Jul 25 2009
NUS CAT CAFE
NUS CAT CAFE – Caring for Campus Cats
*Note: For the interests of the cats, we’d like to remind everyone NOT to feed the campus cats unless they are registered as NUS CAT CAFE volunteers. We wish to coordinate feeding efforts and discourage random and irresponsible feeding that cause problems such as overfeeding, leftover food litter that attract pests, the feeding of inappropriate food to cats etc. Irresponsible feeding causes more harm than good to the cats. If you are interested in being a cat caregiver, please contact us.
Click to find out more about cat adoptions!
These lovely kittens were born in NUS earlier this year. They have since been adopted and have found themselves a good home.
The NUS CAT CAFE PROJECT aims to provide a humane and effective method of controlling the cat population on campus and to provide the cats on campus with a safe environment to call home through a programme of sterilization, responsible feeding and cat management within the NUS campus.
Given that the average cat can have up to 4 litters in a year, with an average of 4 to 6 kittens in each litter, there is a need to take an active approach in controlling the cat population before the population increases drastically. To prevent the need for drastic measures such as culling to be taken, our aim is to create a stable and well-managed cat population on campus. We believe that sterilization is the best approach to take given that it is a proven method of stray population control that is both humane and more effective than culling in the long run. We believe that all animals are deserving of kindness and respect and we hope to improve the welfare of our campus cats by introducing responsible cat feeding and management to NUS.
OUR OBJECTIVES
(i) cats will not enter cafeterias and refuse collection areas in search of food;
cat feeders will feed responsibly and clear away leftover food so as to maintain public cleanliness.
Through sterilization and care for the cats’ health, we hope to achieve the following results:
(i) reduce and stabilize the stray cat population on campus in the long term;
(ii) keep new, unsterilized cats from invading the campus. Cats are territorial by nature, thus by returning cats after sterilization to where they came from, the sterilized cats will deter new unsterilized cats from settling in their territory, thereby bringing about a stabilizing effect to the cat population in the area.
(iii) reduce complaints of cats causing disturbance to residents due to noisy mating calls, cat fights over mating and spraying of urine. Sterilized cats do not mate and are far less likely to caterwaul, get into fights and mark their territory by spraying.
(iv) increase re-homing opportunities for community cats through the creation of an adoption network.
OUR AIMS
- To promote tolerance, care and respect towards all animals and to create an environment where campus cats will be accepted and respected as part of our campus.
- To foster community bonding, social cohesion and active citizenship within the NUS community through volunteer work.
- To create greater animal welfare awareness by educating the NUS community on issues of stray cat management and cat welfare in Singapore.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________WHY CAT STERILIZATION?
What is Cat Sterilization?
Cat sterilization is the surgical removal of part of the reproductive organs from the cat so that it can no longer reproduce. It is a safe and quick (15 minutes) procedure that is performed by a veterinarian with the cat under general anaesthesia so that it does not feel any pain. The cat then undergoes a post-surgery recovery of 1-2 days. Sterilized street cats are universally recognized by a tipped left ear.
A Humane Alternative
Sterilization is a humane and effective alternative to killing. It effectively controls the stray cat population in the medium to long term. When we trap, sterilize and return the cats to their environment, the sterilized cats will guard their territory against other non-sterilized cats. The sterilized colony will first stabilize, and then decline in numbers over the years as they live out their natural lives. With a sterilization program, cats need not be killed in a bid to control the stray population.
Other Benefits of Sterilization
(i) Health: There are also health benefits for sterilizing cats. Spayed female cats will not suffer from ovarian and uterus cancers, or pyometris (a potentially fatal uterus infection), and have a lower risk of breast cancer (especially if sterilized before their first heat). Sterilized male cats will not contract testicular cancer, and are less inclined to get into fights with other cats, thus lowering their chances of injury, infections and feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) through being bitten.
(ii) Social Behavior: Sterilization alters the behavior of cats in a positive way (at least, from a human point of view). Sterilized cats are considered less of a nuisance to the public since they are less likely to make loud mating calls, spray urine and get into fights.
Hi, I’m interested in being a cat caregiver. Can i have more information? Please advice on how i should go on about it. Thank you!