PAWS: Don’t buy pets for fun
Owning them comes with responsibilities, says shelter home manager
SUBANG JAYA: Some owners are prepared to fork out huge sums of money to buy pets but once the novelty wears off and it becomes difficult to care for them, these animals are dumped.
PAWS Animal Welfare Society, once a home for ill-treated and rescued animals, has now become a “dump” for irresponsible pet owners.
“An average of 180 dogs and cats are brought to the shelter each month,” said PAWS shelter manager Edward Lim.
“Many claim the animals were found by roadsides but we believe it is merely a cover for their feckless deeds,” he said.
“I believe this is the case because when I suggested that the animal be put to sleep, they started to sob.”
Lim, who has been shelter manager for the past seven years, added that most of the 400-odd animals currently housed at PAWS were pedigrees.
“Only a handful are mongrels,” he added.
“Abandoning your pets at the shelter decreases the chances of genuinely needful animal getting help,” he said, adding that only 20% of the animals brought in had a chance of being adopted.
Owning a pet came with responsibilities till the end of the animal’s life, he said.
“You can’t just buy one at your whims and fancies and then discard it when you become tired of it. You could cost it its life,” he added.
On a separate note, PAWS, the shelter that has been in existence for 24 years and runs solely on the generosity and compassion of donors, is running out of funds and risks being closed down.
“Adopt one, don’t buy a pet. This way, there won’t be so many pets to take care of at our centre, bringing down the cost to run PAWS,” he said.
The centre in Subang Jaya also welcomes volunteers from 9am to 4pm all through the week, except on Wednesday.
The minimum fee to surrender an animal or adopt a pet is RM50 for a dog, RM80 for a puppy, RM30 for a cat and RM50 for a kitten.