So we left China and went back to my friend’s home in Singapore. Things got a bit more catty then because my friend has been without cats for a while but finally in a place where she could think about adopting. I was interested in what rescue was like in another country, so we went off to the SPCA together. The staff there were lovely and clearly cared about the animals though it was painful to see cats living in small cages, some of whom had been there for months or in a couple of cases over a year. The ones who got along well with others had a larger room to share, but new arrivals who needed to be kept separate and those who didn’t socialise well had very little space to move around in.
Many of the issues are the same: animals not being neutered, left to stray, abandoned. In this respect Singapore could be Sheffield, but many degrees warmer.
It was interesting to be on the other side of the fence and be the ones choosing cats rather than hoping they would be chosen. And hard to not push my friend to adopt the long timers like Lucius who has been there too many months:
In the end Charm and Risen were chosen. A ‘typical’ young mum, about 18 months old who had come in with kittens and stayed on after her kits had been snapped up. And a 10 week old black kitten who had been found as a stray, on his own in the city.
They’d both quite obviously taken a shine to my friend, so it was heartbreaking to leave them, wondering if they knew they were “reserved” and we’d be back for them, or if they just felt they’d been rejected again. But we were off to go shopping for them. Perhaps its because Singapore is a very small island compared to the UK, but as with the rescue, space in the pet shop was at a premium. Forget the space in Pets at Home where you can comfortably pass others in the aisles with your trolleys. In this pet shop we had trouble just squeezing past each other! Nevertheless, a couple of hours later we emerged with a frightening number of carrier bags containing a reasonable set up package for two cats. Having lived for some years in a house who’s residents are predominantly feline and who have gradually filled the house with their stuff, so gradually that you hardly notice, it was a bit of a shock to be in the position of buying a whole set up in one go and see just how much stuff they actually need.
and this was just to get them through the weekend!
It was lovely to return to collect them the following day. I don’t think they knew what had hit them at first. Then it gradually dawned on them that they had several floors of house to chase up and down and a pair of humans who adored them already.
Such lovely and lucky kitties.
8 Lives: Sheffield 8 Cat Rescue 