Cat house for Jurong West community cat disappears overnight
A kind gesture by a Jurong West resident to provide a community cat with shelter ended in disappointment when it vanished overnight.
Miss Khaing, an animal lover who feeds and cares for the cat, told Mothership she noticed it frequently resting on the wet void deck during the recent rainy weather.
Concerned, she and her sister bought a $15 cat house online.
On Dec 3, they set up the house at the void deck. They attached a personalised sign to the roof: "This is Cat house. Please don't throw it," along with a photo of the feline. The cat quickly explored its new home.
But by the next morning, the cat house was gone.
Disheartened, Miss Khaing posted about the incident in a Facebook group for cat lovers. Commenters offered sympathy, criticising the apparent lack of animal welfare awareness and suggesting the removal might have been due to mischief or routine cleaning.
Miss Khaing acknowledged that estate cleaners often remove items left in public spaces, including makeshift shelters like cardboard boxes. She doesn't blame the cleaners, she said, but wanted advice on how to prevent a recurrence.
Despite the setback, Miss Khaing isn't giving up. She plans to buy another cat house and secure it better for the well-loved community cat.
She shared how the cat is a familiar sight in the estate, often greeting children and teachers outside a preschool.
“Even during school holidays, he goes and waits there,” she said.
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