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Joint SARS Response Initiative SARS Transmission and Pets |
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Welcome! Even before the SARS outbreak, thousands of pets were abandoned in Singapore every year. Public hysteria and panic over SARS would only lead to more animals unnecessarily suffering and dying. The Joint SARS Response Initiative is a cooperative effort by various animal welfare groups in Singapore to allay unfounded fears of links between pets and the SARS virus.
Important News
Towards the end of May 2003, the government – without consulting any animal welfare groups in Singapore – intensified the culling of stray animals. The authorities claimed that the culling is part of a public health clean-up programme and not because of SARS. However, it is hard to disassociate the two because although the stray problem has existed for many years, only now has the decision been made to take such drastic action.
The various animal welfare groups in Singapore held a press conference at the Substation on Friday, 23 May 2003 to address this distressing development. Collectively, we all feel that these actions will have a negative impact on the state of animal welfare in Singapore. The full joint press statement can be found here.
These are news stories, in reverse chronological order, following the press conference. Please note that all videos on this site are in MPEG format and can be viewed using Windows Media Player or Apple Quicktime.
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The Straits Times (19 Jun 03): Govt must change its mindset first In a letter to the forum page, a reader protests that in one fell swoop, the Singapore's OK committee undid the work of volunteers who helped to care for, sterilise and manage strays - all because the direct recipients of their kindness are stray animals. Read more
The Straits Times (18 Jun 03): Cat-egorically in the clear Last of 140 stray cats has passed tests, says AVA; this means that no cat has been found to have or spread the virus. Earlier tests had indicated in one cat a 'borderline test result', which could have been caused by contamination of blood and stool samples. But the latest tests by the National Environment Agency and Genome Institute of Singapore have ruled out Sars. Read more
Channel News Asia (15 Jun 03): AVA to consult residents and grassroots over issue of stray cats The Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority is planning open discussions with residents and grassroots to gauge public sentiment on the issue of stray cats. Read more
The Straits Times (14 Jun 03): Government to release land for pet shelters The Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority will release five parcels of land for animal lovers to set up pet shelters. The Cat Welfare Society, however, is convinced that shelters are not a sustainable solution. It would rather the Housing Board did away with existing rules barring cats from HDB flats, and believes sterilisation is the way to go in the long term. Read more. Watch related news clip here (2.3MB MPEG file).
AP (14 Jun 03): Government to release land for animal shelters The Government announced on Friday it will auction off land for animal boarding facilities due to a public outcry over a cat-culling campaign. Read more
The New Paper (09 Jun 03): Don't be too sterile, S'pore The reason offered for the culling of even sterilised cats is that they pose a health hazard. If this is true, cat owners must be a suicidal bunch! Read more
AP/Yahoo (09 June 03): S'poreans Find Ways Around Laws To Protest Cat Culling. Through memorial services, T-shirt campaigns and running backward, cat lovers are finding ways around Singapore's strict protest laws to express their anger at a government cat-culling campaign. Read more
The Straits Times (09 Jun 03): Cat lovers hold memorial for 700 culled cats More than 70 cat lovers gathered at the event to remember the 700 cats that had been culled recently. The 80-minute event was also to honour those who care for strays. Read more. Watch related STTV news clip here (6.9MB MPEG file).
The Straits Times (08 Jun 03): Cat lovers save 2,000 strays from culling They want to raise $300,000 to build cattery for up to 3,000 cats; $3,000 needed for monthly upkeep. Read more.
STTV News Clip (07 Jun 03): Watch video (6.7MB MPEG file) View using Windows Media Player or Apple Quicktime.
TODAY (07 Jun 03): That's the cats taken care off... The old timers are next! TODAY's columnist Neil Humphreys reproduces a letter from the "Cat-Killing Authority and Elderly-Culling Association". Read more
TODAY (07 Jun 03): More time needed for
sterilisation programme of cats to work
TODAY (06 Jun 03): Cats not to blame - Fault lies with food centres A letter to the newspaper says that instead of focusing on what we should do to keep food places as clean as possible, we have put the blame on stray cats. Read more
The Straits Times (06 Jun 03): Learn to respect animals In the letter, the reader says that despite so much protest from animal lovers in Singapore, the authorities haven't paid heed. Read more
The Straits Times (05 Jun 03): Culling of cats: Is it still 'Govt knows best'? Singapore's swiftness in using the strong arm of the law to contain the Sars outbreak earned it both praise and criticism from outsiders. Many saw its decisiveness as the only way to deal with an infectious disease outbreak. Others, however, argued that such unquestioning public obedience was a telling indictment of the lack of civil liberties in the nation. The columnist also highlights contradictions between AVA's recent statements and earlier media presentations. Read more
The Straits Times (04 Jun 03): Give stray sterilisation policy time to work SPCA Executive Officer, Ms. Deirdre Moss, says that the SPCA is deeply shocked and saddened by recent government initiatives to intensify the culling of stray cats, and hopes that consultative dialogue between animal welfare groups and the Government can take place to work towards and achieve a more humane solution to controlling the stray animal population in Singapore. Read more
The Straits Times (04 Jun 03): AVA consults animal groups on stray cat problem Dr Balakrishnan said, 'You can't export strays across the borders. We wouldn't allow it, and the Malaysians wouldn't allow it. This is a problem which we will solve. We will solve it internally, with our own resources, and with the help of the animal welfare groups in Singapore.' Read more
TODAY (04 Jun 03): Problem of 70,000 stray cats The Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority (AVA) responds to recent letters to the newspaper on this issue. Read more
The Straits Times (02 Jun 03): Cat-culling protest climbs The plight of cats was relived at the National Vertical Marathon yesterday in the form of fitness instructor Balakrishnan Matchap. Read more
The Straits Times (02 Jun 03): Animal shelter and Johor reject stray cats from S'pore Malaysia will not accept some 2,000 stray cats from Singapore that animal rights activists have rescued from being killed. Read more
STTV News Clip (01 Jun 03): Watch video (3.7MB MPEG file) View using Windows Media Player or Apple Quicktime.
The Straits Times (01 Jun 03): Johor tightens checks on cats from S'pore Johor Mentri Besar Abdul Ghani Othman said that Johor is not a dumping ground for stray cats from Singapore. Read more
TODAY (31 May 03): Culling of stray cats to continue
The Straits Times (31 May 03): Cull of the wild
The Straits Times (31 May 03): Tests on cats show one borderline case Of the 140 stray cats that the authorities have tested over the past few weeks, 139 have been found to be free from Sars. More tests are needed as this does not necessarily mean the cat has Sars. Regardless of the test results, the culling of stray cats will continue, as it is part of an ongoing effort to improve hygiene at eating places. Read more
TODAY (30 May 03): Little Health Risk from strays A letter signed by 19 Singapore-registered vets discredits an earlier letter that claimed that strays posed a significant health risk. Read more. The unedited letter can be found here.
The Straits Times (30 May 03): Neutered stray cats may escape culling if they aren't a nuisance The Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority (AVA) has advised town councils, which are in charge of rounding up stray cats, to 'avoid removing sterilised stray cats unless they have become a nuisance or inhabit food establishments'. Read more
The Straits Times (30 May 03): Sterilising cats has not solved problem The Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority (AVA) responded to the letters to the Forum page on this issue. Read more
The Straits Times (29 May 03): Letters to the Forum page There were many letters to the Forum page protesting against the latest culling operations. Read more
STTV News Clip (29 May 03): Watch video (6.5MB MPEG file) View using Windows Media Player or Apple Quicktime.
Not likely Test results have been inconclusive, but scientists say people are unlikely to get infected unless they touch or eat cat faeces. Read more
The Straits Times (28 May 03): Animal lovers bent on saving strays Pet farm owner Eric Lim has slashed his boarding rates for cats by two-thirds, to $5 a day, in a show of support for cat lovers. Read more
STTV News Clip (27 May 03): Watch video (7MB MPEG file) View using Windows Media Player or Apple Quicktime.
TODAY (27 May 03): Don't cull the cats, blame the humans The move is regrettable. At best, it is rooted in irrational fear and ignorance. At worst it is a cruel method to achieve the aims of the OK Singapore campaign.
TODAY (27 May 03): Strays pose a significant health risk A letter talks about the risks associated with an "out-of-control population of stray cats in Singapore" Read more
The Straits Times (27 May 03): Cat lovers to the rescue As AVA steps up culling, one businessman is pledging $2,500 a month to house 300 strays. Despite these actions and pleas from animal lovers, the AVA has intensified its daily culling of stray cats, even sterilised ones, from 35 before last Friday, to more than 45 now. Read more
The Straits Times (27 May 03): Animal lovers to send over 2000 strays to Malaysia Cat lovers are rescuing stray felines from Singapore's streets and sending them to an animal shelter in Malaysia to save them from being killed in a cleanliness campaign aimed at fighting Sars. Ms Cathy Strong, president of the Animal Lovers League, said over 2,000 stray cats have been gathered so far and that they would be sent to Noah's Ark animal shelter in Johor, Malaysia. Read more
The Straits Times (27 May 03): Letters to the Forum page There were many letters to the Forum page protesting against the latest culling operations. Read more
The Straits Times Interactive Poll (27 May 03): Cast your vote here.
Sydney Morning Herald (26 May 03): SARS anti-bodies found in wild animal traders Singapore was culling stray cats as part of a nationwide cleanup campaign sparked by the SARS crisis. However, the authorities denied they were hunting stray cats out of fear that they caused SARS. The culling is part of an overall hygiene campaign launched on May 6 in response to the SARS outbreak, said an official of Singapore's food and animal control authority, on customary condition of anonymity. Read more
The Straits Times (26 May 03): Culling cats will lead to rat problem A letter to the forum page asks the logic behind the aggressive culling of stray cats over the past few days. Read more
The Straits Times (25 May 03): Tests to see if animals can transmit the virus Dr Balakrishnan emphasised that the recent culling of strays was for the sake of public hygiene and not because of Sars. Read more
Channel News Asia (24 May 03): Culling of cats is part of clean-up of environment: Dr Vivian Balakrishnan Dr Balakrishnan said, "The studies are on-going and we should have the results hopefully in 2 weeks or so. But we can't wait for answers before we take appropriate precautions. As part of this, we've also have to clear strays, whether they're stray dogs, stray cats, rats, vermins or other pests. It's part and parcel of the attempt to clean up the environment, so that people can buy their food, eat and drink safely." Read more
TODAY (24 May 03): Even sterilised strays not spared Total fatalities from Sars 31. Total fatalities from Singapore's OK campaign: thousands. Read more
The Straits Times (24 May 03): AVA Admits: Yes, we're culling stray cats It's for public health reasons and not because of Sars, says government body. Animal welfare groups protest the move. Read more
Reuters News (23 May 03): Singapore Plans Mass Cull of Stray Cats
STTV News Clip (23 May 03): Watch video (4.5MB MPEG file) View using Windows Media Player or Apple Quicktime.
Channel News Asia (23 May 03): Animal lovers voice opposition to intensified culling of strays Authorities say they have intensified the culling of stray cats in housing estates, food centres and markets as part of the "Singapore's OK" programme to clean up the environment and improve public hygiene. A check by Channel NewsAsia found only two stray cats in one neighbourhood, which used to have many more. Read more
The New Paper (23 May 03): More strays put down An anti-stray campaign launched by several town councils has been criticised by animal protection groups. The groups believe the media put out information leading the public to believe that animals can carry the Sars virus. Mr Ricky Yeo, from Action for Singapore Dogs says, "We don't want to clash headlong with the authorities, or be seen as being over-passionate, but we need to bring out the facts." Read more
TODAY (23 May 03): Dog’s life: Anti-Sars effort targets strays Public toilets, markets and coffee shops have been vying to display the ‘Singapore’s OK’ label to lure back customers, but the campaign could spell death for stray animals. The Agrifood and Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA) says that “in line with the ‘Singapore’s OK’ campaign, town councils have intensified their rounding up of strays, especially in food centres and market places”. Read more
Spotlight
The Sraits Times (29 May 03): Contradiction at the heart of S'pore
system
No connection between pet cats and wild civet cats Do not misinterpret the Hong Kong University report that suggests a connection between wild civet cats and the spread of SARS. Civet cats are members of the stoat and weasel family and are wild animals normally found in forest environments. This report is no reason to abandon your loving pet cat says the Hong Kong SPCA. Read more
The Sraits Times (21 May 03): The Truth About Cats and Dogs Animal-rights groups in Singapore are protesting against what they perceive as a misconception that animals can carry and spread the virus. The number of dogs and cats abandoned by their owners at SPCA increased by 100 each last month. There were also 136 rabbits abandoned last month, compared to the monthly average of 100. Read more
The Sraits Times (19 May 03): Sars outbreak is like S'pore's Sept 11 Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Tony Tan spoke at a forum on Sars organised by the Sembawang GRC. At the forum a worried resident asked if cats and dogs ran the risk of getting infected. Dr Warren Lee replied out that there had been no cases of these animals getting infected, and that the Sars coronavirus was not known to cross species. Read more
Front page cartoon in the Straits Times The Straits Times ran a front page cartoon on May 16th 2003, entitled “Don’t leave food out in the open for stray animals”, which depicted a cat eating a meal and excreting what looks like a virus. The Cat Welfare Society is concerned that cartoons like this will unduly alarm the public. Read their complete reply to the forum page.
The New Paper (13 Apr 03): Can pets get Sars? No, they can't, from what we know so far. Animals are unlikely to be susceptible to SARS, and are even less likely to spread it. Read more
Last updated: Friday, 12 September 2003 06:23 PM
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