Hari Raya is just around the corner. It is the time for joy and the spirit of Hari Raya to be shared among all; be it young or old and poor or rich, and all the Muslims alike. As cat owners, we do not forget about our fur babies as they are all groomed to its best to meet and greet the guests during their visit to the house.
However, there tends to be an increase in people advertising themselves as 'cat breeders' during such festive season, while selling their pet cats at an expensive price for the sake of making quick cash. Such scheme is usually advertised under the online classified advertisements and also in Facebook.
A spokesperson from the Brunei's feline cat group fan-page in Facebook, 'Brunei Meows', explained, "Some of the kittens being classified are less than three months old, in which most are not being vaccinated or even dewormed. Keep in mind that kittens need their mother for milk to obtain proper antibodies against natural diseases before venturing solo. They also need the company of their mother and siblings to get used to mingling with other cats and humans, so that they will adopt a good temperament. These are for life and not just for Hari Raya, and a cat can live up to about 15 years, so it is best to find yourself a healthy kitten with a good temperament to match.
"Furthermore, it has also come to our attention that some cats, which are up for sale, are wrongly advertised as pedigreed cats, such as Persians or Maine Coons. Do remember that pedigreed cats come with a pedigree certificate and are registered with a cat body such as under CFA (Cats' Fancier Association). What saddened us more are those irresponsible breeders, who sell off what they termed as 'mixed breed' cats or 'DLH' (Domestic Long Hairs) according to us, at exorbitant prices. Do not get fooled by these people, and buy only from registered and responsible cat breeders."
Living with a cat indoor might not seem acceptable for certain people, but it is normal for cat lovers to treat the felines as part of their family. These cats roam around the house freely and some cat owners even have separate rooms prepared only for their cats.
"There are many cases where these poor cats are permanently kept in cages. Regardless of its size, these poor cats are not supposed to live in cages for life. Cats are supposed to be allowed to roam freely. Hopefully, we will not see cats being caged during our visits in the festive season.
"Lastly, all of the members of Brunei Meows would like to greet 'Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri, Maaf Zahir Batin' to all cat lovers out there, especially to all the volunteers and sponsors to our cat shows, and we hope to meet everyone again during future cat shows," said the spokesperson.
Brunei Meows Facebook fan-page group has successfully partly organised charity cat shows earlier this year, including the Brunei National Day Cat Show and the charity cat show to collect funds for Belia Prihatin Charity.
--Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin