Two persons are currently facing criminal cases at the Municipal Trial Court of La Trinidad, Benguet for violation of Republic Act 8485 (The Animal Welfare Act of 1998), as amended by RA 10631.
The first case involves a Belgian Malinois. In the early morning of September 26, 2025, at Poblacion, La Trinidad, Benguet, the owner heard her dog whining and whimpering. When she looked outside, she saw the accused about to strike the dog with a wooden object.
A review of the CCTV footage indicates that the accused twice attempted to hit the dog with the same piece of wood but he missed; however, a veterinarian who assessed Pepita noted that the dog exhibited signs of trauma based on its behavior during the examination.
In the other case, the person who left an apparently sick dog in a garbage collection area along Pico Road, La Trinidad, Benguet was identified through a CCTV clip and has been charged with a similar case before the same municipal trial court.
Sworn statements of witnesses reveal that at around 7:49 in the evening of October 22, 2025, a concerned citizen noticed a weak dog lying on the road. The dog was apparently in pain. A man told her that earlier, he noticed movements in a green sack among the pile of garbage. He opened the sack out of curiosity only to find out that it was a dog.
Based on the available CCTV footage, the accused left the green sack containing the dog few minutes earlier at around 7:31 PM of October 22, 2025.
According to the investigating prosecutor, the act of the accused constitutes abandonment which is a form of animal cruelty. He cited Rule 6.1 of the Revised Implementing Rules of the Animal Welfare Act which enumerates acts and omissions constituting animal cruelty including “abandonment of animal and/or leaving the animal under circumstances likely to cause the animal unnecessary pain and suffering.”
Also, the CCTV footage shows that the dog was taken by another person who remains unidentified. Police investigators Nalinda B. Besic and Jen Jen D. Calis of the La Trinidad Municipal Police Station said they will continue with their investigation until the person is identified.
Animal abuse or cruelty is punishable with 3 years of imprisonment and/or fine of until Php 300, 000.00 depending on the injuries sustained by the animal. **
