Tambucho gassing of unwanted Dogs.

[loki_chaos]

Got this from http://ph.yfittopostblog.com/2010/08...unwanted-dogs/

By Patricia Bermudez-Hizon
Special to Yahoo! Southeast Asia

In city and municipal pounds across the country, they are and have been using a horrifying method of putting down unclaimed and unwanted dogs.
Just recently, the Department of Agriculture enacted an Administrative Order which allows for the inhumane “tambucho-gassing method” of dogs (and even cats).


The procedure starts with seven to ten dogs manhandled and stuffed in a metal box that they seal. The dogs as one can imagine howl and wail in panic and fear, scratching the walls of the box, and each other. A hose is connected from a vehicle’s exhaust pipe (tambucho) to the metal box. The vehicle revs its engine continuously for 10 to 15 minutes, emitting poisonous fumes, sending the dogs to a maddening frenzy, whimpering and howling, feeling every bit of pain possible.



Then… silence. Death.


A monthly average of 200 unclaimed stray dogs are put to death in city pounds across the Philippines. Multiply that average by the number of Philippine cities of 138, and you would have 27,600 that need to be euthanized every month. The tambucho killing method is currently being done on a weekly basis in some provinces with the use of improvised gas chambers. Some of these allow the gas to leak, making it a longer, more painful torture. Sometimes, the dogs are in the metal box, crying for help for an hour.


It’s upsetting how the Committee on Animal Welfare (CAW) allowed for the inclusion of “tambucho killing” in the Administrative Order (AO) on Euthanasia of Animals which was approved by the Department of Agriculture last June. The AO states that this is an accepted and legal method of euthanasia.


Organizations like Animal Kingdom Foundation (AKF), Compassion and Responsibility for Animals (CARA) and The Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS), among others, have been vehemently objecting to the inclusion of gassing throughout the deliberations of the CAW up to the public hearing in May 2009. They continue to fight and are urging the public to join them.
Euthanasia means “good death.” Where is the good in this? Is it good because it costs less and it augurs well for the city or municipality”s budget?


The main rationale for the government would condone this cruel way of putting down animals is economic reasons. They gauge that it would only take P5 to put down a dog by way of tambucho gassing. As opposed to injecting sodium pentobarbital (or Euthal) by well-trained and caring personnel which is the preferred method for providing the most humane death for dogs and cats. They just get numb and go to sleep according to veterinarians. The injection of barbiturates is also included in the said AO on Euthanasia of Animals, but because it costs about P150 (before wholesale, before bargains, before tax exemptions, before government support) per dog, they would rather employ the cheaper option. Where is the good in this?


What’s needed is for Agriculture Secretary Proceso J. Alcala to retract the approval of the AO on Euthanasia of Animals which includes tambucho gassing as a legal method of killing animals.
Other countries have similar but a lot more sophisticated means of putting down animals. In Japan and the US, for example, according to Luis Benaflor of the AKF, they have a chamber that even looks like an operating room for humans, where they use carbon monoxide (CO) in cylinders which is odorless, tasteless and colorless, although their method already draws a lot of controversy. But because CO is not available in the Philippines, we resort to the more barbaric, painful, cruel version.


More than that, this method adds to the woes of our environment. Imagine the greenhouse gas emissions of these vehicles that will be revved for at least 10 minutes per murder session, multiply that by the number of times they have to perform it in a week, times the number of dog pounds across the country. Has anyone really considered the carbon footprint this will leave behind?


“If we need to put a dog to death because he cannot be cared for, the least we can do is send him off as painlessly and as humanely as possible,” said Anna Cabrera, PAWS program director.


“Death by tambucho is not a humane death and should not be included among the legal euthanasia methods in an Administrative Order under The Animal Welfare Act or Republic Act 8485 — a law which was created to protect animals from suffering and cruelty just because it’s a more economical choice,” added Nancy Cu-Unjieng of CARA.


Mahatma Gandhi said, “The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.” Calling on President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III. This is no “wang-wang” or “tong” but it surely does have a greater effect on the moral fiber of our nation.

Dapat sa mga serial killer yan ginagawa eh. Tyaka sa mga politicians natin. hehe

[nickriingen]

Suggest that whoever comes out with this idea of killing dogs be also put in this torture chamber. Very inhumane and barbaric.

[jjmd3_787]

WTF?! Sana nga e yung may idea nyan ang i-gas chamber . . . isama mo na yung mga hinayupak na nangangatay ng mga aso sa Benguet!

Ilokano ako pero mas may tiwala ako sa aso kaysa sa ibang tao.

[oliver1013]

Reminds me of the mobile gas chambers used by Nazi Germany on Jews and other people they consider undesirables.

I have mixed feelings on this, I love dogs and cats, but in our street there are at least a dozen stray dogs, 2 of which almost bit my daughter and my 73 year old father.

Talagang perwisyo yung askal, pag nakagat ka yari ka sa gastos. Kung pwede sana yung may ari ang ma gas chamber kaso hinde.

Seriously, naisip ko lang instead of gassing them why not donate them to zoos and feed them stray dogs to lions, tigers, crocs and other carnivores. Is that considered cruel? 1 animal dies yet another one benefits.

[shadow]

I really don't know... for me it's ok. pangit lang tingnan pero they have to make do of what they have, wala talagang budget eh.

yun mga nag complain bakit hinde na lang sila ang gumawa or mag donate sila to buy all those stuffs to use in humanely killing those dogs.

[ghosthunter]

I really don't know... for me it's ok. pangit lang tingnan pero they have to make do of what they have, wala talagang budget eh.

yun mga nag complain bakit hinde na lang sila ang gumawa or mag donate sila to buy all those stuffs to use in humanely killing those dogs.

Exactly my point.

Currently the Philippine government admits it has limited budget as it is.

If PAWS and all other animal rights groups would want to complain, maybe they should either adapt their dogs/cats or provide the needed stuff & skills to have it done their way?

[ghosthunter]

Seriously, naisip ko lang instead of gassing them why not donate them to zoos and feed them stray dogs to lions, tigers, crocs and other carnivores. Is that considered cruel? 1 animal dies yet another one benefits.

Isn't that more cruel given you are sending the stray dogs to the zoo to be eaten alive in front of all the zoo goers?

[oliver1013]

Actually yes, but maybe these animal lovers see that even though bantay and tagpi got eaten by Simba and Nala, at least another animal benefits.

The zoo can also charge more for guests coming in at feeding time, gore fest baby...just kidding

[ghosthunter]

Reminds me of the mobile gas chambers used by Nazi Germany on Jews and other people they consider undesirables.

Reminds me of my chemistry.... if you mix household ammonia cleaner & liquid bleach with each other, you can get good amounts of toxic chlorine gas.

[garfield_08]

WTF?! Sana nga e yung may idea nyan ang i-gas chamber . . . isama mo na yung mga hinayupak na nangangatay ng mga aso sa Benguet!

Ilokano ako pero mas may tiwala ako sa aso kaysa sa ibang tao.

i agree with you bro.

meron naman sigurong better alternative for the same budget. if an ex-Pres. can spend a million pesos for a "simple" dinner, i don't know how they can say the gov't has a limited budget.

[ghosthunter]

i agree with you bro.

meron naman sigurong better alternative for the same budget. if an ex-Pres. can spend a million pesos for a "simple" dinner, i don't know how they can say the gov't has a limited budget.

That was the previous administration. The current president is trying to correct the wrongs of the previous president and her cohorts.

Be current naman with the news, bro...

[ooba99]

One shot with a 12 gauge shotgun to the head of the dog at close range will give instant death. Cost? Probably less than 20 pesos for the ammo, not sure.

Shooting with a firearm is also included in the CAW Revised Rules and Regulations on the euthanasia of animals.

Although this method is also being questioned by animal advocates, for me this is relatively more humane than tambucho gassing.

[batang_raon14]

UPDATE: Our bomb-sniffing teams in the forces are recruiting stray dogs for bomb and drugs sniffing purposes, instead of acquiring more K9's.

Saw this in GMA last weekend. Just thought people should know.

On a personal note, I think finding a purpose for them is better than finding ways to kill them.

[ghosthunter]

How would you do it with the limited funds?

Given the fact that you have to kill the dogs anyway if no one adopts them within the set time allowed.

If the people behind PAWS thinks it is not expensive to put the dogs to sleep "the proper way", maybe they can provide the needed drugs, needles, and vets to do it their way?

Although one way is to use carbon dioxide either in a tank or dry ice in a sealed room.

[ericp]

Nitrogen gas will do it.

[voltscastillo]

imagine those poor dogs trying desperately to breathe.

they're animals, yes. but they also want to live. i don't think they want to die because they have no masters.

sad thing that we don't have the proper means to end their miserable lives. i've personally had to put down (well, the vet did) 4 of my 5 dogs during a distemper outbreak couple years ago... the drug used to kill them was injected, dog fell asleep, heart stopped a second or two later. and it's done. very humane.

but during their sickness, i saw my dogs struggling to get up to greet me every morning and evening. i would hand feed them bits of pork and eggs and they would struggle to eat, not because they want to, but because they want to please me and maybe they want to recover and live. but they never will. so i had to put them down to end their suffering.

i mentioned my experience to illustrate the loyalty of these animals. while they don't feel "love" in a human way, i guess they feel some sort of equivalent for people who take care of them. the best we can do is to go about being gentle to them, even when we're about to take their lives.

animals are incapable of wanton cruelty, only humans.

i'm about to cry. makapag-kape na nga lang muna.

[ghosthunter]

imagine those poor dogs trying desperately to breathe.

they're animals, yes. but they also want to live. i don't think they want to die because they have no masters.

Maybe you want to tell that to the people and parents of children who got attacked by stray dogs?

[ooba99]

Nitrogen gas will do it.

AFAIK, nitrogen is an inert gas and is not poisonous per se. If the animal is subjected to pure nitrogen exposure in a gas chamber the animal will die of asphyxiation which is a comparatively long and cruel process. This will be a more cruel way of gassing dogs than exhaust fumes that have carbon monoxide, a poisonous gas. Aside from, of course, it may prove to be more expensive.

[CoDer]

Yung 50 to 150 Php per dog na gagastusin sa lason na yan eh bigay na lang sa mga health center.