Roughly 300 dogs were rescued in separate raids late Friday in Laguna province south of Manlia, said Anna Cabrera of the Philippine Animal Welfare Society. Seventeen with the worst injuries were put down over the weekend, and the health of the living dogs and the progress of rehabilitating them will determine how many of them ultimately survive.
Police arrested eight South Koreans suspected of running an illegal online gambling operation in which players outside the Philippines bet on dogs fighting at a clandestine compound.
Some of the dogs rescued Friday were saved from another facility in Cavite province in December, Cabrera said. She said the dogs were “recycled” — adopted by people who resold them to the suspects to continue fighting.
“That is a fate worse than death,” she said.
Two of the suspects arrested last week had been caught in the December raid but had posted bail, police Chief Inspector Renante Galang said.
Welfare society veterinarian Wilford Almora said many of the pit bulls — purebred and mixed breeds — suffered ripped ears and tongues and other wounds in previous fights.
The eight suspects face charges of illegal gambling and cruelty to animals.
If convicted of illegal gambling, they face a maximum of 12 years in prison. The charge of animal cruelty carries a penalty of up to two years, but no one has served time in the Philippines for the crime. A student recently found guilty of killing a cat received a few months of community service.
Dogfighting is not common in the Philippines, and the fights were broadcast mostly outside the country