Another cat found dead in Redhill

A kitten believed to have been abused died in Redhill on Valentine's Day, making it the latest in a series of cases in recent months.

Called Tong Tong, the cat was earlier seen alive and well, but 50 minutes later, it was found dead with a pool of blood near its mouth, Lianhe Wanbao reported yesterday.

The kitten was found by its caregiver beside a lift lobby at Block 13, Jalan Bukit Merah, on Saturday at about 6pm.

This is the fifth case in which a cat has died of unnatural causes in Redhill in the past two months, animal welfare group Cat Welfare Society said in a Facebook post on Sunday morning. The post has since been shared more than 2,000 times, with more than 800 comments.

Many animal lovers took to social media to express their outrage over the incident.

Denise Tan said on Facebook: "Justice must prevail (or) else more cases will emerge. (A) life is a life regardless of (whether it's) two legged or four!"

The society also appealed to the public to help look out for and protect community cats such as Tong Tong.

Joanne Ng, chief executive of the Cat Welfare Society, told My Paper yesterday that the society is planning to have more than 20 volunteers go door to door in Redhill early next week, to try to uncover more information regarding the deaths of the five cats.

The society had planned to do so earlier, but postponed it due to the Chinese New Year festivities.

Ms Ng, 41, said that the Cat Welfare Society had been monitoring Redhill for a while as it "keeps...getting reports from caregivers in the area".

"It's just too frequent," she said, adding it was troubling that in the latest case, the time between the kitten's death and when it was last seen alive was short.

Ms Ng said the Tanjong Pagar Town Council has forwarded a request to the police to review the closed-circuit television clips for the block where Tong Tong was found dead. A police report has been made and Chia Shi-Lu, a Member of Parliament for Tanjong Pagar GRC, was informed of the incident.

Cat abuse cases have occurred elsewhere as well. Last month, a kitten was found dead in Telok Blangah with its throat slit.

Under Singapore's Animal and Birds Act, those found guilty of animal cruelty can be jailed for up to 12 months, fined up to $10,000 or both.

myp@sph.com.sg

If you have information on cat deaths, contact the Cat Welfare Society at info@catwelfare.org. Witnesses may also contact the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority on 1800-476-1600.

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