Fernando Zobel de Ayala Seen Petting Aspins At Ayala Mall
Fernando Zobel de Ayala is best known as one of the leading businessmen in the country. But did you know that the tycoon is a big fan of dogs, too? He actually has a great track record with adoption agencies, particularly with Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS).
Recently, a post by Greenfield Ramirez captured the Ayala Corporation director cozying up with a stray dog at an Ayala Mall. According to the post, the aspins in the photos are actually part of the community here and are even named Marty and Bully. No surprises here though. Fernando Zobel de Ayala, after all, has been quite the fan of aspins in the Philippines.
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Fernando Zobel de Ayala's Love for Aspins and Adoption Efforts
In 2020, FZA adopted PAWS shelter dogs Bonito and Charlie, first featured in the special edition of Metro Style's Muttro society. Zobel actually adopted three more dogs from the PAWS shelter, and would even adopt six horses from Southern Luzon in the aftermath of the Taal Volcano eruption.
The Ayalas have all been big patrons of PAWS adoption initiatives. Of course, while there are various dog breeds in the Philippines, aspins stand out as our most trusted companions, dogs that've been by our side for perhaps thousands of years now.
Interestingly, ancient dogs or aspins in the Philippines and Southeast Asia are said to be the ancestors of the dogs of today. In a study published in Nature back in 2015, it was discovered that a split occurred in the genetic makeup between gray wolves and Southeast Asian dogs 33,000 years ago.
Baed on genetic codes taken from dogs in Southeast Asia, experts would conclude that it was approximately 15,000 years ago that a subgroup of dog ancestors from Southeast Asia found their way to the Middle East, and then spread to Africa and Europe. It would take another 5,000 years before they traveled to China and the Americas.
