Vaccinated dogs at the Seberang Perai SPCA shelter that are ready for adoption.BUKIT MERTAJAM: Running an animal shelter is no small challenge, especially as shelters nationwide grapple with rising numbers of stray animals and abandoned pets, leading to overcrowding.For a long time, some shelters have operated as “kill shelters”, euthanising animals after a holding period because of space constraints and overpopulation.However, killing animals is a red line that Penang-based Seberang Perai SPCA’s team would not cross, with shelter chairman Lew Wen Teik saying euthanasia would go against their consciences as animal lovers.Lew said many had asked why the shelter has adopted a no-kill policy when it already cares for more than 1,700 animals.“Our mission and objective as animal lovers are to save, not to kill."We believe that this is a sanctuary for all injured or diseased animals that come here. It is a place for them to continue living,” he said.He said this conviction drives the shelter to welcome all stray animals, both healthy and sick.Lew also said shelter volunteers nurse mildly sick animals on their own, only taking them to veterinary clinics for complicated cases, which they pay for out of their own pockets.The shelter's treasurer and pound manager, Richard Ong, said the facility functions as a “hospital” for abandoned animals with deformities that need urgent medical care, as well as strays involved in road accidents.Seberang Perai SPCA treasurer Richard Ong (left) and chairman Lew Wen Teik.The Seberang Perai SPCA was established in 2005 by its founding chairman, the late Tan Kah Chuah, with a group of animal lovers to rescue, protect, and shelter abandoned animals in the district.The group obtained 1.6ha of land in Juru from the Seberang Perai city council, with which it signed an agreement to take in and care for stray animals surrendered by the local council after being held at its pounds.Apart from caring for strays, Lew said, the shelter helps Penang create dog-friendly parks on the mainland.Seberang Perai SPCA plans to open a dog park on the remaining 0.4ha yet to be utilised, inspired by a similar facility in Bandar Utama, Selangor.Cash, volunteers and adopters neededThe shelter, which presently cares for 1,400 dogs and 350 cats, faces operational challenges. It spends about RM75,000 a month on food, with cost…
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