In a significant development, the Supreme Court has stayed the recent directive that called for all stray dogs in the National Capital Region (NCR) to be rounded up and confined in shelters.
The apex court has clarified that while dogs may be picked up for sterilization and immunization, they must be released back to their original locations afterward. This reiterates the existing framework of the Animal Birth Control (ABC) Rules, which emphasize scientific population control and public health safety, without displacing community animals.
The stay comes after widespread concerns were raised over the earlier order, which many feared would not only lead to overcrowding in shelters but also cause distress to animals accustomed to their local environments.
With the Supreme Court’s intervention, the focus shifts back to implementing effective sterilization and vaccination drives—an approach seen as a more humane and sustainable method of managing stray populations.
This ruling offers reassurance to animal welfare organizations and feeders across the NCR, who had been left anxious by the earlier directive. For now, the ABC protocol remains the guiding principle: pick, sterilize, immunize, and release.
