In a Facebook post, Tengku Permaisuri Norashikin said she had repeatedly emphasised her strong opposition to the “catch-and-kill” approach and that she was saddened over the planned operation, scheduled from April 22-24.
“I believe there are many other methods that can be used to address this issue, including neutering.
“As the royal patron of the Stray Free Selangor campaign under the Selangor Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA Selangor), I want local authorities to reconsider (and use) a more holistic approach to managing these stray dogs,” she said.
She added that she had previously talked about the welfare of stray dogs and how the numbers can be reduced through the “Caring and Compassionate Communities” (CCC) campaign.
“The CCC campaign outlines how local authorities and the SPCA can engage with residents in responsible pet ownership sessions.
“This includes obtaining advice from the SPCA and NGOs if there is a need to euthanise these stray animals due to health reasons or otherwise,” she said.
According to Tengku Permaisuri Norashikin, other approaches include establishing shelters for stray animals in every housing estate by the local authorities and animal-loving residents, as well as getting housing developers to build protection centres for them.
She said SPCA Selangor, Universiti Putra Malaysia’s faculty of veterinary medicine, the Malaysian small animal veterinary association, and the Malaysian veterinary medical association, are carrying out a “Potong-Royong” cat and dog neutering programme.
“Since its inception in March 2023, a total of 1,626 animals have been neutered in an effort to reduce the population of stray animals,” she said.
She also requested the housing and local government ministry to review its 2014 circular number 5, detailing standard operating procedures for the capture and disposal of stray dogs in their respective areas.
On March 30, FMT reported that MBSA said it aims to capture 500 stray dogs as part of its “catch-and-kill” operation and even proposed rewarding volunteers with RM30 for each dog that was brought in.