I loved what this lady had written to the ST forum regarding the ban on cats in HDB flats. Sister had written to one MP whom forward her letter to HDB... and the usual response is a template reply as always... HDB must have countless letters from cat lovers asking them to lift the ban of cats in HDB flats so they come prepare with a template reply that do not require much work to read details.
Will Singapore ever make cats legal in HDB flats one wonderful day? I had begin to doubt so... Aah... sister had asked me to give medicine to Coco (ECP cats), will post about her later...
The online letter from ST Forum: dated 17 Jan
MY FRIEND who lives in a terrace house has just adopted a cat. It makes me envy him that his cat is 'legal' while my poor cat is an 'illegal occupant' as I live in an HDB flat.
My cat has been with me for years, and has yet to cause any nuisance that is enough to drive any neighbours to pound on our doors. I did an online search and to my surprise found these two statuary boards' stand on cats as pets.
A brochure from Agri-food & Veterinary Authority states that 'Cats make good indoor pets' (April 2001).
However, the Housing and Development Board (HDB) states: 'Cats are not allowed to be kept in HDB flats as they are nomadic in nature and are difficult to be confined within the flats. Due to the nomadic nature of cats, the nuisances caused by cats such as shedding of fur, defecating/urinating in public areas, noise disturbance etc would affect the environment and neighbourliness in our housing estates. In view of this, HDB has the policy of not allowing cats to be kept in HDB flats.' (Aug 24, 2006)
My cat has no problem in living in my HDB flat for all these years and has never made attempts to run away from home. Thus, I do not understand how 'cats are nomadic in nature and difficult to be confined within the flats'.
I also do wonder, does a cat shed less fur when on a landed property than when it is within an HDB flat?
If not, then why is this raised as a justification for banning cats in HDB flats?
Since there is no difference in the amount of fur shed, and responsible owners do take time to brush cats as much as they do for dogs to remove loose fur, this should be a non-issue.
In any case, the shedding of fur is within the owners' flat anyway.
The frequent barking of dogs is also definitely louder than any meowing of sterilised cats, so why are cats banned and dogs allowed?
As for cats urinating in public areas, I think dogs of irresponsible owners will defecate just as much in public too.
I feel that the HDB's banning of cats is too harsh on responsible cat owners like myself.
Elaine Neo Yan Ling (Miss)
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