It would not have been possible without your support. We look forward to having you again next year!
World Animal Day 2011 - Keep the Love. End the Neglect.
Click on the image to see all photos at a glance!
Happy Pawsgiving! Excitement was tangible in the air on the 25 September as animals lovers in Singapore celebrated their kinship with animals.
This year, the SPCA World Animal Day event held at the East Coast Park, Dalbergia Green saw more than 2,000 animal lovers and volunteers coming forth to paint the town red with their paw pals in tow.
Even though it was a hot day, no one was complaining because everyone was there to have a great time and celebrate the joy and companionship our furry friends bring into our lives.
It was indeed an exceedingly delightful sight to see the crowd, scurrying around with their Pets Are Wonderful (PAW) Passport, deeply engrossed in their own learning journey about pets.
To kick start the celebration, the exclusive parade of the Harley-Davidson motorbikes was a hit with the thrill-seekers while the rest amused themselves with a wide array of activities such as airbrush tattoos, Q&A session with the vet from Ambervet, Dr. Brian and various stage games and quizzes.
As the crowd soak up the heat from the scotching sun, young children were seen indulging in ice-cold drinks and adorable biscuits and cookies (in the shape of zoo animals or even heroes and villains from Star Wars no less) at the refreshment booth.
The stage bought its hype outdoors with its highly sought-after events of the afternoon, the "Perfect Paws" and "Happiest Pet" contests. To which, the "Happiest Pet" witnessed an intense showdown between a beaming Chihuahua and a poodle with a stubby tail. Aren't we glad there were enough prizes for two!
With a crowd that could rival the F1, the SPCA Championship Agility Cup was a huge hit with the masses as the crowd gathered around the field to cheer on their furry pals performing jumps and weaving through the obstacle course.
Our resident mascot, Max was also seen prowling through the tents to show his support, shaking hands and giving hugs like a seasoned movie star.
As German philosopher, Immanual Kant once said, "We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals."
Let's all live by this pledge and "Keep the Love. End the Neglect!"
Clear skies and beautiful weather greeted participants who were gathered at MacRitchie Reservoir on the morning of 26 June for SPCA's Fun Run 2011. 391 of the 585 individuals who registered attended the event, and were assembled at the starting line at 7 am sharp for the flag off officiated by our Executive Director, Ms Deirdre Moss.
Sporting a running jersey customised for this event (an SPCA first), the participants embarked on the 4.8 km route amid the foliage of MacRitchie Reservoir's Nature Trail at the blow of the whistle. Lush greenery coupled with the morning dew made the trek through the forest a scenic and enjoyable one.
Runners were also greeted with cheers upon reaching the finish line as our volunteers distributed mineral water as well as chocolates to quench their thirst and replenish their energy. Participants were then ushered to the stage area to attend the prize presentation ceremony where the results of the race were revealed.
Our emcee, Ms Michelle Le Herissier announced the timing and placements of the top four participants for each different category (Men's, Women's Youth (Boys) and Youth (Girls)) as SPCA's Chairman for the Fundraising Sub-committee, Ms Ella Sherman, presented the prizes to the winners.
A total of $21,066.11 was raised from this event, and the proceeds will help the SPCA to continue providing various animal welfare services including a 24-hour emergency service, cruelty investigation, an education programme for schools and organisations, a sterilisation voucher programme for strays as well as running an animal shelter for abused and abandoned pets and strays.
SPCA would like to thank the participants, volunteers and staff who contributed towards making this fundraising event a success. We look forward to your continued support for our future events, and hope to see you for the Fun Run in 2012!
Listed below are the winners and their timings for SPCA Fun Run 2011:
Congratulations to you all!
The SPCA sincerely thanks the following for contributing to the success of our event:
Keppel Offshore and Marine
Kraft Foods Singapore Pte Ltd
Cadbury Singapore Pte Ltd
Doggiestyle Cafe
Benjamin + Squeaker
Digibook
The Dumpling Dimension
Invertigo Photography
Cathay Organisation Holdings Ltd
The Body Shop
Lemon Zest
Fairmont Singapore
Swissotel The Stamford Singapore
Patrick Harrigan, Sharon Gray and Katsu the adopted Kitty
Starbucks Singapore
Big O Café and Restaurant
Toby's The Dessert Asylum
{Prologue} Bookstore Singapore
Build-A-Bear Workshop Singapore
PS One Pte Ltd
Pet Lovers Centre
Official Pets Magazine:
Pets Magazine
Volunteers from:
Keppel Corporation
SPCA
Emcee:
Michelle Le Herissier
Photographer:
Lim Siew Khoon
SPCA Fun Run T-shirt Design:
Richard Copping
Designing of publicity materials for SPCA Fun Run 2011:
Oindrila Ghosh
Operation Sterilise! on St John's Island - Update (8 August 2011)
This past weekend, we set out to St. John's Island to prepare for the fourth session of surgery on the stray cats there. Although we have been having a spell of wet weather island wide recently, we were thankful for the fine weather which prevailed.
A total of 23 felines came through our mobile clinic. This brings the total to 74 cats sterilised since March this year.
It was indeed wonderful to see some of the cats that were small kittens when we first went there in March, now sterilised and healthy.
Our thanks goes out to all staff and volunteers for making this operation a huge success!
Latest: Part III
A team of volunteer veterinarians and SPCA staff members descended upon St John's Island from 23 to 24 July, 2011 in a joint effort to carry out the third phase of our sterilisation operation of the island's community cats.
A total of 14 cats were caught on the first day by SPCA staff, and sterilised on the second day. Operations on the second day lasted approximately three hours.
While the volunteer veterinarians performed back-to-back sterilisation surgeries, our staff members did animal husbandry work and kept a close watch on the sedated cats.
Two staff members also stayed over on the island on Sunday to ensure that all the cats made a swift and comfortable recovery prior to being released.
This is the SPCA's third visit to St John's Island, with the first two visits in April and May 2011. The grand total of sterilised cats now stands at 51.
Part I and II
An animal sterilisation “swat” team of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) has operated on two occasions from 5 to 7 March 2011 and 7 to 9 May, taking its first steps in managing the domestic cat population on St John’s Island.
A total of 20 cats (ten males and ten females) was trapped for sterilisation whilst the team proceeded to feed the hungry masses. SPCA staff stayed the night to ensure that the animals were comfortably recovering. The cats were subsequently released.
As Singaporeans prepared for Polling day on 7 May, our staff and three volunteer veterinarians were gearing up for the second round of cat sterilisation on St. John’s. We arrived at the island with much anticipation and were glad to see those cats which were sterilised previously, thriving. Capturing of the male cats this time round was quite a challenge, due to their elusive nature but our efforts paid off with patience. A total of 17 cats was sterilised. The felines made a swift recovery before being released by our staff the next day. We left the island heartened by the fact that we were one step closer to significantly reducing the birth rate on St. John’s.
The highly complex ‘Operation Sterlise!’ was conceived when two staff had visited the island on a recreational trip and noticed a thriving but unsterilised feline population. A subsequent recce and survey of the cat population on St. John’s Island, by a team of four SPCA staff in February, confirmed the growing numbers of the unsterilised cat population as litters of newly born kittens were observed. A haven for many bird species including magpies, robins and owls and the occasional Indo-Pacific humpback dolphin, St John’s Island is also home to a considerable number of domestic cats – over 100 in total – that are cared for by a handful of residents.
We will be making subsequent trips to St. John’s Island to continue our sterilisation efforts. The SPCA acknowledges the invaluable assistance of the veterinarians and staff who helped made this project possible. We also would like to thank the Sentosa Leisure Group and the AVA for their support.
Animal Welfare Symposium for Students was a Success!
March 19 2011 was an important day in the SPCA's calendar - this was the day we held our second Animal Welfare Symposium for Students at Ngee Ann Polytechnic.
The first Animal Welfare Symposium for Students was organised by the SPCA in 2009 and the event is a key part of the organisation's public education initiative.
The Symposium, designed to raise awareness about animal welfare issues, was targeted at youths between the ages of 11 and 20. It was a roaring success, with more than 400 students and teachers coming together in a packed auditorium to learn about animal welfare and how they can play a part in helping our animal friends.
The participants were introduced to a wide range of issues affecting animals used for human purposes, including food production and companionship by experts from various fields in the local scene. Distinguished speakers from Animal Concerns and Research & Education Society (ACRES), Cat Welfare Society (CWS), The Vegetarian Society of Singapore (VSS) and Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) spoke passionately about the issues close to their organisations' hearts.
Burning questions followed during the Q&A sessions as students aired their thoughts and fielded interesting queries. It was extremely heart-warming to see the current young generation so enthusiastic about wanting to share and learn about the animal welfare cause.
Alicia Gan who attended the event with four of her friends from Cedar Girls Secondary remarked, "We really enjoyed the talks and the brochures provided were useful and enriching. We would definitely love to attend talks related to animal welfare in the near future."
Jonathan Liem commented, "The Symposium was enlightening! Thanks for organising this event and I must say that some of us have pledged to be partially vegetarian because of the poor animals that suffer but also because of the great vegetarian food served. I would like to be informed of any such events organised by the SPCA in the future."
"Kudos to you and the rest of the SPCA members who tirelessly and effortlessly organised the Animal Welfare Symposium. My pupils and I learnt valuable lessons and we took away many fond memories from the symposium. We look forward to spread the message of animal welfare," said Mrs Siti Faizah Shahrin from Queenstown Primary.
At the end of the Symposium, the SPCA led a pledge that encouraged the students to uphold the values of respect, kindness and compassion towards all animals, as well as to do their part in spreading these values that they have learnt to their peers, so as to create a kinder world for all animals. They were also encouraged to do one deed to improve the lives of animals this year. Many were seen feverishly writing what they plan to do to make a difference. Some pledged to eat less meat whilst others wanted to sterilise a community cat in their neighbourhood. Whatever their individual pledges were, certainly no act is too small because our combined acts can make a huge difference and contribute to improving the lives of animals.
The SPCA would like to thank Singapore Press Holdings for the kind donation of $5,000, which made the funding of this Symposium possible. Our heartfelt gratitude also goes to the Ngee Ann Polytechnic Debating Club for co-organising this event with us and the wonderful speakers who gave up their precious time to present.
Animal welfare awareness is certainly growing strong amongst Singapore's youth. The SPCA will continue to foster this growth and is confident that the young of today will build a better future for all creatures great and small.
Flag Day 2010 - You made it happen!
You made it happen! On our recent Flag Day (11 December 2010), we had more than 600 volunteers across the island helping us! We raised a total of $76,790. Thank you so much!
We want to share some lovely stories that happened on that meaningful Saturday...
At the collection centre next to Tampines MRT Station, two long lost friends bumped into each other and were reunited! One was a volunteer who came to take a tin from us and the other, her friend, came forward to donate and voila! They found each other again after 10 years!
In the afternoon, a very kind emcee stepped forward and offered to make announcements about our SPCA services and encourage passersby to donate to us. He was promoting a Christmas road show at the nearby shopping mall. He raved that he's a huge animal lover and supporter of the SPCA!
Over at Goodwood Park Hotel, another of our collection points, an elderly volunteer stood out amongst the crowd. After seeing our appeal in a Chinese newspaper, the 79-year-old lady asked her daughter to volunteer with her. They came to the Goodwood Park Hotel to return their tins. The tins were so heavy that the elderly lady's arm was tired from carrying it - they had collected donations around Lavender Street.
Volunteers and SPCA staff at the collection point were very touched that the lady had gone this distance despite her frailty, to help the animals.
It really inspired us, as did a volunteer who came forward to help. He's 63 years old and his children don't allow him to keep pets but still, he wanted to find a way to help the SPCA. He also expressed interest to help us with our dog walking programme.
There were also about six dog owners who came with their pets to Goodwood Park Hotel to take a tin.
Whilst raising funds for our animals, the Flag Day opened our eyes to the hearts of many people, beautiful memories and touching stories.
WE CANNOT THANK YOU ENOUGH FOR MAKING THIS A MEMORABLE OCCASION.
World Animal Day 2010 was a Success
Thank you to everyone who went down to East Coast Park, D1 to support and join in SPCA's World Animal Day 'Paws at the Beach' celebrations on the 10 October! There was lots of fun, learning and many things to do! Tons of happy and beautiful pets (and owners too) mingling with each other ! IT COULD NOT HAVE BEEN POSSIBLE WITHOUT YOR SUPPORT. Thank you.
Post event details are available here!
Furry Friends Fund 2010
We
would like to thank all of you who kindly supported this year's Furry
Friends Fund. We are delighted to announce that this fundraiser raised
$12,587.35.
We would like to thank our kind sponsor
Pantry Magic, Holland
Village for once again covering the cost of the tins and printing of
tin labels and to our volunteer Monica Sionosa for designing the flyer
and tin label.
The funds raised will go towards SPCA's animal welfare
services. We look forward to your kind participation in our 2011
Furry Friends Fund project.
Butter's Case - SPCA extremely disappointed
It was reported in the Straits Times on Friday 23 July 2010 (click here) that the owners of 'Butters' would be let off with a stern warning, issued by the Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority (AVA). The SPCA had appealed to the AVA to review its decision as it felt that this was not adequate. We had also asked the AVA to authorise SPCA Inspectors to conduct periodic checks on Butters, so that we could assist in ensuring that the owner provides the best possible care for the dog.
The AVA replied that it had conducted a thorough investigation on the facts of the case before deciding on the appropriate enforcement response. AVA’s findings through interviews, observations of the dog owners' behaviour and interaction with Butters, as well as veterinary examination of Butters revealed that the owners had no intention to harm Butters nor was there any lasting harm or injury inflicted. Nevertheless, AVA did not agree with the owners' method of disciplining Butters and AVA clearly warned them against such practices. AVA said it will follow up to check on the welfare of Butters and added that there is no necessity for SPCA to do the same.
The SPCA is very disappointed with this outcome and sincerely hopes that Butters' owners will learn from this experience, and refrain from such harsh methods of discipline in the future. We would also like to take this opportunity to advise pet owners who may be experiencing similar problems with their pets or who are keen to learn more about pet care.
Advice on Problem Chewing
As with all behavioural problems,the solution needs to address the following:
1. The cause of the problem. It's not enough to just stop the symptoms.
Why is the dog chewing e.g. Is it teething? Is it bored? Has the owner unintentionally enabled chewing, e.g. by leaving chewable objects within reach, and making a fuss when these are chewed? The latter reaction often becomes an unintentional reinforcer because if a dog is ignored when it's good, but it gets attention (even negative attention) when it misbehaves, then to the dog that has no alternative ways of interacting positively with the owner, even the negative attention is better than nothing.
2. Training for an acceptable alternative behaviour which can be reinforced positively which will make that behaviour more likely to be repeated.
If the dog is not permitted to chew on certain objects, one needs to provide alternative chew toys that the dog can, and must be encouraged to chew on. e.g. Kongs (available from pet accessory shops) stuffed with food treats, toys that hold water that can be frozen and provide cool relief for teething dogs. One would need to rotate these toys to keep them novel. In addition, owners should periodically play with the dog and the toys.
3. Managing the environment to reduce opportunities for the unwanted behaviour to be practised.
The best way to protect forbidden objects is to keep them out of reach of the dog. The choice of toys is also important: if you have a lot of soft fabrics that you don't want your dog to chew on, then don't give your dog plush toys.
4. Applying the above consistently and with patience.
Consistency: this is also key for the training to work. Everyone in the family needs to agree on what needs to be done and apply the plan consistently. It doesn't work if one member doesn't mind, and may even actively encourage the dog to play with a cushion, while another one scolds the dog for doing so.
It was early rising for volunteers and staff helping out at the SPCA Fun Run held on Sunday morning 27 June - by 5.45a.m. We started arriving at MacRitchie Reservoir car park area to unload prizes, water and other important items for the event ahead. A full moon shone brightly overhead providing more light than usual, and relief was expressed that we did not wake up to thunderstorms which were predicted for that day.
Marshalls were shown the route of the running path and assembled into their positions, as participants would soon be arriving. Photographers and our MC Michelle prepared themselves for the start of the run as they walked to the starting point across the reservoir.
1,2,3 GO on the whistle (blown by SPCA's executive officer, Deirdre Moss), marked the start of the Fun Run at 7a.m. and the contestants were off. 333 of the 525 registered participants took part.
Mr Barry Cupples the CEO Asia Pacific from Omnicom Media Group, who kindly donated the top prize (a HP Envy 15 Notebook computer) also came to join in the fun run and kindly officiated in presenting the prize to the grand winner Widi Susanto. SPCA Chairman Mary Soo did the honours in presenting the remainder of the prizes in the men's, women's and youth categories. Two of our youngest participants around 6 years old were delighted to receive a Build-A-Bear 'Jonas Bear'.
Time had been on our side, as the weather had changed by the end of the prize giving ceremony (and lucky draw) which had been brought forward due to threatening rain clouds. As soon as we had finished, the rain came down.
Over $15,000 (nett) was raised, and will go towards our animal welfare services. It was a great morning (in spite of the rain at the end), with fun runners, volunteers and staff coming together to do their part.
Here are the winners and their timings for this year's Fun Run:
Grand Winner & 1st - WIDI SUSANTO (17.28)
Mens 2nd - QIAN XIN JIAN (17.53)
Mens 3rd - PATAPHALANG JIRAPHONG (18.15)
Mens 4th - CHANANA PORNCHAI (19.46)
Youth Boys 1st - ROY TAN CHER KING (29.34)
Youth Boys 2nd - RYAN TAN CHER WEI (30.52)
Youth Boys 3rd - BEN KERRIDGE (31.12)
Youth Boys 4th - CHAN MALCOM (32.19)
The SPCA sincerely thanks the following for helping make our Fun Run a success:
Awesome Blossom
BigO Café & Restaurant
Bimba & Lola
Body Wellness Pte Ltd
Build-a-bear Workshop
DigiLab
Expat Living Publications Pte Ltd
Fairmont Singapore and Swissotel The Stamford
FairPrice (NTUC) Foundation
Florence - Art Retail Cards
KC & Watson Pte Ltd
Keppel Offshore & Marine
Memory of love
Nirwana Gardens
Omnicom Media Group
Pantry Magic Pro Quality Kitchen Tools
Passion Hair Salon
Pets Lovers Centre Pte Ltd
Pets Magazine Singapore
SPH Magazines Pte Ltd
Sundance Petio LLP
The Grand Hyatt Singapore
The Peepshow Machine
True Yoga
Volunteers from:
Keppel Offshore & Marine
SPCA
Young NTUC
MC:
Michelle Le Herissier
SPCA Fun Run T-shirt design:
Richard Copping
Photographers:
Frankie Lee
Lim Siew Koon
Lawrence Teo
SPCA's Dog Care Seminar
The SPCA’s Education Team, with the wonderful support of Young NTUC, held a very successful dog care seminar on the Tuesday 22 June at the NTUC Centre. Our three speakers, Deirdre Moss (Executive Officer, SPCA), Dr Paul McCutcheon (Author of the New Holistic Way for Dogs and Cats) and Kang Nee (Animal Behaviourist and Certified Dog Trainer) engaged the 80 participants in general care and responsible dog ownership, effective communication with your dog using positive reinforcement and how applying the holistic approach can benefit pets. If you would like to be kept in the loop of future seminars, please email updates@spca.org.sg
Operation No Release - NParks
"Operation No Release" is a special project piloted by National Parks Board. This year's "Operation No Release" would not have been possible without our fellow volunteers from SPCA , Singapore Polytechnic and Nature Trekker Singapore who are willing to sacrifice their precious weekend to make this special project a great success.
On a beautiful saturday (23 May 2010) early morning when most of us were still asleep, 12 volunteers from SPCA turned up punctually toreport for their duty as volunteer officials in the "Operation No Release" project. After a short briefing by Nature Trekker Singapore, the volunteers carried out their assignment with high enthusiasm.
All the volunteers who came forward to help were full of passion especially Mr Alvin Ng from SPCA who even motivated his other fellow volunteers to do better during the assignment. The volunteers while doing their duty also exchange pointers with each other as how to discourage the public from releasing of animals.
Although it was a long day for all the volunteers, everyone was glad that they spent their weekend for a good cause and went home with smiles!
The Voice for the Voiceless
Kudos to Nurlizaha and Nadhirah from Damai Secondary who found an abandoned rabbit in a cage on Saturday 20 March at Block 720 Bedok Reservoir Road. It was one of the worst cases we have seen. The drenched rabbit was sitting in sludge with ants crawling in close proximity. Nurlizah and Nadhirah carried the cage home and called the SPCA. It was suffering from pneumonia and was terribly emaciated. Sadly, the rabbit did not make it and died the next day following veterinary treatment to try and save it. Last Saturday 5 June, SPCA's Education Executive Selina Sebastian presented the girls with certificates of appreciation as well as SPCA t-shirts, for showing care and acting out of concern for an animal in need. Thank you so much girls, for being the voice for the voiceless!
"Cats R Purrfect" Camp
The Education Department organised an afternoon camp with the theme “Cats R Purrfect” on the 7 June for our youth supporters.They learnt about what it takes to be a great cat owner through talks, fun and games. What made the camp even more meaningful and special was that our young participants had the chance to interact with the cats in the shelter which was also the fun part. A big thank you goes to Victoria Junior College's PAWS for doing an amazing job in helping us organise the camp. If you are between seven to 16 years of age and would like to be kept in the loop of such activities, please email educationpr@spca.org.sg
'Pets For Life' Event
On 13 March 2010, we held a 'Pets For Life' event at the National Geographic Store at Vivo City. In our game booths, youngsters were able to learn about caring for animals in a fun and dynamic way. Our cat Mascot, Max, was also a big hit not only with the kids but with the adults as well. SPCA volunteers also brought along their pets so attendees could get up close and personal with some furry friends. The event created a huge amount of awareness about the animal welfare cause and our thanks go to the students on the Ministry of Education's Leadership Development Programme who designed the games and manned the booths. We are also grateful to our SPCA volunteers, and last but not least, to the National Geographic Store for being our kind venue sponsor. We all had a great time!
Mandarin Talk
We gave a talk in Mandarin about dog care on the 13 March 2010. This took place at Yishun Library and was extremely well received by the Mandarin-speaking participants. Thank you, National Library Board, for giving us this wonderful opportunity to create awareness about animal welfare. We look forward to further collaborations in future.
Youth Camps
The Education Department organised two morning camps focusing on "All Things Dogs" during the March holidays for our youth supporters. They learnt about what it took to be a great dog owner through talks, fun and games. They also got to interact with the dogs in the shelter which was the fun part. A big thank you goes to Victoria Junior College's PAWS for doing an amazing job in helping us organise the camps. If you are between seven to 16 years of age and would like to be kept in the loop of such activities, please email educationpr@spca.org.sg
Whalewatch - Help End this Cruel Slaughter
April marks the start of whaling season, when the
barbaric slaughter of
whales is carried out in Norwegian waters. This year, up to 1,286 minke
whales will die from exploding harpoon and rifle wounds. Norway needs
to know this is unacceptable, NOW. Don't stand by. Sign this petition to tell
Norway's Prime Minister to end this cruel slaughter.
Thanks to Whalewatch groups in Norway, the
Government is now aware
of domestic opposition to their whaling policy, however we want to show
the Norwegian government that there is also global opposition which
supports this - they have frequently claimed that they do not receive
international criticism on this issue.
Whalewatch is a network led by the World Society for the Protection of
Animals (WSPA) and the steering body consists of the world's leading
whale protection organisations. The network organises local rallies,
produces up to date information, and observes the meetings of the
International Whaling Commission (IWC). In partnership with the local
organisations worldwide, the network raises public awareness of the
inherent cruelty involved in all of modern day whaling activities and
the threat to the international ban on commercial whaling. The
objective of the global campaign is to maintain the International
Whaling Commission (IWC) ban on commercial whaling for the foreseeable
future by focusing on the severe welfare problems inherent in all
whaling activities.
Kudos to NTUC Fairprice
SPCA
wrote to NTUC Fairprice Managing Director, Mr Seah Kian Peng (MP for
Marine Parade GRC) to inform him about the kittens stuck on the glue
board traps. He agreed with SPCA that glue board traps are cruel and
arranged for this product to be removed from the shelves of all NTUC
Fairprice supermarkets. The SPCA thanks Mr Seah for his prompt action
and for helping the animals.
Kittens stuck on glue board traps
In August in separate
incidences, two kittens were found stuck on glue board traps (which
were set up to catch rats) in the Bugis area. Both kittens were covered
extensively in glue (including their face and mouth area). Euthanasia
was recommended by the consulting veterinarian in each case to prevent
further suffering.
Shark's fin off the menu at Fairmont Hotel
Since
January 2009, the Fairmont Hotel Singapore has ceased to serve and
offer shark's fin soup to its diners at Szechuan Court and guests at
Raffles City Convention Centre. The hotel aims to educate consumers on
the cruelty involved in the production of shark's fin soup, whilst
offering alternative dishes to customers.
Fairmont's Regional Vice-President for Asia
and General Manager for
Fairmont Singapore, Ian Wilson said "As we take shark's fin out of our
menus, we are doing our little share in slowing down the further
depletion of this endangered rulers of the deep blue sea. The power of
each of our guest's culinary choice and the alternative selection that
we provide can make a difference in the battle to save the planet's
highly- fragile food chain."
SPCA was invited by the Fairmont Hotel
Singapore to collaborate on
its specially-designed brochure, "Make our Culinary Choice a
Responsible Choice" by providing the write-up on the cruelty involved
in the shark's fin trade. It is hoped that other hotels and restaurants
will follow after this commendable initiative by Fairmont Hotel
Singapore.
To read more about what we have to say about cruel foods such as
shark's fin, please click here.
Paws & Purrs at the SPCA - World Animal Day 2009
Check out all the action at Straits Times Razor TV. Scroll to the end of the article to watch the videos.
Since 1931, the fourth of October has been a special day for animal lovers around the world as a day of solidarity to celebrate the special bond and respect between man and all creatures. Here in Singapore, the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals celebrated World Animal Day by opening its gates at its current premises at Mount Vernon Road.
World Animal Day was an opportunity to build community awareness of the issues facing animal welfare and cruelty, providing opportunities for education and exploration of self awareness and, generally celebrate all animals.
Although it was a sunny and extremely hot day, we weren't complaining at all. It was a fun day with people constantly milling into the SPCA throughout the day. A key highlight at this year's event was a dog behaviour booth where Kang Nee, a certified dog obedience instructor helped pet owners sort out pet behaviour problems. SPCA's Information Officers were also present to answer any pet-care questions. Children had fun games, tattoo art, a magic show and our cat mascot, Max to entertain them. Tag, the adorable robot was a huge hit too with the crowd with its interactive nature and cute remarks promoting responsible pet ownership.
On a more serious note, the SPCA took the opportunity to express its objection to the importation a part of a group of 18 dolphins which were reportedly caught from the wild in the Solomon Islands for Resorts World Sentosa. The SPCA believes that the act of taking these animals from the wild (endangered or not) is at odds with spirit of Singapore's Wild Animals & Birds Act, which prohibits the taking of an animal from the wild. Specially designed T-shirts were on sale at priced at $7 to create awareness of the issue. Our "Say no to whale sharks in captivity" T-shirts were also on sale (BTW, it's not too late to get your t-shirts. They are still available at the SPCA.).
The SPCA would like to thank the following groups and individuals:
- Achieva
- Chris Liew (Mirage Event Management)
- Dinesh Pasrasuram
- Donna Daniels
- Feline Tattoo Company
- Hill's Science Diet
- Kang Nee
- Necessary Audio Visual Pte. Ltd
- Sivakunalen
- SMRT (staff stationed at the Bartley Station)
- Straits Times Razor TV
- The Grand Hyatt Hotel
- last but certainly not least, SPCA volunteers.
A big thank you and hugs to all of you for contributing to making Paws & Purrs at the SPCA a huge success.
Part I - Visitors get pawed
Part II - Take me home with you!
Part III - To the rescue
Part IV - I watch, I buy, I dispose
SPCA Day at Ngee Ann and Singapore Polys
The H1N1 virus did not deter our Education team as they made their ways into two tertiary institutions to spread the animal welfare message.
Education Executive Selina was at Ngee Ann Polytechnic on the 29 June while Poh Choo, our Education Officer headed another group of students at the island's oldest polytechnic, Singapore Poly on 3 July.
You have to hand it over to the students who have made all these possible. The NP team did a myriad of activities (printing their own animal-welfare themed t-shirts, inviting young musicians to play at the event, etc) and the SP students sold SPCA merchandise and their very own muffins.
We attracted a steady stream of students and lecturers who supported our cause. Bringing an SPCA adoptable animal always worked well by drawing people closer to know about our work and how compassion towards animals is truly priceless.
If you are interested to organise a similar event in your school, please drop us an email at educationpr@spca.org.sg.
Click on thumbnails below to see larger images.
June activities in Punggol Plaza and West Coast Park
The Education Team were busy little bees over the weekend of 27 and 28 June. They each attended events at Punggol Plaza (Pets Carnival) and the West Coast Park (Dogs Day Out in the Park). What a marvellous time they had!
Both events saw the team in full force spreading awareness of kindness to animals with engaging talks and on-stage quiz sessions, where participants won attractive SPCA souvenirs. It was great to see people coming to our booths to find out more about the SPCA and how to take care of their beloved pets. Although it was extremely hot and humid (Our Education Officer, Poh Choo got sunburnt), the awareness created at the two events and was well worth the heat and sweat the team had to endure.
If you are interested in being kept in the know of such events that are organised, please email updates@spca.org.sg.
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