KLANG: Almost 100 badly emaciated dogs have been rescued from the Kuala Langat Municipal Council (MPKL) pound, but the rescue came too late for 14 of them.
Five of the dogs died within two to three hours after arrival at their new home – a shelter near a temple in Johor – while another nine died yesterday.
Shelter operator N. Batma Rajan, who works at a factory in Singapore, said the dogs were too weak when they were rescued.
“The vet I spoke with said the dogs had little chance to survive,’’ said Batma Rajan, adding that he had received RM2,000 from the initial rescuers to date.
Batma Rajan, who cremated the carcasses of the dead dogs after conducting some Hindu funeral rites, said he had used the money to buy dog food.
The plight of the 97 dogs first caught the attention of independent rescuer couple Belinda Yeap and Peter Hoo who then contacted Siti Fauziah Abdul Jabbar of Fauziah Paws Care who arranged to send the dogs to Batma Rajan’s shelter.
Siti Fauziah and Hoo said they wanted to bring the dogs back to Selangor.
“I think they will receive better veterinary care here and Siti Fauziah says she can arrange a place for them at her shelter,’’ said Hoo.
Batma Rajan, meanwhile, said he had also arranged for a veterinarian to come and attend to the dogs today.
Yesterday, Tengku Permaisuri of Selangor Tengku Permaisuri Norashikin directed authorities, especially the municipal councils, to improve and upgrade management procedures at dog and cat shelters.
Tengku Permaisuri Norashikin, who is also the Royal Patron of the Stray Free Selangor (SFS) campaign run by the Society For The Prevention of Cruelty To Animals (SPCA), said the authorities need to review and adopt a more holistic approach in managing these animal shelters.
Expressing sadness and disappointment over the condition of the animals at the pound in Kuala Langat, she suggested that animal welfare officers and animal lovers in each district zone be further trained to encourage the spaying (neutering) of abandoned animals under the SFS campaign.
