IPOH, March 25 ― Retired banker Rahman AC Din has loved animals since he was a child.
He would go to great lengths to rescue injured ones and bring them home to be treated.
His rescue efforts continued after he started working where he would send sick animals to be treated by veterinarians and put them up for adoption after the animals recovered.
Of late, Rahman has embarked on neutering and spaying strays.
According to the father of one, the procedure is the most humane way to control its population as compared to putting to sleep (PTS).
Speaking from experience, Rahman said he remembered witnessing a stray dog being shot three times at Fair Park years ago.
“The shooter did not manage to kill the dog at the first shot,” he said, adding that the dog only died after it was shot for the third time.
Last year, Rahman roped in his neighbours at Taman Ipoh Jaya to help spay and neuter the strays in his housing area by starting a fund.
“I initially spayed and neutered strays on my own but later decided to include my neighbours,” he said.
Speaking to Malay Mail, Rahman said he collects RM10 monthly from the participating neighbours and the money is used to spay or neuter dogs in the neighbourhood.
“Last year we managed to spay three dogs,” he said, adding that for this year, four dogs have been earmarked to undergo the procedure.
Asked why he supported spaying or neutering, Rahman said if shooting down strays does not control the number, one should try the spaying or neutering method.
“Countries like Holland also implement the method and there are zero strays in the country,” he pointed out.
Concurring with Rahman, stray feeder Magdalene Gomez said neutering or spaying was the best way to control strays' population.
“If owners do not wish their pets to have puppies, spaying or neutering is the way to go,” said the 41-year-old housewife.
By undergoing the procedure, owners need not go through the hassle of looking for adopters, she said.
“It is more cruel to have the puppies abandoned at markets or food courts when there are no adopters or worse to have the dogs getting caught by the Ipoh City Council and dumped at the Papan landfill,” she added.
Another feeder Liew Ka Yee said she had spayed or neutered some 30 dogs in Menglembu in the past two years so that the dogs would not be a nuisance in the neighbourhood.
“But my efforts are hampered by irresponsible owners who continue to dump their pets,” she said, adding that she wanted to avoid strays getting caught and thrown in Papan.
Ipoh Society for the Prevention of Cruelty Against Animals (ISPCA) president Ricky Soong said the society had started the trap neuter release and manage (TNRM) project since 2017.
“To date, some 4,500 strays in Ipoh had been neutered or spayed under the project,” he said.
Strays that undergo TNRM would wear a red collar, said Soong.
“Unless the stray is causing nuisance in the community, the council will not catch them,” he said, adding that the cost to have the procedure is borne by the rescuer.
