Is there an injustice in keeping animals as pets in Singapore? The rules are set in such a manner that no one could keep cats in HDB whereas dogs and other pets that are kept in cages are OK.
We have received the photo above indicating that the owner of the cats have to rehome the cats by a certain date. That is as good as giving away your kids, coming from someone who have had kept pets in the past. Nothing is more devastating than the loss of an animal friend.
The rules are as follows; there is a list of dogs that you can keep. Currently, you have a choice of 62 legal dogs that can be kept inside the house.
| 1 | Affenpinscher | 2 | Australian Silky Terrier | 3 | Australian Terrier |
| 4 | Bichon Frise | 5 | Bohemian Terrier | 6 | Bolognese |
| 7 | Brussels Griffon (Griffon Bruxaellois) | 8 | Bichon Havanese | 9 | Border Terrier |
| 10 | Boston Terrier (a) Lightweight (b) Middleweight | 11 | Cairn Terrier | 12 | Cavalier King Charles Spaniel |
| 13 | Chihuahua | 14 | Chinese Crested Dog | 15 | Chinese Imperial Chin |
| 16 | Chinese Temple Dog (Classic and Miniature) | 17 | Coton de tulear | 18 | Czech Terrier |
| 19 | Dachshund (Light and Miniature) | 20 | Dandie Dinmont Terrier | 21 | English Toy Spaniel |
| 22 | Griffon Belge | 23 | German Hunting Terrier | 24 | Griffon Brabancon |
| 25 | Hairless Dog | 26 | Italian Greyhound | 27 | Jack Russell Terrier |
| 28 | Japanese Spaniel (Chin) | 29 | Japanese Spitz | 30 | Lhasa Apso |
| 31 | Little Lion Dog | 32 | Lakeland Terrier | 33 | Maltese |
| 34 | Manchester Terrier | 35 | Miniature Pinscher | 36 | Miniature Schnauzer |
| 37 | Norfolk Terrier | 38 | Norwich Terrier | 39 | Papillon |
| 40 | Pekinese | 41 | Pomeranian | 42 | Poodle |
| 43 | Pug | 44 | Poodle (Miniature) | 45 | Schipperkee |
| 46 | Scottish Terrier | 47 | Sealyham Terrier | 48 | Shetland Sheep dog |
| 49 | Shih Tzu | 50 | Silky Terrier | 51 | Small Continental Spaniel |
| 52 | Small English Terrier | 53 | Small Spitz | 54 | Smooth Fox Terrier |
| 55 | Toy Fox Terrier | 56 | Toy Terrier | 57 | Tibetan Spaniel |
| 58 | Volpino Italiano | 59 | West Highland Terrier | 60 | Wire-Haired Fox Terrier |
| 61 | Welsh Terrier | 62 | Yorkshire Terrier |
However, the rules for keeping cats are straightforward. HDB indicated that cats are not allowed in flats as they claim that they are ‘difficult to contain within the flat. And when allowed to roam, they will shed their fur and defecate/urinate in public areas as well as making caterwauling sounds (you know those loud, meowing you hear at night? It means they are ready to mate.) Most house cats do not even dare to leave the house, let alone go around HDBs, making a mess.
Growing up in HDB, I would get barked at by small dogs with their loud, sharp barks while I walk past estates. Is it noisy? Yes. Do I complain? No. I do not want to be the guy who would complain over any minor inconvenience but the neighbours usually respond quickly when they hear the barks.
I rarely get any problems with cats though. Most of the stray cats are well fed by resident feeders (and I thank them). I believe they keep the ‘kampung spirit’ alive by having cats around HDB. Cats normally mind their own business, some even run away at the sight of you while some will rub themselves on you to show some (much needed) attention.
Do you think our rules are archaic? Should there be a revamping of our rules to keep pets in HDB?