Animal Rescue: Mayon Volcano in the Philippines

Since late July, the Mayon volcano in the Albay province of the Philippines has shown increased activity. Standing at 2,463 metres (8,077 feet), Mayon is the most active volcano in the Philippines, erupting 47 times since 1616. Experts fear that a full-scale eruption is imminent.

On 7 August, authorities ordered the evacuation of people within the danger zone (an 8 km area on the southeast side of the volcano) and almost 45,000 residents have been evacuated and are being housed in temporary shelters, mainly school buildings in the Albay province.

There are more than 6,000 domestic animals in the area, of which over 3,000 have been displaced or affected in some way since their owners were forced to evacuate. These animals include dogs, cattle, buffalo, sheep, goats and pigs.

IFAW has rushed a USD5,000 grant to the Philippine Society for the Protection of Animals (PSPA) to assist with feeding and veterinary care of affected animals. Two teams of 3 people each are setting up feeding areas and a veterinary team has been put together with the cooperation of the city veterinarian of Legazpi and the regional diagnostic laboratory.