KLANG: When Joanne Low went to Manjung, Sitiawan in 2020 to help a friend rescue and neuter stray dogs there, she had expected the task to be done within a few months and return home to Kuala Lumpur.
However, what she saw there has resulted in the 55-year-old real estate agent staying put in Manjung.
While busy trapping and neutering the street canines all over Manjung, Low stumbled upon an elderly man feeding dogs at a nearby landfill.
The dogs were released at the landfill by the local council after being caught and would die of starvation if not provided food.
The elderly man, Thomas David, was a retired school teacher who took it upon himself to ensure the pitiful dogs did not go hungry.
“So, I too started feeding the dogs at the landfill and neutering them,’’ Low said in an interview.
Soon after, a group of animal lovers who fed the dogs at the landfill, including Low and David, registered a non-governmental organisation, aptly named Homeless Paws of Manjung Strays (HPMS) so that there would be sustainability and continuity in caring for the canines.
But not long after that, the Manjung Municipal Council gave them a notice of eviction as there was a need to use the land.
“They gave us two options - to leave without the dogs or take the 300 dogs with us. We chose the second option,’’ said Low, who is HPMS deputy president.
She said HPMS members searched high and low for a suitable site and temporarily placed the dogs at a rented warehouse, only to be evicted 10 days later.
“We were really desperate as we had some 300 dogs with nowhere to go.
“Luckily, a good Samaritan heard of our plight and gave us the use of her three-acre land rent free for five years,’’ she related.
Low is now handling, with the rest of the team, the difficult task of fund raising and building a shelter at the site.
She does not know when she can return to the comfort of her own home.
“It is a calling. I’ll be here until I am no longer needed,’’ said Low, who is single.
Her journey into animal rescue started in 2001 when a 11-year-old girl, who was taking tuition from her (Low), came to class with a stray puppy in her hands one day.
The student begged her to take the animal as she could not bring it home.
Low named the puppy Baby and it remained with her until it died almost a decade later.
“After I took care of Baby, I started noticing stray animals and their plight so I too started rescuing and bringing cats and dogs back before rehoming them,’’ reminisced Low.
Since there was no social media then, Low used to rehome her rescue animals among friends and relatives, as well as maintained street dog colonies that she diligently fed daily.
She used to go to the market every morning and buy meat which she cooked with rice that was in turn packed in the evening for her nightly feeding rounds.
“I neutered almost all the dogs in the colonies and fed them for more than a decade until they died.
“The dogs used to get a bath and a roasted chicken treat every year during the Chinese New Year month,’’ she said.
Currently, Low said she was sad that animal rescue has been thrown into chaos due to some unscrupulous people cheating generous donors, as well as embezzling funds that were donated to rescue street animals.
Her fervent wish was for the current feeders to also take on the task of neutering the street animals they were feeding.
Unfortunately, Low said some feeders these days were only interested in feeding the animals and creating social media content of the activity.
“The only way to reduce the number of strays on the streets is for feeders to neuter the animals.
“They can reach out to shelters and rescue groups, as well as raise funds among friends and family members for the neutering exercise,’’ she said.
Low also hoped the society would become more street animal friendly so that rescuers could go about reducing the number of destitute animals without repercussions from the local councils.
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