FURRY FRIENDS FARM

Furry Friends Farm In The News


This article below was out in the STAR Metro section on November 13, 2006.

A FARM FOR ANIMALS TO THRIVE
BY JACLYN SHARMELEE and PIAREE RAJANDRAN
metro@thestar.com.my

THE Furry Friends Farm is a one of a kind shelter for animals. Sited amid the greenery of Kundang village in Sungai Buloh, in Kuala Lumpur , it offers 1.2ha of land for stray and abandoned dogs and cats to run and play freely. Animal welfare education officer Sabrina Yeap, who works at an animal medical centre in Jalan Tun Razak, started the farm with couple Jimmy and Lucia Foo.

The photo above is of Sabrina Yeap with a poodle that she rescued from Puchong recently. The farm was opened on Oct 4, to mark World Animal Day. Currently, they have just three workers. Backed by 15 years of working experience with the Society for the Prevention of Animals (SPCA) and lots of encouragement from friends, she decided to set up the home to "rehabilitate" abandoned animals to become pets and companions. The farm provides for the animals to roam free in a garden-like setting rather then be kept in shelters or within small and closed compounds.

Above is a picture of two workers seeing to the chilli plants growing at the farm. Currently, there is just one dog, a stray that Yeap had picked up (Note from RSC: since this article came out Sabrina has been inundated with calls and the Farm is now full of animals)She said she was confident that the farm would receive public support in time to come. She added that the farm would have a fishpond and there are also plans to rear goats there. Yeap said the farm did not impose any fee on animals that were taken for adoption and that she welcomed contributions – in kind – to help in the upkeep of the farm.

However, she added that they intend to make the farm self-supporting rather than depend on public donations. This would be done by selling their own homemade dog shampoo as well as cakes and vegetables from their farm to the public.

“We also plan to rear free-range chickens and sell their eggs,” said Yeap, adding that they intend to educate children and give them a hands-on experience with animals as well as teach them to care for the animals. The farm has started its own blog as a tribute to an abandoned dog called Sheena. Yeap said the website, which seeks to create more awareness about the “ethical treatment of animals”, can be accessed at www.remembersheena.blogspot.com.

Sheena was abandoned in August 2005 by her owner and was left to starve for many days before she was rescued by the SPCA, who found her tied and sleeping in her own faeces. However the rescue came too late. Sheena had to be put to sleep on Aug 18, 2005.