Vinegar & Mothballs

Again the corridor was clean! No smell, stains whatsoever! Anyway, I sprayed vinegar along the corridor and staircase and placed mothballs near the flowerpots.

I wonder how cats can run into her flat with all that extra reinforcement? Perhaps it happens a long time ago… probably one of the 4th floor cats got lost and mistook the abuser’s flat for its home which is the same corner unit but on the 4th floor.

I “spoke” to the family once again… warning them to keep the cats indoors and also indicated that there is an abuser around.

There are still 2 cats that go over to “her” void deck – Squealer and Claudy! Bibi and Benny also go there but they are at the other end of the block.

Another complaint

Photo taken by Town Council

The complaint was about an unsterilized cat outside a certain unit at Blk *86. This is an area without any caregiver. It’s a very tame female.

The owner said that they would take her in. They said that they had the cat for 8 years… when it followed them home one day. They did not sterilize the cat but it never got pregnant.

I advised them to bring her to the vet, maybe there is a way to check without opening her up… ultrasound, x-ray??? Then have her tipped just to be safe… in case she happens to run out.

Do you know who I am!

Complaint from RC member about a black cat loitering in front of his unit at the 5th floor (Blk *70 area 3).

Sylvia recalled her encounter with this particular RC member and his wife about a year ago.. He threatened to kill the cat if he sees it again… and kept asking Sylvia “Do you know who I am!” and boasted that he could just call Town Council and have all the cats removed.

On an other occasion his wife told the mother of Sylvia’s friend to stop feeding the cats or she would call the police.

Kiki still roaming

http://meowies.multiply.com/journal/item/1229/Let_out_to_roam_and_get_pregnant

http://meowies.multiply.com/journal/item/1266/Kiki_locked_out_

http://meowies.multiply.com/journal/item/1275/Kiki_was_still_downstairs

Received a call from TC officer today about a smallish white cat at Blk *11 Area 2 with dark spots, ear not tipped. That can only be Kiki… TC officer will pay a visit to Kiki’s owners! I had already tried talking to the owners a year ago…

Unkind Humankind

Old photo of Big Head (2006)

I have received several complaints from Town Council… some problems are in areas with no caregivers and about free-roaming home cats. We still try to help and talk to those irresponsible owners.

Then I get an email that someone complained that there are “a lot of stray cats” in one of our well-managed areas. The complainant pointed out 4 black cats and one tabby (actually there are only 3 black cats, one of them being Big-Head). He wants them removed because “they go to the void deck, are under cars and on top of cars and go to the playground”. TC gave me a deadline of Dec. 11 to “solve the problem”.

These 5 cats have been there for years and Sylvia who passes this area in the morning and also feeds the cats at night says she never saw them on the playground or the void deck of this particular block. I think TC has informed the complainant that these are sterilized community cats… now there is suddenly a complaint that a car had been scratched! The complainant asking TC to pay for the damage.

This is the area where the then RC chairman wanted the cats removed because he claimed “they shat on his car”. In that same area we once had a lady who claimed a cat would follow her… the cat was actually a very shy one who would run away from strangers! I guess some people are not beyond exaggerations and lies when they want the cats removed.

Mother and 4 kittens on 3rd floor Blk *05

Went down together with TC officer this afternoon. I think a visit from TC officer has greater impact on irresponsible owners…

Looks like they are willing to keep the cats indoors… and improve the meshing of their gate. They had already sterilized the mother cat but the kittens (3 males and 1 female) need to be done, too, as they are already 6 months old. All the cats look healthy and well taken care of.

Beautiful Park “vandalised”!

These young trees have been marked, too

One of my neighbours told me that about 20 trees were cut down yesterday. He had called Town Council and also took photos but was unable to stop them…

I believe the 4 baby birds were also victims of this tree-cutting! Mynahs like to build their nests in palm trees.

Most of the few remaining trees are marked for destruction… even the young ones!

The reasons given where that the trees were leaning sideways (actually only a few of them did) the rest were growing tall and straight and healthy. Another reason was red ants!

Now this is a new one… previously it was the birds, the mossies and trees obstructing lift upgrading.

All these so-called reasons are totally unreasonable! These problems can be solved without taking such extreme measures. Can anyone please explain how the trees at the other end of the block can obstruct lift upgrading?

Anyway this morning I rushed down when I saw more trees being cut, spoke to the supervisor and managed to get the workers to hold on until Monday.

I don’t know if I am able to safe what is left… I am too worn-out for another fight! The other active resident will be out of town…. and the rest are probably too apathetic to do anything- sigh!

Don’t we cat-carers have enough on our hands… today I have to catch and abandoned female cat that gives problem on a 5th floor.. and get her sterilized. Then here is also a cat that had given birth to 3 kittens in another area (TC nuisance complaint)… I don’t know what I can do .. but will try anyway.

Searched for Rex yesterday… making my last round at 2am… looks like he has been taken ! Poor Boy, so sorry I could not protect you!

Now Stoney’s feeding is overdue…

Just a quick thank-you to all who contributed towards Stoney’s medical expenses… couldn’t have done it without you 🙂

Yesterday he was breathing quite noisily… was worried could be fluid in his lungs but today he is fine and less mucus drippping.

Please bear with my slow response and update!

A waste of time…

Saw Good Boy downstairs yesterday night and in front of my gate today! So much for keeping him in… sigh! Talking to people seems just a waste of time…

Placed moth balls into the flower pots on the 12th floor.

More complaints…

Worried about Good Boy and Shiny… complaints about them on 4th, 6th and 12th floor! Went to investigate with M. The family on the 4th floor agreed to take Good Boy in and keep him safely indoors. I think he spents already most of his time in their home.

Princess is still allowed on the corridor. She jumps over the netting…

A flower pot or a litter tray for Princess???

A cup of water between 12th and 13th floor

Cat food and water on 6th floor

Food and water on the 4th floor

Mother and 5 kittens

TC officer called regarding complaints about kittens on the 2nd floor and 4th floor of the same block. There is no caregiver in that area…

When I had almost reached the block I saw a very thin cat and wanted to give it some food but it kept running away… so I gave up.

Went to the 4th floor… no kitten there but saw a litter box and food and water dispenser… no one was at home at this unit. Later when Penny arrived I went up one more time and this time I saw the same cat that I had met earlier. It looked terribly thin… ate the Fussy Cat but was very scared of humans. We will have to come back another time to talk to the residents of that unit. Meanwhile Penny had asked the 2nd floor resident at whose front door the mother cat had given birth to help give the 4th floor cat water and food for the time being…

On The 2nd floor was a mother cat (one eye blind) with her 5 kittens. The resident had provided a box and gave food to the mother. He had seen the cat before downstairs then last Monday she went up to give birth. The kittens are now 5 days old. We placed the mother cat in my carrier and the kittens in a box then cycled to Penny’s place.

Penny has been looking for a mother cat for the surviving kitten… which is probably not more than 3 days old. She managed to get one but that cat had mastitis and was unable to give milk. The kitten is already very weak. The new mother cat accepted it readily but the kitten was unable to suck the milk. We kept trying and Penny also syringed some drops of milk…

Later received sms that the kitten was finally suckling…phew!

Now there is hope!

The abandoned kitten is much smaller then the mother cat’s 5 kittens…

Another cat complaint

The complaint is about defecation in flowerpots on 2nd and 3rd floor. This is actually not my area but will still try to help if possible. Both times I went there the cat was downstairs and there was no defecation, urine smell or food on those corridors. The 3rd floor complainant said she had placed durian husks on the flower pots and it worked.

The young and very friendly male cat will be sterilised tomorrow and then released back. I saw a tipped-ear at the void deck of the same block so I think there is a feeder/caregiver.

What’s the use of having a meeting with the GM…

… if TC officers are not informed of the outcome?

Received an email form from TC Property Officer regarding cat nuisance at Blk *75, Blk *79 & Blk *80 and that there were also complaints regarding defecation on the common corridor.

She asked whether there was any cat lovers group in this area and whether all the cats were sterilised. (This must be a new officer)

I wrote back that all the cats are sterilised and asked for more details so that we can check and try to solve the problem and that it would be best if we could talk to the complainant directly.

This is the reply:

I think it will be inappropriate for me to give you the contacts of the complainant.

Please ensure that all the cats under your care are sterilized. If any cats is causing nuisance to the residents, we will remind you to relocate it. Failure to do so, Town Council will not hesitate to remove them.

Lastly, i will contact you if similar feedback occurs again. Thank You.

Regards

This is just sooooo frustrating!!!

Cinderella’s Family

Cinderella’s sister the Tabby Persian

Cinderella’s second sister the White Persian

This is where I met the family for the first time when they picked up the White Persian after her fall from the 4th floor kitchen window.

They where not bothered when I told them the cat was sitting at the window ledge again. I spoke to one of the daughters and hopefully she will get the meshing done. Will check again in a few days time and then will try to get SPCA officer to pay a visit if the cats are still out and gate not meshed.

Free-roaming cats at Cinderella’s block

These cats belong to a family on the 2nd floor. I took this opportunity to advise them to keep their cats indoors. Like many others they seem to believe that cats with collar will not be rounded up.

The black-and-white cat hat her tail amputated recently. Both are sterilised but the ginger boy is not tipped.

Complaint at Blk *02 Area 2

They are still letting their cats roam on the corridor even after one of them fell from 4th floor for the 2nd time (luckily unhurt both times).

Now there has been a complaint about defecation at neighbour’s doorstep. TC officer investigated and also informed HDB. The family lied to HDB and blamed it on the community cats. The TC officer told me that he himself saw their cats out on the corridor and he is also aware that the community cats at this block do not go upstairs.

Now that HDB has been informed the likely scenario is that Cinderella and the two Persians will be dumped downstairs… or somewhere else.

Will try talking to them again…but not much hope.

http://meowies.multiply.com/tag/cinderella

Actually not my cat…

Ginger-Tom

Ginger-Tom was originally found at Blk *14

He was sterilised last year

Food and water outside 4th floor unit

While feeding the cats at Blk *10 I saw a family waiting to take the lift. The woman had a cat carrier. The kitten in the carrier looked about 4 to 5 months old and had a white face with some orange around the ears.

By the time I decided to approach them the women and 3 children had already taken the lift up but the man was still standing at the lift lobby. Yes, they were the family staying at that unit on the 4th floor but the cat was actually not theirs…. and he wouldn’t stay indoors.

The man told me that they had another cat (male kitten) which according to him was only about 2 to 3 months old and too young to be sterilised.

I advised on meshing and sterilising….

Will feedback to TC and perhaps need to talk to the complainant… since 3 out of the 6 families staying on the 9th floor never saw any cat on their corridor.

I know that a person with fear of cats is staying at this block…

Stitches was sent to AVA in 2006 because of complaints from this block. I claimed him back and the TC officer warned the Indian man who caused the complaint by irresponsible feeding at the lift lobby. The problem was solved but half a year later Stitches went missing…

http://meowies.multiply.com/journal/item/228/Stitches_at_AVA

Complaints

There had been 3 complaints recently in Area 2.

One was about a black cat (Heidi) hanging around the lift area of Blk *13. Talking to 2 feeders seemed to have worked. Heidi has now moved a few meters to Blk *14. Hope the complainant is satisfied.

There was also a complaint about Bottlebrush (so named by the principal of the childcare center) who had entered the office cum store area. I offered plastic mesh but the principal said that she would temporary block the gate with cardboard. Meanwhile Bottlebrush seems to have moved away from the childcare center.

Bottlebrush is a medium longhair cat with some hair-loss at the tail. She has been around for several months… very thin and very shy. The Auntie and myself saw her only occasionally and at different locations. She is now more regular and no longer shy and thin. I am reluctant to sterilize her because she is most probably already done… I tried to look for a tattoo but she is still a little jumpy. There is another older longhair female in the same area which can also be assumed to be sterilised (she has been around for at least 2 years). I explained to the Property Manager that these two are sterilised but not tipped.

The most recent complaint was about an orange tipped-ear cat with collar and bell going to the 9th floor of Blk *10. There are 6 units and I spoke to 3 of the families… none had ever seen the cat on their 9th floor corridor. Then another resident told me that the cat belonged to a family on the 4th floor. Sure enough there was a water and food bowl in front of that unit but no one was home.

The nasty “Motorbike Man” again

http://meowies.multiply.com/journal/item/272/The_motorbike_man

Yesterday this very nasty man (a large-built Indian) walked towards me while I was feeding Kinky and Midnight… he smelled of beer… telling me that I have to take this two cats away because they would always sleep on his bike. He keeps mentioning that there are now 6 people feeding these cats. In his opinion they should all be taken to SPCA to be put to sleep! Then he pointed to Sweety…. ah there is another one!

I tried to explain to him that there are less cats now because of sterilisation and that in fact I had taken away several cats and kittens from around his block (Golden Lion, Jasper, Sweet y’s 2 kittens had all been adopted). He also used to complain that Golden Lion would sit on his bike.

He would not use the mothballs and also refused to try using elastic cords to secure the bike cover. Maybe he just enjoys harassing the feeders? Why else would he refuse the moth balls especially since (according to him) he hardly ever uses the bike?

When I mentioned that it often turns out that scratches were actually made by humans… he replied that he would kill anyone who scratched his bike! He also showed me paw prints on the seat… didn’t really see any paw prints. When I pointed out that there were no scratches on the seat he replied that he had replaced it recently.

More complaints…

This complaint is near Ivy’s area. As I was cat-sitting nearby I went to have a look. Ivy had just given me the block number but it’s usually not hard to find the right staircase and right unit 🙂

Saw a cat go up the stairs and simply followed. There were 3 units on the second floor and it seems that the complaints had come from 2 of the units.

While I spoke with one of the complainants at least 3 or 4 cats walked up and down the stairs. This complainant had installed a metal gate to keep the cats out of his part of the common corridor and to prevent them from defecating in his flowerpots… of course that didn’t work. He even contemplated cementing glass shards on top of the metal gate or getting a bulldog. In the end he was willing to try the mothball and vinegar method.

His upstairs neighbour, an elderly Chinese man, said the cats (7 of them, sterilised and tipped) belong to him. His gate was meshed but left open. He wanted the cats to have their freedom…. and also that they could find herbs to cure themselves when sick. When told about the complaints he said that her would consider keeping the cats indooors.

Ivy will follow up in a few days time.

Another complaint at Blk *95

This time the complaint is about a cat on the 13th floor.

Went there with Penny but we could not find the cat… what we found was a free-roaming rabbit on the 12th floor. They took him in after told that there may be a cat around.

I suggested that we go to the 2nd floor family who keeps many cats, as it could be one of theirs.

See here:http://meowies.multiply.com/journal/item/784/Commplaint_at_Blk_95

Yes, one of their cats went missing, a brown cat with short tail.

Downstairs we saw this cat:

Pregnant and very hungry. Yes, she belongs to that family… “slipped out the door”. There was no attempt to bring her back into the house… and why was she so hungry if she just slipped out?

Rocky had a large abscess

Rocky back from the vet

Had not seen him for 3 days (a family on the 4th floor always brings him up) but I was beginning to worry. Then Maxiejane called saying that he has a big lump at the left side of his body. I brought him to the vet straight away. The abscess was drained and he has to be on antibiotics for 24 days. The vet showed me the pictures of the abscess after shaving him and of the pus that was drained… yucks!

Heino in the cage next to Rocky.

Heino still has diarrhoea… will get him sterilised before releasing back. He is very noisy but cute. Somehow I get the feeling that Heino and Heidi are siblings… their behaviour is very similar.

Received a complained about a brown cat that ran into a child care center at Blk *11 Area 2. They already chased him out but complained to Town Council to have the cat removed…sigh! There is no brown cat there but perhaps it was Ginger Tom at *14… or a newly abandoned cat. The TC officer will try to get more details.

Complaint about cat attack

A lady complained to the MP that she was attacked by a cat loitering at a car park and causing her a sprained ankle. This cat is a ginger male, a friendly but rather shy community cat.

She also warned that the cat could attack children at the nearby playground and therefore should be removed.

Later she told Sylvia that the cat didn’t actually attack her but kept following her.

The “attacks” happen at around 10.30 / 11.30 which is around feeding time. Could the cat have mistaken her for the feeder?

Complaint at Block *33

There was a complaint about defecation on the common corridor. Bought vinegar and mothballs and met with Penny to check it out. We spoke to the residents, a cleaner, a feeder and a caregiver.

As suspected, the cause of the defecation is a free-roaming home cat. The owner denies it saying that the community cats come up to fight with her cat. But in any case keeping their cat in the house would solve the problem of the community cats coming up. According to the cleaner there is no defecation on any of the other staircases or at the void deck, just this one staircase which serves two units on each floor. the defecation is always on the 2nd or 3rd floor.

We cleaned the poo and the complainant was eager to try the mothballs and vinegar. She even asked us to place more mothballs near the neighbours door… she will explain to them. She will also call us if the problem persists.

We saw quite a number of tipped ears while waiting for the feeders. There are responsible feeders and caregivers in this area.

Cat-Cafe

The cat-cafe has been set up at the slope behind the bin center. As the structure is quite heavy and bulky, we had it delivered straight to the intended location and set it up…while approval is still pending. Penny will inform the TC officer and hopefully there will be no objection.

The first two cats of the blk *95 family have been sterilised today. The cat with urinary problem vomited after taking the herbal medicine… but he was able to pass urine yesterday and according to the owner the urine was clear of blood. Hope they will continue to syringe glucose -water to clear the infection and stop giving him the poor quality dry food.

A resident at the Novena Condo complained about defecation at the swimming pool area and cats sitting on the chairs, so the management wants to remove the cats. Hope the feeder can discourage the cats from going to that area… using vinegar, water-spray, etc.. and get some residents to speak up against the removal.

Commplaint at Blk *95

Not my area but I heard about a complaint to Town Council regarding cats on the 2nd floor, so I went to take a look. I had no problem identifying the right unit with wire-meshed gate.

Yes, they have cats… 21 (including the latest batch of kittens). No, they are not sterilised… financial problems. They told me that all the cats are kept inside except for two… one of them being the rather skinny male cat that I saw downstairs. The corridor looked quite clean, no smell. I told them about the SPCA voucher scheme and they seemed eager to go. Me and Penny can also try to spare some vouchers for them next month and lend carriers. Also gave them the contact for better and cheaper food after they told me they get F and W brands from supermaket and can food at $1.90 a can.

They rejected my suggestion to put the kittens up for adoption. Nope, they want to keep them all!

Injured cat, unsterilised home cats and another complaint to MP

Went searching for the injured cat but unsuccessfully. Feeders and cleaners in the area have been informed. It’s been many days now and the cat has still not been found.

Yesterday night the cleaner told me that his friend saw the injured cat at the playground in front of blk 220 the day before.

http://singaporeseen.stomp.com.sg/singaporeseen/viewContent.jsp?id=17590

After the search, already close to midnight, I met with Penny to see a Malay family supposed to have 20 cats. They planned to abandon them all because of the new grandchild. We talked to them about getting the cats sterilised and Penny will help to bring the pregnant female to the vet on Monday.

The lady counted the cats while we were there and then said that she had only 8 cats. Strange that she didn’t know how many cats… we suspect that some have already been abandoned.

There was a tiny kitten with signs of flu or could it be eye irritation due to fleas? All I had with me was the antibiotic powder, so we put some on the skin sores. The kitten’s mother and some of the other cats also have skin problems… fleas and probably mites too. We told her to get the flea spray but she says she can’t afford the $30.-. She is also too busy to bring the cats for sterilization…

We were very tired and frustrated when we left… We have to do everything for her and in the end she may still throw the cats downstairs. There is no caregiver in that area so pest control will round them up..sterilised or not.

To top it off, someone complained to the MP about cats climbing on top of cars at the multi-storey car park next to the CC. The complainant was not identified !!!

Two sterilised cats rounded up by Pest Control

I am still trying to verify with TC…so far have not been able to contact Ms Veron or Andrew.

The agreement was to give us until end of this month! AVA will call me if the cats come in and we will try our best to claim them back. I was told by AVA that lately more cats are being rounded up and that it will be very, very difficult to claim any unsterilised cat back.

We still don’t know exactly which two cats have been caught, but there were no unsterilised ones left at this bin center.

Sponsors have come up with a total of $550.- to get 10 of the cats sterilised quickly…and 10 more were done with the help of SPCA. None of the many families we spoke to wants the cats to be killed…

Are the TC officers afraid because this complainant, who wanted to call in the police because Penny mentioned “Race” when talking about abandonment, would complain to the MP if TC didn’t remove the cats?

TC denied having activated pest control…and the cats did not turn up at AVA. The Pest Control company employed by TC is Clean Solutions. I suspect they have relocated the 2 cats…

Unreasonable Town Councils!

A mother cat from Tampines is being held at AVA for more than a week now because TC refuse to issue a letter to the caregiver who wants to sterilise the cat and board her at a cattery. All her kittens have already died at AVA.

Can someone please tell me why there is a need for such a letter in the first place when the caregiver is willing to home the cat in a cattery and is paying for all the expenses?

More closer to home, the Town Council Manager informed Penny that the (sterilised) cats will still be rounded up after end of this month because there is a complaint from a resident at Blk 172 about too many cats and that they are making noise. She refused to reveal which unit the complaint came from.

So all the families that we spoke to at Blk 165, which is even closer to the bin center must be deaf….because we asked them and they said there was no noise! Also it doesn’t matter that none of the residents we spoke to wanted the cats to be killed.

All that matters is that that the one complainant and one property officer want them removed. I wonder if the complainant is actually aware that the cats will be killed and that there is a better and humane way of controlling the cat population… probably not!

There are around 10 cats at the bin center now, 2 have been removed. A caregiver has adopted the one that had one eye removed. Another cat gave birth at a caregiver’s home, while waiting to be sterilised and she is now nursing her 6 kittens there untill they are ready to be adopted.

We actually came to know about this problem because a resident feeder named Caren contacted me… but in the end she was not willing to do anything at all. Penny then took over as it is quite close to her area… then another 2 caregivers and some sponsors came in. I am quite encouraged by such community spirit… what a shame to have such an unsupportive TC.

4 more cats sterilised…

Altogether about 20 over cats have been done, those at the bin center as well as those from nearby blocks.

However the property officer still insists that there must not be more than 5 cats at the bin center by end of next week. Otherwise the Pest Control will be called in to round them up .

Helped Penny to do a survey today, in 2 hours we covered about half of the block closest to the bin center. 23 families did not want the cats removed, and none of them had any complaints. 2 people were indifferent and one family wanted some of the cats removed as they were scared of them…but even they did not want them killed. Frankly I was surprised that there was not a single complaint about caterwauling, cat fights…I mean we only started sterilizing 2 weeks ago!

Penny will talk to the property manager and show him the result of our survey.

Why must these sterilised cats (there are now about 10 at the bin center) be removed, when the overwhelming majority of residents does not want them to be removed…just because one family has a phobia?

The bin center is not even close to the first block and there is lots of greenery surrounding it…including a quite steep hill with overgrown grass…. more than enough space for 10 cats to play and hide away from human beings.

Another complaint

…and again it’s actually about home cats let out to roam in the common corridor.

I am getting very tired of having to deal with such people! Both complainants and cat owners!

One complainant is having a sensitive, irritable nose and objects to having a cat on his corridor. Wonder what he is going to do about people with dogs walking by…can they also be removed? Then there are the cat owners who seem to care well for their pets and then tell me they are going to either abandon them at Changi or send them to SPCA because wire mesh would not look nice…and anyway they are actually not their cats. They only took them in 3 years ago when they were kittens because they pitied them.

Then I get a call from the complainant at 11pm…Are you available 24 hrs? Can I call you at 2 or 3 am if the cats make noise?

Another complaint from Block *77 area 3

This is the block where the RC had earlier conducted a survey…and the result was that the majority did not want the cats removed.

Now there are no more cats at this block but the complainant claims that the 2 black cats and another calico follow her up to the lift, seeming interested in her plastic bag.

Perhaps they mistook her for a feeder? All 3 cats are actually very shy and keep away from strangers. According to Silvia these cats don’t go to *77 at all. I see the calico occasionally going to the bin center next to *77 and she won’t even let me come close to feed her. It’s hard to believe what the complainant said and that they wont leave her alone even if she stomps her foot.

When I suggested carrying a bottle of water to splash the cat…she didn’t want to be so violent. Isn’t getting the cats killed even more violent?

When I spoke with the complainant it turned out that actually she had no problems with the community cats at her block. She had complained about her neighbour’s cats… one of them ran into her flat once…but then she also wanted to drop the matter as she and the neighbour are on good terms.

I had talked to that family before about getting their 4 cats sterilised some time ago…but they were still not done. The cats are well taken care of, no feeding on the corridor, no smell no defecation. Will help them to get the female sterilised next week using my last voucher.

From what I noticed, the cats stay mostly indoors even though the door is open. The family agreed to put back the wire mesh, which they had removed recently and stored at the corridor.

Bunny next to be sterilised

Bunny appeared at block *24 area 2 about 2 weeks ago. She is a tall cat with a bobtail. Bunny will be sterilised tomorrow.

The complainant called again…claiming Floppy slept in front of her door. she didn’t actually see her but noticed cat hair on the cloth placed between door and gate to keep the lizards out. Luckily, I remembered those plastic mats Dawn mentioned in her blog… she can get 2 of those from Daiso and place them in front of her steps. that should keep the cat away. Actually Sylvia says that the cat no longer goes up to the 9th floor…but perhaps she still does so occasionally.

One of the Malay family’s cats has been sterilised today

I lend them my carrier and then the two siblings went on their own to bring one of their two cats to the vet. I just came to know that there had been a complaint about their cats a month ago and they were told to keep the cats in…but they had not done so. Wonder if those officials were from Town Council… sad that they still refuse to work with caregivers. Such families need advise about sterilisation, meshing and sometimes they have financial difficulties. The other cat will be done next month.

Regarding Floppy, the complainant accepted our offer to fix plastic mesh to her gate. Sylvia and myself fixed the mesh yesterday night. She was very pleased…but I think she will still keep her doors and windows closed as she is fearful of lizards entering her home. There were rags and small pillows squeezed tightly between the gate and the wooden door to keep them out. We had also been wondering about the black and yellow tape at the wall leading to her unit. She told us hat the MP on her visit has also questioned her about this…it’s to prevent the lizards hiding in the small gap.

FLOPPY’S LIFE IN GREAT DANGER

I missed 3 calls from the complainant around 10.30 last night, when I called her back she sounded agitated and complained that she just came home and found the cat lying in front of her door. She asked me to “come and take the cat away�.

The feeding on the 9^th floor seems to have stopped but of course the cat won’t change her habit so fast. Sylvia checked at about 11pm and brought Floppy downstairs. When I reached at around midnight she was up again and I also coaxed her to follow me down.

There was no food and the corridor looked very clean except for some red candle wax on the floor. Floppy does not defecate or urinate upstairs. She is also the only community cat at this block.

Though the complainant seems to be a Christian, she has no qualms about terminating the life of this innocent and harmless cat. I wonder, would she be willing to bring Floppy to the vet and to watch her being ‘euthanized’?

A complaint about Floppy

A resident complaint about people feeding a stray cat on the 9^th floor. The “stray� turned out to be a well-loved community cat named Floppy. Sylvia and myself spoke to several residents, one said that Floppy would follow her up to the 7^th floor, another claimed that Floppy would take the lift up on her own.

We found no evidence of feeding and the corridor looked clean. Hope the residents will cooperate and feed downstairs.

I also noticed 2 cats on the 4th floor…and there was a strong urine smell. When I came close they ran into the corner unit. I advised the Malay family to keep the cats inside and also to get them sterilised.

Complaints at *30 area 3

There are about 7 – 8 cats there at feeding time, which is not an increase in numbers. It’s about the same as when I started sterilizing.

A resident’s cat is causing problems by defecating at the staircase landings. The feeders were actually aware of this and had cleaned up many times. One of them had previously spoken to the “owner��? which ended in quarrelling.

Yesterday night I went with her to speak to the person. He seemed quite hot tempered and shouted at the feeder (who spoke in Malay) to ��?shut up��? at one time.

He refuses to wire mesh his gate, as it wouldn’t look nice (the windows do not face the common corridor). He says all he can do is to pick up the poo when he sees it…he also remarked that it could be other cats or dogs that defecate at the staircase.

Silvia herself saw the cat urinate there yesterday night.

At the end he agreed to keep the door closed when he is at home…but he said that when he is out his young children would open the door and there is nothing he can do about that. According to the “owner��? the cat is already 15 years old. He also has another cat, which is bathroom trained and does not go out.

The feeders will take turns to check morning, afternoon and night and will also sprinkle mothball powder.

Haz will also take a photo/video next time, as proof. …

The motorbike man

He started complaining about a year ago about the cats scratching his motorbike, one of those huge machines with a seat that looks like a cat-sized sofa. He seldom uses it, as he also has a car. When I lifted the cover yesterday, I saw little Louis curled up on the ‘sofa’.

I had earlier given him some cat repellent and the problem seemed solved when One-Eye Ginger moved to the next block…unfortunately he has moved back since and more cats have come in (Jade, Louis, Golden Lion and the now adopted Jasper). I have left a bag with mothballs on the seat…hope that works.