Pujut rep mulls fundraising initiatives to help ZSM

MIRI: Pujut assemblyman Dr Ting Tiong Choon is looking at ways to raise funds for local animal welfare group, Zero Strays Miri (ZSM).

According to him, the proceeds from the fundraising activities could be used to buy dog food.

He also acknowledged that while ZSM plays a vital role in helping to manage stray animals here, especially dogs, the nongovernmental organisation ( NGO) relies solely on public donations to do this.

“Efforts to reduce the population of stray animals in Miri would not be successful if the pet owners continue to be irresponsible and abandon their pets indiscriminately,” he told reporters during a visit to ZSM recently.

ZSM president Sterwina Kho was present to brief the assemblyman on the NGO’s operations, especially its ‘ Trap, Neuter and Release’ (TNR) programme.

The TNR is an internationallyrecognised method used to control and stabilise the population of stray animals. It is a humane solution to prevent uncontrolled breeding of strays.

“It is a serious social problem if we do not control the population of the strays in the city. As responsible pet owners, they must bring their pets for neutering to prevent uncontrolled breeding,” said Dr Ting.

In her remarks, Kho assured pet owners that ZSM practises safe and humane method to control the breeding of strays.

“There are many reasons to embrace the TNR programme – we aim to stabilise the population of strays. This, in turn, will resolve many problems such as overpopulation of strays and the outbreak of diseases.

“We also want to reach out to as many pet owners as possible, educate them on the importance of neutering their pets to avoid dumping of the animals due to uncontrolled breeding,” she said.

Those interested to join ZSM as volunteers or wishing to obtain more information about strays, can contact the NGO via its Facebook page https:///www. facebook.com/ ZeroStraysMiri/.