Boy Disappears At Night, Then Dad Secretly Follows

Something Off

Barry started noticing something was off. These days, his son came home late after school consistently. When asked where he had been, his son shrugged his shoulders and gave a sweet smile that made Barry’s heart melt like warm butter sliding down hot toast. But Barry knew something strange was going on. Could his son be hiding something?

The change happened when his boy no longer had pocket money to treat himself. This wasn't good. Where did the money he gave him go? Barry would find out, finally, when he decided to tail his boy and see what was going on. What he found was something he would never have expected.

Ken Amante

Barry's son, Ken Amante, was a good eight-year-old who was responsible. The family lived in Davao City, Philippines. It was an impoverished area but they still managed to get by.

Ken would always walk to and from his school. It's when he started arriving back late that his father grew concerned for his son.

Providing For His Family

Barry worked long hours to provide for his family. He was a car mechanic and owned his own humble business. But not all months were good for business. In order to keep his family stable, he had to work hard.

Barry understood that nothing was for just given away out of the kindness of someone's heart. But he'd soon relearn that when Ken started arriving home late.

What Was He Doing With The Money?

Even though he had to work very hard to earn his living, Barry thought it was important to still give his boy a little bit of pocket money. Ken needed to understand how money works at his age. 

Strangely enough, his son didn't have the money his father gave him for the last two weeks. What was he doing with it? After figuring out what his boy was doing with his allowance, their lives would never be the same again.

After School

Barry had finished work early and decided to pick Ken up from school. As he pulled into the school parking lot, he sipped on a coffee he just picked up and saw his little boy standing across the road.

But then suddenly, an elderly looking man appeared, standing behind Ken. The elderly man leaned close into the little boy, and a terrible feeling hit Barry’s stomach. 

Racing Over

Barry jumped out the car, armed with confusion and rage, and raced over to the road. Just as he was about to cross the road, a gigantic lorry pulled in, blocking Barry from seeing his son. 

Barry shouted out Ken’s name, and his heart started to race like an Olympian going for gold. Who was that man? Where’s Ken? Time was running out for Barry, and he had to be quick. 

Reunited 

The lorry finally pulled away and Barry was delighted to see Ken across the road, and thankfully the strange man had disappeared. 

He raced over to Ken and asked who the man was. “Oh, I don’t know dad. One of my school friends' grandad... I think,” he said in a sweet tone. Barry pulled Ken into his chest and hugged tight. But Barry had no idea what was still to come. 

Catching Him Red-Handed 

Despite the incident at school, Barry still allowed Ken to walk home. After all, Ken needed to learn how to become independent, and if the strange man was a relative of a school kid, there's nothing to worry about, right? 

But two weeks had passed and Ken had been late home every single day. Barry couldn’t take it anymore. He had to find out what it was. The concerned dad decided to keep the garage door open while he worked on a client's car so he'd see when his son came home. But nothing could have prepared him for what was to happen. 

What Was He Doing? 

Barry stood waiting for Ken to arrive home, and unfortunately, when Ken got home, he arrived exactly on time. Barry observed his son as he slowly walked in through the gate. After ten minutes, he was surprised to see his son come back into view.

Barry crouched down so Ken wouldn’t see him and his pulse quickened to see Ken walk back down the road. Where was his son going? Barry had no idea his world was about to get turned upside down. 

Tailing Him 

As Ken went down their road, Barry squinted and saw that he was still wearing his backpack from school. He noticed that the bag looked empty. 

He waited for a minute and then began his pursuit. Barry followed him to a grocery store. When young Ken walked back out, curiously, his backpack looked full -- very full. Barry hoped that would be it. His son would leave the shop and come back home. But he didn’t. 

Nighttime‘s Coming

Instead, little Ken went the opposite way. Armed with his backpack and whatever was inside it, he headed off down the street. 

But the sun was about to set, and everybody knew not to be out in these parts of the neighborhood at this time of night. Barry felt sick to his stomach. And he knew time as running out. 

Bad Area

As Ken kept walking, all the nice corner cafes started evolving into liquor stores, junkyards, and pawn shops. The area was getting worse as he kept walking.

Barry didn't understand why he would be going into these neighborhoods. What was his kid doing? Barry feared the worst. No eight-year-old should be wandering into these places.

Observing

Barry started walking closer to his son in this neighborhood but he still tried to remain invisible to Ken. To his surprise, his son started walking down a side road. Then he observed Ken stop in an empty road.

As barry continued to watch his son, he slowly crouched down just above the cracked road. This is when Barry saw his boy take something out of the backpack.

Father's Intuition

Barry’s curiosity spiked as he watched his son. What was he doing? What did he get out of the backpack? Barry knew he should come out and make himself known to Ken, and protect him from whatever was about to happen, but Barry stood frozen in his tracks. 

Then, suddenly there was a subtle sound from the bushes. Barry saw movement out the corner of his eye. 

Fight Or Flight

As Barry watched his son, suddenly out of nowhere, three beasts jumped out of the bushes, their growl echoing down the grimy side street. 

They slunk towards his son and surrounded him. Barry couldn't comprehend what was going on. But he snapped out of it and let his intuition guide him -- he sprinted towards his boy.

Not The Best Condition

When Barry reached his son he started to scare the strays away. Then he looked down at the ground and saw cans of dog food on plates.

The strays weren't in a healthy state. They looked starved and had tufts of hair gone. “I’m embarrassed to say I was pretty disgusted,” Barry admitted. But Ken was about to show him the kindness he never thought anyone had.

The Truth Comes Out

The pups, who Ken had named Brownie, Whitey, and Blackie, happily tucked into their food, tails wagging. Ken looked up to see his dad’s stern face. He owed him an explanation.

The little boy came clean, explaining that he had used his pocket money to buy as much dog food as he could. Every day for two weeks, he had come to this spot to feed the stray dogs. Barry was awestruck. He knew he had to share what he had witnessed.

A Change Of Heart

In February 2014, Barry snapped the now-famous picture of his son feeding the strays and posted it on Reddit, where it soon caught the attention of animal lovers around the world.

“My son changed my perspective entirely,” he wrote. He was touched by his son’s selfless actions But, he was also concerned for Ken’s health. So, the father and son reached a compromise.

A Compromise

As the dogs are strays, Barry was worried that they carried diseases, such as mange. He told his son that he would buy the food for the dogs on the street on one condition: Ken would have to go for a rabies vaccine and carry disinfectant in his backpack.

Meanwhile, Barry’s post on Reddit was gaining traction. The father and son could never have anticipated the world’s response.

A Little Boy With Big Dreams 

When Ken told his dad that his dream was to eventually open an animal shelter to look after the neglected animals living on the streets of Davao, Barry laughed at his son’s extraordinary ambitions.

He gently explained that it would take “a lot of money and 20 years” before Ken’s dream could become a reality. But then, the internet stepped in.

The First Step

After seeing the incredible response to his Reddit post, Barry decided to create a website for Ken, called Happy Animals Club.

He also allowed Ken to bring Blackie, Whitey, and Brownie home to care for them, and soon, they were running a small shelter from their garage. Barry helped Ken post updates on his website, and the response was phenomenal!

Rescued

"We got enough money to get the dogs I was feeding off the street, feed them high-quality canned food, and provide them with veterinary care," Ken wrote on his website. 

They gained a LOT of weight, their open wounds healed, and their fur grew back. They also learned not to be scared of humans," he added.

A Terrible Situation

“I love animals. I have one rescue dog and two rescue cats. Ever since I can remember I wanted to open an animal shelter to help the stray dogs and cats on the streets,” shares young Ken on his website.

“Happy Animals Club’s main goal will be to rescue dogs from the city pound. the official at the pound said most dogs are put down because only 20-30% of owners claim their dogs, and no animal welfare organization is doing something about it.”

A Growing Support Base

Donations began to pour in from supporters all over the globe. Ken and his dad were able to lease a 1,000 square meter lot for a year, buy building materials, and hire carpenters.

After months of hard work, the full-size Happy Animals Club was open for business. The shelter now holds two large pens, two apartments, and an annex.

Making A Difference

Years later, Ken is now a teen and he was able to sustain his project of helping animals. His no-kill animal shelter and sanctuary has grown bigger thanks to the volunteers who are helping Ken and his family run the shelter.

Happy Animals Club’s website is very active and everyone is being updated with what’s going on with the shelter and sanctuary, as well as the rescue animals’ progress. But now, the shelter isn’t just taking dogs in…

Not Just For Dogs

Once the proper facilities had been built and enclosures were erected, Ken also began to rescue kittens and cats from the area.

He also keeps a complete list of animals up for adoption on his website so that he can find all his rescues a loving home. There is also a link to donate to Ken’s shelter via PayPal.

A First In Mindanao

It's the first animal shelter in Mindanao where animals are free to roam around, as they are neither tied nor kept in cages. 

According to its website, the "animals are treated with respect and love and afforded the best possible care, without compromise, to ensure that every animal is as happy as it can possibly be."

His Mission

In keeping with his mission, Ken always goes out of his way to make sure that all the animals in his shelter are happy and healthy. He even takes the dogs to a park on weekends so they can run and play. 

Earlier this year, Ken conducted an Easter egg activity for the shelter animals, and last Christmas, he successfully conducted a feeding program for street dogs (he actually does this all the time even if he's running late for school!)

Expanding

Two years into the shelter's operations, Ken is doing what he loves most -- and more importantly, his animal shelter has saved many animals and made their lives better. 

As of last year, it's been home to around 30 dogs and 17 cats. He hopes that in a decade, the Happy Animals Club would have branches around the world, with lots of animals in them and lots of people adopting them. 

A Helping Hand

On Happy Animals Club’s website, Ken wrote: “Please help me develop the animal shelter by volunteering, holding seminars at your school or company, or donating funds for dog food and veterinary care.”

He continued: “Happy Animals Club is a non-profit organization registered in the Philippines. Happy Animals Club is autonomous and independently managed by me with help from volunteers (currently my dad, he complains that he is an “involunteer”)”.