Mon, Oct 05, 2009
my paper
S'poreans more animal friendly
By Sia Ling Xi
SINGAPOREANS seem to have become better friends to animals.
Fewer animals have been abandoned and more adopted over the last five years at the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA), which runs the largest animal shelter here.
The SPCA has seen a 17 per cent jump in the number of animals being adopted, from 1,000 in 2004, to 1,177 last year.
Its spokesman credits this to its website launched five years ago, which carries regular updates on animals available for adoption. This speeds up the adoption process and makes it more convenient, she said.
Along with more adoptions, the SPCA has seen fewer abandonments.
The number of animals, especially cats, handed to the SPCA has fallen by 13 per cent over the last five years, from 10,472 in 2004, to 8,028 last year.
The number of cats taken in has halved because of the success of cat-sterilisation campaigns, said the SPCA.
With more cats spayed, fewer unwanted offspring have been produced and then abandoned, the spokesman explained.
In a scheme started in 1991 by the SPCA, cat owners ballot for sterilisation vouchers every month.
The CatWelfare Society started Spay Day, when it sterilises cats for free, three years ago. It has since seen a 15 per cent increase in the number of cats it spays.
The SPCA marked World Animal Day yesterday, with a series of animal-related games and exhibitions at its headquarters.
It also sold T-shirts bearing messages decrying the keeping of whale sharks and dolphins in captivity.
