MAY 27

MAY 27, 2003
Animal lovers to send over 2000 strays to Malaysia

SINGAPORE -- 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, an animal rights activist said on Tuesday.

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.

About 100 cats already are on their way to Malaysia and have been placed in a quarantine and the rest would follow in the coming days, she said.

'Volunteers are taking turns, they are about to collapse from rounding up the strays,' she added.

There are an estimated 80,000 stray cats in Singapore, but the cleanliness campaign targets only those caught near markets and other places that serve food. The culling is part of an overall hygiene campaign launched on May 6 in response to the Sars outbreak, officials say. -- AP