Cheyenne Suarez

An animal welfare advocate’s ‘paw-some’ journey from volunteer to leader

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ABS-CBN News Digital Intern

MANILA — As the world celebrates Women&#x27;s Month, an empowered woman from the Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) stands as a beacon of hope for women leaders and for animal welfare advocates.Already an animal rescuer at the age of seven, lawyer and PAWS Executive Director Anna Nieves Hashim-Cabrera embodies the strength, resilience, and nurturing spirit of an animal welfare advocate.“I would bring home kittens whenever I found them in the trash. My sister and I later on learned to bottle-feed unweaned kittens and we would try our best to keep them alive until they were old enough to eat on their own,” she said.&quot;But there were many that didn’t survive despite our very best efforts. I cried a lot for my dead rescued babies.&quot;<div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/lifestyle/2024/6/22/help-neglected-animals-heal-and-feel-loved-through-paws-project-calm-1653">Help neglected animals heal and feel loved through PAWS&#x27; Project CALM</a></div>She learned early on, from her father, to evaluate people on how they treat those from whom they have nothing to gain.“And at the lowest rung of that &#x27;ladder&#x27; of those who can do anything for you or pay you back, were the animals,&quot; she said.“Being good for no reason at all and doing good when no one is looking or when no one can thank you for it was a value that my Dad inculcated in us, and he also showed this by example,” she said.In order to feed rescues — at one point they had up to 28 cats — her father would go to the market weekly to buy &quot;bilasang isda,&quot; or less-than-fresh fish.She said that vendors soon took pity on him for buying old fish and started keeping fresh ones for him to buy.“He later on clarified that the fish wasn’t for his two-legged children but for the four-legged ones.”<div>ENTERING PAWS</div>Her husband Jojo was also one of the reasons why she pursued her full-time job at PAWS, an organization devoted to providing assistance through the power of pet companionship, in 2006.Cabrera started as an unpaid volunteer for PAWS, with her husband encouraging her to spend weekends at the center as a break from her job at a bank.“In our home and caring for them would also be bonding opportunities for me and my daughters, who are cat lovers. The youngest, Julianna, is on the spectrum (ASD) so I have learned to also use animals to try to engage her in conversations,” she said.Under her guidance, PAWS has become a sanctuary for countless animals, often abandoned or abused. Each success story speaks to her unwavering dedication.“Watching a rescued animal transform from being defeated and hopeless, oftentimes close to death , to a healthy, beautiful, loving family member is probably the best part of my job,&quot; she said, adding she enjoys receiving messages about how the rescues also change the lives of those who adopt them. &quot;I have had an adoptive parent message me – &#x27;Thank you for letting me adopt Becca- she has really made my life complete and made me the happiest I have ever been.&#x27; This was a guy who brought his adopted rescued dog with him to all the countries that he was assigned to. He sent us photos of her playing in the snow in Berlin, her birthday cake, and their Christmases together,&quot; she said.The team&#x27;s efforts, under her guidance, extend beyond just rescue missions. They engage with local communities through educational programs that highlight the importance of responsible pet ownership and the humane treatment of animals.“What animal advocates do is to try to do this on a wider scope- protect animals so that we can save humanity. There is this beautiful quote that sums this up : &#x27;Teaching a child not to hurt a butterfly is as important to the child as it is to the butterfly&#x27;,&quot; she said.<div><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fphoto.php%3Ffbid%3D1049801253847737%26set%3Da.616488927178974%26type%3D3&amp;show_text=true&amp;width=500" width="500" height="790" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></div>The team&#x27;s efforts, under her guidance, extend beyond just rescue missions. They engage with the importance of responsible pet ownership and the humane treatment of animals. “We promote kindness and compassion not because of what our acts of kindness does for the ones we rescue, we do it so that we do not lose ourselves to violence, hate and destruction,” she said.<div>&#x27;NO ANIMAL LEFT BEHIND&#x27;</div>The feeling of sisterhood and compassion is further demonstrated by the resilience of the women at PAWS.Together, they address issues like abuse, neglect, and overpopulation, making sure that no animal is left behind.She said every adoption story is a celebration of triumph supported by a foundation of love, teamwork, and unwavering faith in each other’s capabilities.One pet that had her heart in PAWS was &quot;Taho&quot; who passed away last year before she took the Bar exams. &quot;Taho&quot; was among a litter of kittens a British tourist rescued from a roadside in Makati. The PAWS shelter was full at the time and there was nobody to foster them, so Cabrera had to take over caring for them.“It was only Taho who was holding on and I was under immense pressure to keep her healthy and alive because so many people had helped me take turns bottle feeding the kittens and I spent many a sleepless night just keeping her warm,&quot; she said.<div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/2024/3/25/slaughtered-golden-retriever-killua-tests-positive-for-rabies-paws-1438">Slaughtered golden retriever Killua tests positive for rabies: PAWS</a></div>Taho, a beautiful white puspin with gray tabby patches, passed away at nine years old due to bowel issues. She regrets not spending more time with her at home, instead of prolonging her life.“Life with Taho and all the animals I’ve loved taught me that it isn’t really how long we live that matters but how we live our lives.  We should be spending each moment to work for causes greater than ourselves and even ordinary day-to-day things that we do, that cats do- like basking in the sun, stretching should be fully enjoyed- most especially with loved ones,” she said.“Animals teach us that life is short and there is beauty in the finiteness of life.”For her, spending time with her pets is her self-care. Despite the challenges of having a pet, she believes that her advocacy for animals is also a path to self-care.<div>CHALLENGES THAT WOMEN ADVOCATES FACE</div>But being an advocate, especially as a woman in a leadership position, has its challenges too.“In a government meeting, the Chairperson (a man) actually said to me — because I refused to let an issue rest since it would mean that animals would suffer- — &#x27;Are you like this at home? What does your husband think when you won’t let an issue rest?&#x27;,&quot; she said.“I was so flabbergasted at the &#x27;ad hominem&#x27; – See? Even the Latin term is masculine – hominem meaning &#x27;man&#x27; — that I wasn’t able to reply at all. I just kept re-stating our stand for the animals and stuck to our proposal until the committee considered adopting major portions of our proposal,” she said.She encourages fellow women in the legal profession to forge their paths unapologetically.“In meetings like these, no one would ever think about bringing up the matter of a man’s wife and his demeanor ‘at home’ but as a woman, I was called out for being too opinionated,” she said.“Women can create a greater impact because we are mothers, nurturers — people tend to listen to us more because we do not really care much about pissing contests or announcing what we do to draw attention to ourselves,&quot; she said.<div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/03/06/20/tamang-edukasyon-mahalaga-para-women-empowerment-maisabuhay">&#x27;Tamang edukasyon mahalaga para women empowerment maisabuhay&#x27;</a></div><div>PURSUING LAW</div>Although she was already a known animal welfare advocate, Cabrera decided to go into law school &quot;because I was angry at the judge who shushed me in the courtroom.&quot;She recounts trying to provide input during a court hearing on the value of a life of an aspin, or Asong Pinoy,  and &quot;the judge asked me to stop speaking because I was not a lawyer.&quot;This incident stoked a fire inside Cabrera, driving her to pursue the very justice she believed animals were not receiving. Because many people are younger than her, she even faced discrimination for taking the exam at her age.“I was so shocked to see those taking the exam were approximately in the same age range as my eldest daughter. The guard at UP Malcolm Hall even told me &#x27;Doon po ang waiting area ng parents&#x27; when I was actually there to take the exam,” she said.Cabrera graduated from the UP College of Law in July 2024 as a working student and being older than some of her professors. She passed the Bar exams in 2024 and took her oath as a lawyer in January.“So I am a newly-minted lawyer. Today, I attended my first cruelty case in court as a lawyer and, yes, I was able to speak in court without the judge berating me,” she said.

“What animal advocates do is to try to do this on a wider scope- protect animals so that we can save humanity," Executive Director Anna Nieves Hashim-Cabrera said.

“What animal advocates do is to try to do this on a wider scope- protect animals so that we can save humanity," Executive Director Anna Nieves Hashim-Cabrera said.

An animal welfare advocate’s ‘paw-some’ journey from volunteer to leader

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An animal welfare advocate’s ‘paw-some’ journey from volunteer to leader

ABS-CBN News Digital Intern,

Kyla Olano

Published Mar 15, 2025 01:51 PM PHT

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Updated Mar 17, 2025 09:49 AM PHT

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Animal rights

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