Some people may say we have sad lives marooned on an island of 42 km across with no natural resources. If not for our founding fathers who had the determination and tenacity to build a better world, we wouldn’t have what we have 50 years later – homes that not just provide shelter but also comfort and love; a stable social structure where we have friends, family; and all the things that give meaning to our lives.
Not so far away, lies another island, smaller in size, but a universe away in terms of habitability. There, the landscape is harsh and stark, occupied by large towering structures that belch fumes all day. There is scant shelter from the scorching sun of the day, hardly any warmth from the bitter cold of night, and there are few food sources.
On this island, 300 dogs have been trying to eke out an existence of constant hunger, disease, abuse and persecution. This is also the place where we have initiated Project Jubilation, a Trap-Neuter-Release (TNR) program, since the beginning of the year. We believe with all our heart that culling is never and will never be the answer to reduce the stray population, and we are now putting our minds to the task of proving that TNR is the light at the end of the tunnel.
From the start of the project Jan 2015, and as of Dec 2015 ASD has trapped, sterilized and released 150 dogs at a cost of $100,000. It is no small sum, but the important question is was it money well spent? Imagine for a second that if this project had never kicked off, and if the female dogs that had already been sterilized had on average produced 6 puppies, increasing the population by exponentially in 6 months! One shudders at the thought of how much more suffering these dogs will have to endure!
But if we look past the numbers and look at the real, tangible benefits, we are looking at lives that will not be needlessly nor senselessly culled, and as the population stabilizes, a structured feeding program can be put in place to maintain the sterilized strays till they pass on of natural causes.
And if we can look at each of these individual dogs not as a statistic but as a precious life, you will see each of them have their tale to tell, just like Tui.
Tui was just one of the anonymous black dogs roaming the island in search of sustenance and if only she could talk, she would probably tell you of her hardships on this barren island. Handicapped with 3 legs, malnourished and carrying her 10 pups, what chance would she and her pups have of surviving this hell on earth? Death would have been a certainty if not for this project, but today she is safe and sound, and her pups are growing up healthy and strong, ready for adoption to good homes!
As we approach SG50, let us remember the self sacrificial spirit and values of our fore fathers that have brought us thus far, and in that same spirit, make the world not just a better place for us humans, but also for the animals that share our world too.
As the project progresses, we will need all the help we can get, and we want you to be a part of this momentous project, so that when you look back, you can say with pride that you helped saved the lives of the 300 and improved the state of animal welfare.
Your donation is critical to help us sustain this project as it costs $440 to trap, sterilize, vaccinate, microchip and then release each dog. The budget for this project comes on top of our monthly operating expenses of $50,000 and we simply cannot sustain the project without additional help. $100,000 has already been spent and we need to raise at least twice that amount to bring us to the next milestone of sterilizing the population.
If you would like to be a part of their future, contributions can be made via cheque or electronic transfer or by Pay Pal.
For Pay Pal, please click on this link and scroll to the Pay Pal button.
Cheques can be made out to “*Action For Singapore Dogs Society*” and sent to:
*ASD c/o Ricky Yeo*
*3 Jambol Place*
*Singapore 119330*
Please write ‘For Project J’ behind the cheque together with your email address so that we can send you a receipt.
For funds transfer to ASD’s account, these are the details:
*Bank: OCBC
Account No: 650322456001*
*Account Name: Action For Singapore Dogs Society*
*Branch: Coleman Street*
*Branch Code: 650*
*Bank Code: 7339*
Do drop us an email at info@asdsingapore.com when the transfer is successful with the subject ‘For Project J’ so that we can issue you a receipt.
We also need lots of help to increase the trapping rates, so that we can get ahead of the breeding cycle, and we are calling on volunteers who have practical experience working with and handling such dogs and have their own transport. Do email us at info@asdsingapore.com if you can help!