GAIN donates pet food, supplies

Guam Animals in Need donates a pallet of dog food, cat food, and kennel supplies to the Office of the Mayor of Saipan. (CONTRIBUTED PHOTO)

The Office of the Mayor of Saipan received another shipment of dog food, cat food, and kennel supplies from Guam Animals in Need as a donation to help the office’s Dog Control Program run a temporary kennel in As Perdido, Saipan.

“The generous donation from GAIN could not have come at a better time than now, as our Dog Control Program is running very low on dog and cat food and kennel supplies,” said Saipan Mayor David M. Apatang. “Our good friends at GAIN, Ms. Alison Hadley and her wonderful team, have been reaching out to us by donating much-needed supplies when they have enough to share with us. We are very thankful for their kindness and their concern about the welfare and health of our local dog population.”

His office received 13 bags of dry dog food, nine bags of dry cat food, 11 boxes of paper towels, 20 boxes of 33-gallon plastic bags, and 12 90-fluid ounce dish detergents.

“These supplies are essential in making sure we take care of the animals we bring to the shelter to be impounded, as we are mandated by regulations to ensure each animal receives proper care,” the mayor said.

While most dogs the Dog Control Program impounds are claimed by their owners during the impoundment period of five consecutive days or 120 hours, many are not. Some unclaimed dogs are eventually adopted by local residents. The CNMI’s dog control program regulations require payment of impoundment and adoption fees before releasing any dog back to the owner or an adopting owner.

“Our new multifunctional animal shelter is nearing completion and once that shelter is turned over to us in January 2022, we will have a facility to impound more than 80 dogs at any given time in the large kennel section. Our state veterinarian would have two clinical rooms to examine dogs needing care, and our staff would operate an office to assist our residents register their pets, hear their concerns, and receive information about the dog control program,” according to the mayor.

Martin Pangelinan, who is the Dog Control Program manager, said the task of controlling the island’s dog population “is and should be a collective effort of our office’s dog control program and our residents.

“We cannot deny that many dogs we see roaming our village neighborhoods, public places and beaches are not owned by anyone. These dogs are out there freely roaming and looking for ways to survive on their own by scavenging food in public and private trash cans, and coming around residential homes where homeowners would sometimes give them scraps,” he said.

“We need our residents to help us remove as many free roaming dogs from our neighborhoods, public places, near school grounds, and other places by calling and letting us know where these dogs are at. Our Dog Control Program is manned by five employees that we split into two teams, and with the many calls we receive daily and removing vicious and stray dogs, it is a never-ending task and challenge for us,” said Pangelinan. “We need and appreciate the help of our residents make our neighborhoods and public places safe.” (PR)