From Wild to Domestic (Ep. 4)

Initial broadcast - 8:00 pm Friday August 7, 2015

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In this episode, we begin look at the living beings that inhabit our earth, and we start with animals!

(Photo by K. Davies)

We wanted to learn more about wild and domestic animals in Hong Kong, so we went to the SPCA and had the opportunity to talk with Fiona Woodhouse (Deputy Director of Animal Welfare), Lucy Wong (Foster Parent Coordinator), and Calais Sin (Cat Colony Care Program Coordinator). Fiona tells us about the broad range of their work with all kinds of animals, as well as some background information about types of wild animals in Hong Kong and some of the different categories of animals. Encouragingly, she talks about some good new legislation being discussed to help put an end to the awful pet trade in Hong Kong. Lucy Wong tells us about how we can get involved by fostering animals, and we briefly discuss the Cat Colony Care Program (CCCP) work to help reduce the number of unwanted animals.

There are so many animals in shelters across Hong Kong that are in need of loving homes. There are all kinds of animals to chose from, and, I find, that shelter animals always recognize the loving act that you’ve done by saving their life: they are so loving back! By adopting animals from shelters, you helping to reduce the populations of unwanted cats and dogs on Hong Kong’s streets and in our country parks, which helps protect the wildlife!

How to Help Animals

As Fiona mentions, one of the best ways to help is to offer your home to an animal in need: adopt an animal from a shelter! If you’re not ready to adopt, you can also foster animals for a short period of time. You can also just volunteer or donate to animal organizations. There’s many ways you can help them!

Here are some organizations doing work to help animals in Hong Kong:

SPCA

LAP (Lifelong Animal Protection Charity)

Hong Kong Dog Rescue

PALS (Protection of Animals Lantau South)

Sai Kung Stray Friends (Note: they have faced particular challenges over having to move and can use extra help!)

Hong Kong Alleycat Watch (Note: they have some useful information/resources on their website!)

Kirsten’s Zoo
Linda's Cat and Dog House

More About Fostering

Foster Kitten Clyde (photo by: K. Davies)

I got involved with fostering after I met Calais Sin, when I went to show her a cat colony in a country park. I was so skeptical at first, because I didn’t want to get attached to a kitten! I didn’t feel I was in a position to adopt any animals, either, but she really encouraged me to try. Some 15 foster kittens later, I still love it!

They SPCA provides good support: food, litter, vet expenses, and you can return the animal at any time if it doesn’t work out for you. Sometimes the kittens need medicine or extra attention, but it’s very rewarding to see them recover and become happy, healthy little kittens! And let’s be honest, they are just so darn cute!

To get involved with fostering, please just call and leave a message with Lucy Wong and she’ll get back with you. Many of the other organizations listed above also need foster parents to help animals recovering from surgery or illness or in-transition.

Fostering is a wonderful way to enjoy the company of an animal while helping to make a good contribution to these animal welfare organizations and the happiness of the animal.

Key Vocabulary

Cat Colony Care Program - 貓隻領域護理計劃

Trap Neuter Return - 捕捉、絶育、放回

fostering - 暫養

foster parent - 暫養家庭

animal welfare legislation - 立法保障動物福利

domesticated animals - ​ 家畜​

feral - ​野生​

stray - 流浪​

feral cattle (in HK) - ​ ​野生牛隻

buffalo - 水牛​

civet cat - ​靈貓​

badger -​ 獾​

porcupine​ - 豪豬​

barking deer - 麂​

bad breeder - 無良繁殖​

pet shops - 寵物店​

appalling conditions -​ 惡劣的繁殖環境​

Show Summary

Fiona began to tell us about the broad range of work that the SPCA does. They work with many different types of animals (pet animals, wild animals, food animals, and research animals), and do things like animal birth control programs, rehoming programs for abandoned animals, animal rescue (wild and domestic), and cruelty investigations. She pointed out that most people think the SPCA just deals with “dogs and cats”, but actually they are trying to connect people with the cute and cuddly animals we all like to help people realize that other animals (like chickens or cows) can also feel pain and suffer. The underlying idea is that all animals should be treated humanely and given a good life. So one of the ways the SPCA helps the betterment of animal welfare and treatment is through their work with legislation. Fiona explained how Hong Kong is unique because during the colonial period animal welfare laws were already enacted.

We wanted to understand more about the relationship between wild and domestic animals. In Hong Kong, we actually have a variety of interesting wild animals: porcupines, wild cats, wild boar, a range of birds, macaques, snakes, badgers. Fiona explains, though, about the different categories of animals: wild, domestic (under human “control”), and then stray (animals who have lost their owners, but are still “friendly”) and feral (a type of domesticated animal that never had an owner and might revert back to wild characteristics).

With regards to pet animals in Hong Kong, the SPCA is doing some important work. Lucy Wong, for example told us how people can get involved by fostering (see below) animals, but as she mentioned, due to the work of the Cat Colony Care Program (CCCP), the number of animals is decreasing. Although not on air, the CCCP Calais Sin explained how they are working to reduce the numbers of unwanted cats on Hong Kong streets. They go to “cat colonies”, and they work with people who regularly feed the cats to desex, deworm/deflea, vaccinate, microchip and even clean their ears! (This type of program is often called “trap-neuter-return” or TNR.) This way the cats can live a healthier, happier life on the streets and won’t keep having more unwanted kittens. Similar TNR programs are being enacted for dogs, but it’s more difficult to do, and the SPCA emphasized how they need more community support to help bring down the populations of stray and feral dogs in Hong Kong. These dog populations are causing harm on the natural environment and sometimes wild animals, so it’s important to begin making similar progress.

Then, we were very eager to discuss with the SPCA about pet shops. Fiona talks about the history of pet shops in Hong Kong and how they became popular. She also explains why they are truly disturbing, because to get the pets they sell they often rely on “bad breeders”, who are people forcing adult animals to have puppies and kittens so they can sell them. The breeding adult animals are often treated inhumanely or even horribly, and these breeders often care only about making money, not the health, welfare and happiness of the animals. It’s an appalling situation, and we urge the public to boycott the bad breeder: Don’t buy from pet shops! Encouragingly, Fiona talks about some good new legislation being planned to help stop this industry.

Credits

Special thank you:
Dr. Fiona Woodhouse (SPCA, Deputy Director of Animal Welfare)
Calais Sin (SPCA, CCCP Coordinator)
Lucy Wong (SPCA, Foster Parent Program)

Kathryn Davies - Producer & Host
Fei Hung - Co-host
Music - Steve Reich, Piano Phase Pattern