On an early Saturday morning, while most people are fast asleep, groups of students wearing pink PAWS shirts were hiking  across a trail walking about 20 shelter dogs.

The Diamond Bar High School PAWS club members volunteer their time to help stray animals while gaining community hours. Although the club disbanded a few years ago due to lack of leadership initiative, a few students  restarted the club in 2017.

The club is now  an animal rights organization with the purpose of bringing awareness to the mistreatment of animals around the world.

“We want to bring light to these animals that have no say in the abuses they partake and teach steps to the members on how to prevent these animals from being harmed,” club co-President Kevin Kuo said.

In 2017, the club participated in events such as collaborating with Walnut’s Key Club to make dog toys, holding dog socials in parks and walking shelter dogs from Priceless Pets.

According to Kuo, the club focuses its meetings on a monthly awareness topic about the mistreatment of animals. Awareness topics last year included coyote awareness month, adopting shelter pets instead of buying them at pet stores and using cruelty-free products.

Although the literal name of the club symbolizes dogs, PAWS is dedicated to helping all animals.

“PAWS club is not just to get volunteer hours, but to talk about the different animal mistreatments around the world,” Kuo said.

One of the club’s major achievements  was fostering a dog from the South Korean dog-meat market last year.  Then club President Sophia Kim traveled to South Korea with the intention of selecting  six jindo dogs, but ended up bringing back one dog since only Kuo was able to foster.

He fostered the dog, Lydia, for over a month, then  Kim took the dog in her care for two weeks until Kim found her a permanent home.

“Originally, it was for getting another dog and the hours, but as time went by, I finally realized that it is not for the hours but to nurture back the scarred animals,” Kuo said.