Benefits of Owning an Aspin / Askal

Chooey Update: Chooey's doing a lot better. She's recovering pretty well. I've taken off the Cone of Shame during day time as she's no longer fighting the bandage tape muzzle that was made by the vet for her jaw bone to recover. She's on strict dog soft diet and she's crated every night.

You must be wondering what I am talking about.  Seeing as most of my bloggy friends are non-Filipinos, I'll be giving  a short definition of an askal/aspin.

Brother dog is a full-fledged, 100% genuine aspin. He's been with us for a long time now. He's probably 7 or even older.

An aspin or an askal is a dog native to the Philippines.  They are often found in streets and homes of the average Filipino family.  They are independent,  cunning and street smart (literally speaking).  Askals/ aspins are often categorized as mongrels, mutts and mixes, but I still personally like calling them street dogs because of their intelligence (and persistence) in finding their own food and evasion skills as escape artists. You don't normally learn that in a sheltered environment.

Literal Translations:

Askal -  asong kalye -  street dog
Aspin -  asong Pinoy -  Filipino dog

Why should you adopt an Askal or Aspin from your local pound? 

1. Most askals/aspins are food-driven. They're not picky on training treats. 

2. Aspins/ Askals normally thrive on people food, but dog food works wonders on them. I give mine Bow Wow dog food and their coats have turned extra shiny. 

3. Aspins make great models for photography. 

The camera may have the wrong settings, but dear Ginger's pictures will always be perfect.

4. Since the askal / aspin family tree is so diverse,  the tendency for them to have genetic diseases are slim to nothing. 

5. A little training goes a long way. Food rewards are highly effective. Saver the Wonder Dog is one of Philippines' most famous askal.

Note: Don't be discouraged by their stubbornness.  You'd  be surprised how easily they learn the rest of the tricks once they've gotten the first one right.

6. Most askals/ aspins have survived without vaccinations through  the years.  This means that most of them have built an immunity against highly contagious diseases.

Note: Fortunately,  due to government programs providing free anti-rabies vaccinations,  the rate of rabies infection in cities have decreased.

7. They're far cheaper to adopt.  Some Philippine pet shelters already have their dogs and cats spayed / neutered and vaccinated. 

Note: The Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) charges an adoption fee of 500 php for cats and 1000 php for dogs. These pets are all neutered/spayed, rabies vaccinated, groomed and dewormed before adopted out.

8. They require less maintenance than purebred dogs. 

Bottom line,  aspins / askals are great dogs to take care of. And some city pounds are teeming with them. So do VISIT THEM before you buy that puppy in the pet store or online ad.