Sudden Increase in the Number of Stray Cats and Dogs

Attention to all citizens/public,

 there is a sudden increase in the number of stray cats and dogs in the area.

 Furthermore, our streets are littered with cat food as people are feeding these cats.

 But, what can we do when we see one of

 man’s best friends hungry and alone? 

How can everyone play a part to help improve

 the current situation?

The following steps will help you safely rescue a dog from the streets:

• Pet Abandonment: Keeping a pet is a lifelong commitment. Think very carefully before getting a pet. Owners should never abandon their pets under any circumstances. It is cruel to throw away a pet that does not know how to take care of itself. If you must give up a pet, try rehoming them first. Surrender them to the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) or AVA as a last resort.• Indiscriminate Breeding: Do not breed your pets indiscriminately as there are already many pets looking for homes.

• Casual Ownership: An owned pet is one that is kept indoors. Do not encourage stray cats to come up to your house. Allowing your cat to go outside to urinate and defecate is very inconsiderate to your neighbours.

The above actions bring problems to the community and cause suffering to the animals. Simply removing the animals without addressing these irresponsible behaviour will not solve the problems.

• Sterilisation: Sterilisation, also known as neutering, is a well-established and reliable method of preventing unwanted pets. It is a routine surgical procedure to remove the reproductive organs of animals. Sterilisation is likely to make pets less aggressive and may minimise many anti-social behaviours like marking of territory, biting and mating calls.


• Adoption: Adopting a rescued animal also saves a life and helps reduce the stray population. Animal welfare groups have many rescued animals that need a home. They can also offer advice and information to help guide and support adopters. Contacts and links to more information about the animal welfare groups can be found here.

Stray management



In many estates, the Town Councils and AVA are working with animal welfare groups and concerned citizens to ensure that the stray population is controlled and managed. In particular, AVA is working with animal welfare groups on the re-homing of stray dogs. Impounded dogs that are assessed by AVA to be suitable in terms of health and temperament will be handed to animal welfare groups for re-homing. Those which are deemed unsuitable will be humanely put down.


In addition, sterilisation is recognised as one of the important pillars in stray control. In 2011, AVA launched the pilot Stray Cat Sterilisation Programme in four zones in Singapore in Ang Mo Kio, Chong Pang, Macpherson and Tampines to ensure that cats in these selected zones are sterilised and responsibly managed.




Animal welfare groups like the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA), Cat Welfare Society (CWS) and Action for Singapore Dogs (ASD) also have sterilisation programmes that members of the public can participate in to neuter strays. These programmes combined have made a difference in stray numbers and your help can make more of a difference.







Stray or lost? 
If you find a dog and suspect it is owned, bring it to a vet clinic or AVA to scan for a microchip. If there is a microchip present, AVA will be able to check its database for owner details and inform the owner.

If you find a cat that is scared and generally not street savvy, it could be a lost or abandoned cat.

You can post lost animal notices by writing to animal welfare groups to see if they can help connect to the owner who may be frantically looking for his/her pet.