Stray cats in Singapore

[blueibmer]

hi all, i just like to know if the culling of stray cats in singapore has stopped, or do they do it during the wee-hours? i'm a cat lover and if only my landlord allows me to have a cat in the apartment unit, i would adopt one... the cats in nearby hawker centers are sow fat and so fat and furry, like garfield... it's just so sad to know the there had been moves by the singapore gov't to eliminate them... anyway, just trash this if it's too sensitive...
peace!

[Asian_Geekette]

Not sure about the culling. But you're right about the Garfield-like characteristics! The stray cat which hangs around the area where I stay looks so well-fed for a stray cat. But it's quite friendly and allows me to pet him.

[sundaymorningstaple]

No, it is still being done but without fanfare. I lost my adopted stray to ENV I think as well about a year & a half ago. As I live in an HDB flat I couldn't even go to ENV to enquire as HDB says we aren't allowed to keep cats as pets. (I adopted her 8 years earlier than that and had her when I bought the flat) Wasn't about to give her up. Unfortunately, she loved people and would automatically roll over on her back for a tummy scratching for anybody who would give her the attention. that included stranger at the void deck where she used to lay out sunning.

[seasider]

If you can get close enough to pet your stray, Asian_Geekette, maybe you can get a lightweight collar on him? Preferably a stretchy one, not too tight and not too loose (a couple of fingers-worth of space is good).

That way maybe, just maybe, he won't get removed.

I seem to collect cats...

[one843]

I do like cats very much.

However it is always other peoples cats that I like.

I will not allow them in my house, much to the disappointment of my family.

In regards to culling. I am very much a person that can not stand animal abuse and even give money to the SPCA when ever I see their tables set up.

One also need to undertand the effects of over population of ferrel animals.

Sometimes it is very necessary to cull a certain species to preserve other species and enviroment.

In the US we cull animals of all sort on a yearly basis. We call it hunting season but it is controlled by the government and called hunting season.

[blueibmer]

yup, i guess we also have to consider the overpopulation and the health risk factor... if they're gonna take them out, i hope they do it late at night... do we need necessary papers if we choose to adopt them and put a loose collar?

[Asian_Geekette]

sms,
I'm sorry to hear about the disappearance of your adopted stray.

I thought there was only capture (to be neutered) and release strategies here... but it appears cats just disappear mysteriously.


seasider,
By putting a collar on a stray cat, does this deter the disappearance? I've seen two dogs which roam around freely in my neighborhood. They don't bother anyone and they have dog tags.

[sundaymorningstaple]

yup, i guess we also have to consider the overpopulation and the health risk factor... if they're gonna take them out, i hope they do it late at night... do we need necessary papers if we choose to adopt them and put a loose collar?

Don't need anything at all. Unless it's a chipped animal. A trip to the vet can ascertain that (you wouldn't want to be caught harbouring a stolen animal). My cat adopted me and not vice versa. (I've always been like one843 - I liked cats as long as they belonged to someone else). She was the first. Cute calico who was at least 8 years old when she adopted me.

[Wind In My Hair]

Sorry, I have no sympathy for stray cats. Some are plain menaces, like the one who would walk up to my old, blind, deaf dog and claw him totally unprovoked. He can't defend himself so I had to fight off the cat, which was quite fearless so it wasn't as easy as it is with most cats.

Also, some people put smelly dried food or leftover rice around for the cats, and that creates such a mess when they don't pick it up after the cat is done.

My stand is, either you adopt a stray into your home, or let the authorities take them away. It's not nice to impose overweight, underfriendly cats on everyone else.

As you can tell, I'm a dog person. Some pet cats I've met are quite affectionate and I don't mind them. But strays... ugh.

[Superglide]

Oi Wimh!?

We're all equal on this planet, dogs and cats?

And one unfriendly stray doesnot make all of them bad, does it?

It's not their choice to be left out on the streets, you know?

[mayamomi]

much as i'm a dog person, i still think that there are nice cute stray cats out there... as for the unpleasant ones that WIMH had met, they're just a handful... not all of them are like that, most would in fact run away or just stay very still upon seeing dogs...

its not their choice to be in the streets... its not allowed to keep cats in HDB flats, so not everyone can keep them as pets... hence, the feeding ...

maybe some are fortunate to be well or overweight, but most are malnourished and hungry-looking... so how can we resist feeding them when they come to u looking so innocent and hungry...

[sprite]

I love dogs and I love cats. Not all, but most. I could never understand defining someone as a 'dog person' or a 'cat person'. It's a happy home which has both. To me it's almost like being pregnant and wishing for a boy or a girl. What difference could it possibly make?

[seasider]

If you do adopt one you should get it chipped - have it done at the same time as its neutered, if it's not already, although it's really just like an injection so shouldn't stress the cat out too much. It will need its vaccinations too. These are not expensive and some vets give you a discount if they know you have adopted a cat.

As Asian_Geekette has mentioned, the Cat Welfare organisation has a programme called Trap-Neuter-Return-Manage (TNRM). It's not always feasible to take every cat off the street into a home, so this programme aims to manage strays whilst ensuring they can't breed further. It's a small drop in a very large ocean but hey, every little helps.

I managed the TN with a young Tom last year but in the end I couldn't bear to do the RM bit and now have 3 cats. Plus another one coming in through the catflap for his supper every evening...

Cats are not the problem; people are.

[Wind In My Hair]

Oi Wimh!?

We're all equal on this planet, dogs and cats?

Of course, but believing we're all equal doesn't require us to love every creature equally. I don't like cockroaches as much as I like rabbits. And I love my Mum more than I love yours, as equal as both are as human beings. Nothing wrong with personal preference right?

I could never understand defining someone as a 'dog person' or a 'cat person'. It's a happy home which has both. To me it's almost like being pregnant and wishing for a boy or a girl. What difference could it possibly make?

A preference for a different species is surely different from a preference for different sexes of a certain species? I can tell you for sure I am not a snake person. Meaning I'll keep my distance from a snake, but I recognise their equal rights and status as full members of the animal kingdom. Is that better?

If I were pregnant I would wish for a girl. Not because I think girls are better or that male and female are not equal. But simply because I've helped bring up 3 boys in my lifetime, and want to experience a girl. Again, personal preference.

Seriously, I think this equality argument can be taken too far.

[micknlea]

I think you will find WIMH that these stray cats do help keep the rat population in control here as well. There can't be many strays that would come up to a dog to attack it, most will run and hide somewhere safe in preference, only if confronted do they normally fight, and then for a reason, like food.

You know the culling would almost be acceptable if they were discerning in the cats they pick up, but we know that that is not always the case. It also depends if you live in a neighbourhood full of cat lovers or haters...then the culling can take on a very personal level as well.

Support for the Cat Welfare Society and their aim to control the stray cat population by neutering is one of the best ways to help keep the neighbourhoods free of spraying toms, and to keep the rats at bay!