Animal Lovers League co-founders working out plan to pay back rent, looking to scale back activities

SINGAPORE – Trouble-plagued animal rescue group Animal Lovers League (ALL) says it is working out a plan to pay up more than 50 months of unpaid rent to the authorities as it scales back its activities.

The National Parks Board as well as other rescue groups have offered to care for about 170 dogs and cats under its charge, many of them sick and old.

ALL’s two founders, Mr Mohan Div and Mrs Cathy Strong, said they were unable to raise the funds to pay $500,000 in rent arrears, as well as veterinary fees, resulting in the facility having to

give up its premises at The Animal Lodge.

The Animal and Veterinary Service (AVS), which oversees the lodge in Sungei Tengah, near Choa Chu Kang, said on Dec 8 that ALL must return the eight units it occupies. No deadline has been set.

Following complaints by ALL volunteers, AVS inspectors found that several of the animals were sick and not receiving prompt or adequate veterinary attention. Many animals were showing signs of fear, anxiety and stress.

The rescue group, a registered charity, is also being investigated by the Commissioner of Charities.

Breaking their silence for the first time since losing the lease, the co-founders told media that despite all efforts, the lack of public donations had made it impossible for them to dig themselves out of the growing hole.

They said an increasing number of people leaving their old and sick pets at ALL after the Covid-19 pandemic had only worsened the situation.

Mr Mohan said: “Vet bills are too high and many of the dogs and cats at ALL are old and sick. We will care for them palliatively as we are a no-kill shelter.”

The co-founders thanked other animal welfare groups which came forward to help by taking over some of the animals and providing food for those still at the shelter.

ALL had came under criticism for allowing the situation to deteriorate, but there have been voices of support too.

Other animal rescue groups have praised ALL for its selfless, tireless dedication to animal welfare in Singapore over the years.

On Dec 9, Minister for Home Affairs and Coordinating Minister for National Security K. Shanmugam posted on Facebook

calling for the public to understand the difficult challenges

of animal rescue and shelter work before passing judgment.

Mr Shanmugam visited the shelter on Dec 10. He told reporters that ALL had not paid rent for about 4½ years. Despite this, AVS had been “exceptionally lenient” in giving it time to sort out its situation.

“AVS is a government organisation. Questions... will be asked as to why they are not collecting the rent that is due. All the other tenants, all the other animal welfare groups (AWGs) are paying rent.

“If AVS allows one NGO not to pay rent, then others can ask, why do they have to pay rent too? We have got to be fair. As a government organisation, AVS can only go on a basis of some structured, consistent rules. So, I think the approach they have taken is understandable.”

He added that if AVS does not take action after those who had seen the state of ALL’s animals made complaints, people would “point to AVS and say: ‘AVS has been negligent, because the animals are in such a bad condition’.

“Then how does AVS explain the fact that it doesn’t take any action? That would be seen as a serious dereliction of duty.”

He said that while AVS, as part of the Government, has to act when members of the public provide information that is of concern, it tried to be sympathetic to ALL.

“AVS has taken over some of the animals and is working with other AWGs and Singapore Veterinary Association to care for them.”

He also said AVS works closely with ALL and the other animal welfare groups, and tries to help them by keeping rent low at The Animal Lodge; waiving service and conservancy charges; and working with them to trap, neuter, rehome, manage the animals, and then pay the groups for the work.

Reiterating what he posted on his Facebook page, Mr Shanmugam said that while ALL’s intentions were noble, it did not have the means to carry through these intentions.

“ALL took in very sick animals, which are not likely to be rehomed, and they wanted to see these animals through to the end of their lives. (This) costs a lot of money and ALL could not raise the money. That also puts AVS in a difficult position.

“I think ALL would have had to look at their situation very carefully, have a very straight discussion upfront much earlier, as to what is possible and what is not,” he said.

Mr Shanmugam told the media that he had discussed the matter with Minister of State for National Development Alvin Tan, who is familiar with the issues and is dealing with them.

In particular, they talked about the supply of pets from breeders, which is a significant issue.

“If you look at AWGs, they have been trying to deal with the problems downstream – dealing with the strays, pets that no one wants to care for any more. But the supply of pets from breeders is a significant issue and it is an upstream issue,” Mr Shanmugam said.

“If you keep getting pets, which are then abandoned or given up after some time, how do you solve the problem? How are NGOs going to care for them, given the costs of veterinary care, other costs?” he asked, adding that many have highlighted this issue on his social media and elsewhere.

Set up in 2002, ALL was co-founded by Ms Strong and Mr Mohan, who were rescuing animals in their own capacity before coming together.

ALL is a strictly no-kill shelter which aims to encourage the public to adopt instead of buying animals, as well as find loving and committed families for the shelter’s animals.

It takes in mainly Singapore stray dogs and cats but it does not turn away senior dogs and cats surrendered by owners. Its motto is “Every animal deserves a second chance.”

In a 2012 interview with ST, Ms Strong said her dream was to see a Singapore free of strays. “I may not be able to see my dream come true within my lifetime, but it can – and will – happen one day,” she said.

Like Ms Strong, Mr Mohan stressed that everything the shelter does for the animals is motivated by compassion.

In a statement issued on Dec 9, the Commissioner of Charities (COC) said it

is looking into ALL’s governance and administration

following feedback received, as well as ALL’s non-compliance with the Charities Act.

ALL has been a registered charity in Singapore since January 2015 and has regularly solicited funds from the public.

Asked why he had decided to speak about ALL, which is currently being investigated, Mr Shanmugam said that when he put up his post on Dec 9, he had not realised the group was under investigation.

“I don’t carry a candle for ALL. And I realised that even though I speak in my personal capacity, it has larger implications,” he said.

“But I will say this: I decided to speak up because people were criticising ALL, people were jumping in, some were criticising MND and AVS. And I felt that people ought to understand the facts,” said the minister, an animal lover who adopted shelter dogs as pets.

“Since I have known Mohan and I’ve known of his work, I thought I should explain: Look, this is a man who has given a lot of his life to this work. He is committed. As far as I know, he is a sincere person. He works very hard – I’ve seen him, his volunteers, turn up at many events. They are very focused on animal welfare and I wanted to make that point.”

He added: “But this is my position. I cannot vouch for what they did or what they didn’t do because I’ve never been to their shelter previously, nor do I go through their accounts, nor do I know what exactly happened.

“But I have interacted with Mohan and his team in a variety of contexts dealing with animals and that was the reason why I put up my post. I felt that some sympathy was necessary.

“Maybe they weren’t good with finances, they didn’t raise enough money, they didn’t know how to plan; they were very intent on keeping the animals to the end of life but they don’t have the means to do it. Those are management issues.

“But I felt that somebody who knows their work should speak up. That’s why I spoke on it.”

Animal lovers and animal welfare groups have also taken to social media to rally help for ALL.

Founder of Voices for Animals Derrick Tan said on Facebook: “Never underestimate the power that rises when (animal lovers) unite to support a friend in need.”

He called for people to set aside the non-constructive voices and to “focus on the future, on how we can all come together to support the animals, especially during moments like this”.