ON FLIGHTS OF FANCY
A note from the editor
Acouple of months ago, I made a decision to stay at my small condo unit in Mandaluyong every weekend, miles away from the apartment where I lived with my fur-babies. It was something I had to do as I trained for the Spartan Race next month (have you checked out my Crosstrain.ph article yet?).
The sepanx was real: I would look at their photos on my phone, showing them to friends who, bless their hearts, would mumble the obligatory oohs and aahs to make me feel better.
Gia Lara, our newest columnist, is a meowmy who shares my plight! After all, she lives with 15 cats! -- they’re all quite lucky to have her as their human.
Leaving behind nonhuman loved ones is always something that leads to worry. Thankfully, Aurus Feal Sy gives us 12 tips to keep them happy even as we travel this summer. If you don’t want to miss them too much, you can get a keychain or a bag with your beloved animal’s face painted on them -- Michiko G. Manalang tells us about how one woman and her dog changed the souvenir scene doing “petraitures” for sentimental reasons.
If you can’t leave them behind, why not just bring them with you? Roxanne Libatique gives 10 travel tips, in case you want your animal companions to tag along with you. Some animals don’t want to be left behind; others, however, are better off left alone. Take for example Kaiju, an endearing alligator snapping turtle with whom Wally Suarez shares his home.
Because of our desire to keep animals close to us, we sometimes do them more harm than good. For instance, dolphins -- whom Paul Catiang writes about as we observe Dolphin Day this month -- are more likely to live happy lives if left alone in the oceans they call home. Richard Leo Ramos also talks about how fireflies are fading away fast, partly because of our encroachment on their natural habitat. Even tigers are suffering the same fate, something Gregg Yan talks about in his column. Sadly, it’s too late for us to leave alone the animals who have already dropped out of existence -- there’s no turning back for them, as Nate Martinez writes in his piece.
We can leave them behind, take them with us, or leave them be -- it depends on what’s best for the animals. The onus is on us to ensure their safety. Aside from keeping them protected and free, let’s leave them off our plates, too! Let’s include all animals in our circle of compassion if we truly want to be the animal lovers we claim to be.