When Singapore was the British Colony more than fifty years ago, we stayed in the filthy shop house with our cats. We were poor. The rats were as dark and skinny as me. But our cats did not need to worry about meals. My mother would feed the cats with some rice we left over. She mixed the rice with the head or tail of the fish. Our cats would wonder about during the day with their friends and came back when it was dark.

Our neighbours loved our cats. Those residents welcomed our cats as they might catch the rates in their kitchen. The shop owner hoped that our cats might frighten the rats away. Cats liked to torture their enemies. Once a cat caught a rat. The cat would play tricks with the rat until the rat died. Then the cat left the dead rat alone.

After the mother cat giving birth and the kittens grew up, the mother cat would sometime catch a rat and bought to the children. The kittens would make noise and seemed like meeting an enemy. They tried to touch the half-dead rat for a while.

Once the kittens grew bigger, many people would come and wish to adopt them. We did not have any HDB flat then. Those cat-lovers did not need to apply any permit and took the kittens with them. The kittens then had their new homes.

I moved to a HDB flat in 1965. The flat was cleaner and more hygiene than the old shop house. We did not need to worry about rats in the kitchen. But the cats lost their home.

Who was the smart person to decide that dogs were eligible to stay in HDB flat, but not cats?

Although some of our cat-lovers liked to bring their cats to their HDB flat. But we could not afford for the fine. Hence, the cats started roaming about.

The market in the HDB estate was as clean as the flat. It was like a paradise at those days.

The cats lost their owners, their homes and their food. They were homeless.

The rats were smart. Although they could not take the lift to the flat. They were hiding in the underground paradise. Then they came out at the gaps near the drain. They enjoyed their happy hours at marketplace. They did not need to look for any special offer nights. They enjoyed every night. No cat and no man would be at their paradise at night.

The cats did not know that where the paradise of the rats was. The cats still wandered around the flats. Sometimes they might go into the coffee shop. But they would be chased away by people as if they were rats.

When did people start to feed the cats?

When my son Solomon was young, he would be very happy to see cats. The experienced father would teach him how to handle cats. Fondling the back of the cats gently. Pinching the neck tenderly. Solomon soon made a few cat friends.

When Solomon knew that he could not keep the cat friend at home, he started to worry about its living. Hence, he requested me to buy cat food when we went to the supermarket.

The first of Solomon's cat friends was “Big Cat” (大喵). Big Cat was yellowish white. It liked to play Hide and Seek with Solomon. When Solomon ran, it would chase and hold on to Solomon's leg. As long as Solomon did not struggle, it would release him. But other children did not know the rule. Whenever they shouted “Da Miao” and ran, Big Cat would hold their leg. But they struggled and would be hurt by its claws.

Big Cat would climb up to our flat at 6.30 every morning. It used its claws to scratch the door. When Solomon opened the door, it would cry “Miao! Miao!” and sent Solomon off to school.

We found our kind neighbour bought cat shampoo and gave Big Cat shower two or three times a week. They saw Solomon used to play with Big Cat. Therefore they helped to keep Big Cat in a hygiene condition.

Big Cat ever disappeared and came back again. But it was once disappeared and did not come back. That was a sad time for us. We went around looking for Big Cat. At the same time, we took pictures of those cats we met. We could not find any cat to climb to our flat at 6.30 in the morning, a cat could accompany Solomon to strolling around the housing estate.

Solomon found a new cat friend Longtail (长尾) about two years later.

Longtail could climb the staircase to come to our flat. Longtail had a girl friend Blackcat (黑猫). Whenever Longtail came, Blackcat would follow and came into our living room. Although Solomon did not like the Blackcat much, but he let her take the meal with Longtail too.

When Longtail became our regular visitor, our neighbour bought cat shampoo and gave Longtail as well as Blackcat shower again. Longtail disappeared when we went for a trip overseas. We waited for Longtail to come back. But it did not. Solomon did not invite Blackcat to come. About one month later, Blackcat also disappeared.

I read in the Chinese newspaper about a complaint from a reader. It was about Singaporeans feeding wild cats from the forest. My goodness! When did we have the forest with wild cats? There was a saying of “Do in Singapore as the Singaporeans do.” We have to go native when we are at other country. Keep our mouth shut if we do not know. Otherwise people will be fed up with us.

I used to see cat-lovers feeding stray cats. They were men and women. They gave various types of cat food. They came regardless of the whether. I ever bought cat food and I knew that it was not cheap. Those cat-lovers spent a lot of money. Many of them also bought water for the cats. After feeding the cats, they cleaned up the cats' Makan Place.

There was a wonderful morning. I saw an old man holding a walking stick with one hand and carrying a fat cat with other hand. He walked haltingly to a stool and sat down. The fat cat sat there as meek as a lamb to accompany the old man.

When I read any complaints regarding cats, I preferred to be silent. As our environment changed, the living style of cats was not the same as that of many years ago. Hawkers did not keep cats in the market to catch the rats. But cat-lovers had the same kindness to feed the cats. They spent money and bought cat food. Cats that ate the cat food became fatter and fatter.

The rats in the market ate the food in the market at night. There was no cat to catch them. The rats also became fatter and fatter.

Everybody has their reasons to love or hate cats. There are two sides to a story.

Few months ago Solomon went night-cycling with his classmates while they were waiting for the O-Level Examination result.

When he came back the next morning, the first report he made was:
『 We saw cats when we were in Changi Village. All of us touched the cats.』

I remembered Solomon told me a few times when he was young, “Children who play with cat will be affectionate.”

“To make friend with cats will be affectionate!”
He was then about five years old.

06.07.2008	22.10.2009
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