Barcelona Stray Cats

Nope, I'm not talking about Spain. It's just the name of our subdivision owned by the giant firm Camella Homes.

Here in the Philippines, I can say that millions are suffering from homelessness. Children beg for spare coins on the streets, while adults perform the common jobs to survive. We Filipinos do what we can to keep ourselves and our families going, most importantly to have food on our table. Some of these poor families are sleeping under bridges when it's time to retire at night.

What many fail to consider when discussing the country's battle against homelessness, however, is the growing number of stray animals who suffered the same fate as their human counterparts. Stray cats and dogs are labeled puspins and aspins a slang for pusang Pinoy and asong Pinoy, terms that translate as "Filipino cat" and "Filipino dog". Unfortunately, these stray animals seem unwanted compared to purebred, pedigreed companions. You can see a growing number of puspins and aspins in the city pound waiting for some kind-hearted people who will adopt them and unlucky for those who got sick in the dirty city streets sadly they were put down on a so-called "mercy-killing".

These stray animals roam the streets, often attempting to salvage whatever leftover food they can find in garbage cans and canals. If they're lucky, they are rescued and adopted by kind souls willing to welcome them into their homes and give them the comfort and shelter that they need. A normal day for a stray, however, would be lacking much human contact, lest they find themselves in any additional form of danger.

The harsh reality for stray animals is that there are just too many of them. Many people resolution is to harm or kill off entire stray populations for the safety of their own properties and sometimes it's just for fun to hurt them. 

I've been feeding strays since 2013 when I purchase a junior mountain bike I noticed that there are many strays on the streets and being an animal lover it really hurts to see the scenery. I've thought of a plan on how can I feed them. I started the Project Pawprints, it's just a thing of my own which I asked my mother to cook a viand for them and mix it with rice to put in a plastic container and distribute it to the hungry strays. The next time I ride during my days off I roam around at the early dawn. I started at 4:00 AM and ride starting from our home up to Zapote. That is my route every rest days and I feed all of the stray dogs and cats that I saw on the highway of Emilio Aguinaldo. 

Avril Lavigne - 'Keep Holding On'

Unluckily, I got sick with a chronic condition and I stopped riding in 2016. Though even if I'm having shortness of breath because of my heart problem I'm still giving food by commuting minus the junior mountain bike that I named "blue blink". 

Come 2018, all the Glory and Praise to the Lord my surgery become successful. Long story short I'm slowly healing I purchased a new bike and starting to feed stary animals again not on the highway for now but inside our subdivision, here in our community. There are many stray cats here, in every street, in every corner with their kittens following their mother cats roaming around every street looking for left-over foods. 

"Muning" 

This is my new routine. I use to ride on my break time from my work from home job and since the doctor told me to keep on moving to keep the blood flowing and besides I really need a cardio exercise. It's really high time to activate my biking skills. I said to myself it's time! It's a compatible thing to do cardio exercises and feeding strays as well. So I buy 1 kilo of Friskies for them and travel to Phase 2 to Phase 4 here in Barcelona Homes and distribute the treats for this beautiful hungry creatures.

My home includes 1 dog and 17 cats all of them are puspins, 2 are adoptees. I look at each of them and see no difference in the way that they wake up, stretch, and cry for food early in the morning. I see no difference in the way that they all adore being cuddled. I see no difference in the way that they live, the way that the mother cats taking care of there kittens. I see no difference in the way that they love. It's high time that we look beyond a consideration such as a breed and open our homes to the countless nonhuman animals in search of places to call their own. Or if not, at least we feed them spare but "not rotten" foods.