Kuala Lumpur: Stray cats are a common sight on Kuala Lumpur’s streets. Many are oblivious to their plight while others are quick to brush them off as pests. But for Allergic Rescuers KL (ARKL), a group of friends dedicated to rescuing street cats, the strays of KL are pets who have yet to find their forever home.
ARKL member Ai Ling told FMT that the group’s founder, Rosy Kim, had rescued a kitten she found on the street once. This kitten, named Cleo, opened Kim’s eyes to the suffering of strays. Before long, her friends too began to help her rescue cats and ARKL was formed.
Now there are a total of seven friends working together to change the lives of these vulnerable animals. “Instead of waiting for someone else to help these cats in need, we can make a positive difference in their lives,” Ling said.
The ARKL team is doing much-needed work and their dedication is clear from the name of their group. Many of the members are allergic to cats, including the founder, but they’ve not let this one detail hinder their work.
ARKL has a two-fold focus. Firstly, they rescue and rehome cats that they come across in their daily lives. Ling said that it happens so often that the members joke about it. “We often joke that we shouldn’t step foot out of our homes or another cat needing help will cross our path.”
Secondly, ARKL members are strong advocates of Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR). Ling explained that it is an effective method to control the population of strays within the city. Unfortunately, the problem is made worse by irresponsible pet owners.
Ling said, “The root cause of our stray overpopulation is pet owners who don’t spay/neuter their pets. These pets get pregnant with unwanted litters, the litters are dumped somewhere and the vicious cycle continues.”
ARKL supports a multi-pronged approach to eliminate the issue of strays.
The group has urged for legislative changes such as higher taxes on the purchase of pets and a government-funded, nationwide sterilisation programme, much like in the Netherlands, the first country that no longer has a stray dog issue.
The stray animal issue is admittedly big and the members of ARKL, few. Yet, they have successfully rehomed 548 cats.
But rescue work is not without its challenges. Ling describes having to turn away people wanting to give them unwanted cats as “heartbreaking”.
She said, “Currently, we have 56 cats to rehome; there’s only seven of us to manage this load.” To supplement the work they do, ARKL offers guidance to those who have rescued cats, on how to get them the right help.
Ling said, “Anyone can do it just as well or better than us. It’s a matter of taking immediate action to prevent the situation from getting worse.”
Another challenge is the availability of treatment and medication options.
ARKL raises funds on the SimplyGiving crowdfunding platform and they receive donations from loyal supporters and followers. “They donate very generously to our cause, we cannot thank them enough,” Ling said.
However, despite the generosity of strangers, ARKL members find themselves paying out of pocket all too often.
Ling explained, “When a cat is rescued by ARKL, we spend whatever it takes to get the cat to a healthy state for adoption.”
On average, the vet bills alone can be RM550 to get one cat adoption-ready. Ling said that they collect adoption donations which they use to settle these bills, but some people find the amount too high.
When this happens, ARKL encourages them to rescue a cat off the streets themselves. Pets cost money, and anyone unwilling to bear the costs is not ready for pet ownership.
Lastly, their ongoing challenge is finding potential pet owners who are reliable and will give the cats the level of commitment that ARKL expects.
Ling said, “They (the cats) have been through so much trauma in their lives so they deserve the best.”
ARKL is uninterested in becoming a registered NGO. Ling said, “We prefer not to turn this into a full-time job because then it would be, well, work. Our ultimate focus is always on the cats, what can we do to best help the cats that we rescue.”
Ling’s personal dream is for ARKL to one day be disbanded simply because there are no more stray cats to rescue, re-home or neuter.
Acknowledging that this is a long-term dream, she hopes that she and her friends at ARKL can inspire others to start helping stray animals as well.