social issue that deserves greater attention — both from the government and the private sector,” he indicated.

“Our treatment of animals reflects who we are as a people. Let us choose kindness and responsibility because we protect our future by protecting them,” Zaldarriaga said.

Among the many inspiring and pioneering animal welfare advocates is Rina Ortiz, founder of the social enterprise Biyaya Animal Care, who has a strong understanding of the prevailing landscape.

While other animal welfare programs depend solely on donor funding or government support, Biyaya Animal Care is a model for sustainable animal welfare advocacy.

It operates a pet clinic and uses earnings to support over a thousand rescues in an animal sanctuary in Alfonso, Cavite.

The group’s success became possible because Ortiz is familiar with the challenges posed by limited government and private sector resources in supporting animal welfare.

Such a situation prompted her to find sustainable solutions for animal rights protection.

Zaldarriaga added that Biyaya Animal Care, through a self-sustaining mechanism, showed that animal welfare doesn’t have to be a zero-sum game but rather a collaboration in which the private sector can play a more active role in pushing for the cause.

Ortiz’s inspiration led to CATropa and Meralco’s sustainable animal welfare advocacy. “Her examples were among the reasons I introduced the cause to my workplace, Meralco, and went further by institutionalizing it with Catropa,” Zaldarriaga said.

As CATropa flourishes, it hopes to drive meaningful change in animal welfare advocacy. If more companies integrate animal welfare initiatives into their CSR (corporate social responsibility) portfolios, we could foster an environment of systemic support and collaboration to find sustainable solutions to recurring problems and persisting challenges, Zaldarriaga explains.

He indicated that caring for strays would benefit animals and improve community life, public health and safety.