Animal Shelters Forced To Move, Struggle To Cope With Increasing Rental Costs Meet Hana. She’s a playful 4-year-old mongrel, who loves to “runs like the wind” and roll on grass “like a pig”. Source However, Hana and her friends from 20 other shelters, were forced to move from their spacious homes in Pasir Ris to a new government facility called The Animal Lodge in Sungei Tengah recently. The move has been criticised by both shelters and animal lovers alike. Here’s why. 1. Increased costs for shelters Shelters that were interviewed by The Straits Times spoke of rising costs. With rent amounting to $2,000 per unit at Tengah, some shelters have seen rental costs increase by up to 5 times. Compare this to their previous homes in Pasir Ris, where many were operating rent-free, due to charitable rent agreements with landlords. Voices For Animals and Oasis Second Chance Animal Shelter have questioned their ability to sustain major operating cost increases without scaling down or shutting down altogether. The Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA) has responded to criticisms by stating that it charges “cost-recovery rates” at The Animal Lodge, and that it had offered a grant of $7,500 per unit […]
6 years ago
