Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Hong Kong)
The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Hong Kong) (SPCA (HK)) (Chinese: 香港愛護動物協會) is a charity for animals in Hong Kong.
Background
Building of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Hong Kong)
Before 1997, it was named the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (皇家防止虐待禽畜會). The SPCA (HK) is a registered Hong Kong charity whose remit is not only actively to pursue the cause of animal welfare primarily in Hong Kong but also in the rest of China and the region.[1]
It is the first charity in Hong Kong which deals with animal welfare. It was founded by a group of volunteers in 1903 and re-established with the Governor Reginald Edward Stubbs as President and Patron in 1921. It then became an active organization in Hong Kong. The Society is run by an Executive Committee elected by members who provide veterinary services and fund-raising programmes in order to support the organization economically.
In 1995, members of RSPCA vote at Annual General Meeting to drop the prefix "Royal" from the Society's name and becomes the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Hong Kong) (SPCA (HK)), with effect from 1 January 1997. The current President of The SPCA (HK) is the former TVB actress, Gigi Fu (傅明憲).[2] The Patron of the Society is the wife of Chief Executive Donald Tsang(曾蔭權), Mrs. Selina Tsang(曾鮑笑薇).
The SPCA (HK)'s headquarter is located in Wanchai at Hong Kong Island. Other SPCA (HK) centres are located in Pok Fu Lam, Ho Man Tin, Mong Kok, Sai Kung, Cheung Chau, Mui Wo and Hang Hau to provide veterinary and homing services for animals in need.
Mission and duties
Its mission through the century is "to promote kindness to animals, to protect their health and welfare, to prevent cruelty and through education, to inspire in the community a deep respect for life so that all living creatures may live together in harmony."[citation needed]
Recent action
The SPCA (HK) has been working towards the increase of access for dogs in public area. Currently there is very limited space for dogs and their owners in Hong Kong. Most of them located in remote areas like country parks and beaches. Concerning the health, behaviour of dogs, The SPCA (HK) is now lobbying with District Councils, Government Departments and special interest groups. Some progress are being made and The SPCA (HK)encourages more parties and pet owners to be involved in discussion on the issue.
The SPCA is in talks with the AFCD to implement a trap-neuter-return (TNR) program for stray dogs similar to the Cat Colony Carer Programme. This TNR program assigns volunteers to look after stray dog colonies. The stray dogs are captured by the volunteer, brought to the SPCA for desexing and vaccination against rabies, and returned to the area they were found.
SPCA is also campaigning for the ban of fur seal products in Hong Kong. The Canadian fur seal is the biggest seal hunt in the world where each year up to 300,000 seals are killed for their skin. The European Community has recently banned the import of fur seal products in an effort to stop the hunt on grounds that it is inhumane. SPCA believes that the trade will shift towards Asia, and a timely ban in Hong Kong will permanently stop the seal hunt
Financial resources and account information
In the Society's official website, it states that they "rely heavily on individual donations, membership subscriptions, and contributions and income from fund-raising events".
The Society generated 56.3 million from operations and 10.3 million in other income in 200708. The major source of income was from advertising income (8.6 million) and fund-raising activities (7.1 million). The major source of expenditure was welfare and community support services (22.5 million) and veterinary services. According to the SPCA (HK)'s annual report for year 2007 to 2008, they received a total of HK$3.4 million from donations during the year.
Table 1 Net revenue for the year
| HK$ million |
2008 |
2007 |
| Veterinary services |
6.0 |
6.1 |
| Fundraising activities |
7.1 |
6.6 |
| Member services |
4.3 |
4.3 |
| Welfare and community support services |
(22.5) |
(19.0) |
| Donation |
3.4 |
3.9 |
| Advertising and other income |
8.6 |
4.1 |
| Interest income |
1.5 |
1.5 |
| Administrative costs |
(1.8) |
(1.8) |
| Surplus for the year |
6.6 |
5.7 |
Animal welfare
Handle complaints about cruelty to animals, and give warnings or advices where appropriate, prosecution will be instigate when tougher action is needed. According to the SPCA's Annual Report 07-08, during the year, they received 1199 emergency vet calls, and their inspectors had collected or rescued 6629 animals.[3]
Organize school visit and exhibition in shopping malls to spread the message of compassion, respect and care for animals. In 2007-08 289 talks were given to young people reaching 20,004 audiences
Besides, there are some useful information on the web to spread the correct message about owning a pet. For example, Vet's Corner and the Treasure of Knowledge give you the general information about how to deal with the sickness of your pets.
Vaccinate, treat and find new homes for abandoned animals. However, euthanasia will be practiced if the abandoned is not adopted in a certain period of time.
Look for foster parents puppies and kittens which are too young to leave their mothers. Due to the limited space and manpower in The SPCA (HK), foster parents are expected to look after them. The orphans will be staying at foster parents' home until they can get a permanent home.
The SPCA (HK) has a policy of Responsible Pet Ownership (RPO) as a solution to lesses the overpopulation of abandoned animals. Surrender can only be done in office hours, so that The SPCA (HK) staff can can try to ascertain the reason for the surrender.
Offers training programmes, including Puppy Socialisation Training and Basic Obedience Training.
- HomingHearing Dog Programme
Assign hearing dog to the people in need, they serve as their ears and eyes.
Pet care
The SPCA (HK) offers various services for animals in need. The charges of the services are different due to diverse categories.
Provide boarding service to members for their cats and dogs. The service includes daily monitoring of food and water intake, toilet habits and demeanour by trained kennel staff enabling any health issues to be detected earlier. In addition, basic grooming and one on one leisure time to the boarding animals are available for keeping boarding animals clean and healthy.
Offer a full range of grooming services from "Full Professional Grooming", "Special Clipping", flea baths, gentle shampooing, nail clipping, trim between the paw pads, ear cleaning, brush or coat clipping and scissoring. All profits generated from the services go to help the needy animals.
Provide regular veterinary services to their member's companion animals with the static clinics and the mobile clinic vehicle. Along with regular veterinary services, the department also provides special veterinary services such as "Weight Management Clinics" and "Wellness Clinics" for animals in need. According to the Annual Report 04-05, there were 64,969 animals had been given veterinary treatment from their clinics during the year.[3]
Adoption
One of the SPCA (HK)'s most well known services is the animal adoption. In year 2007 to 2008, 2904 animals were successfully adopted.
Euthanasia
The SPCA (HK)’ｓattitude towards animal euthanasiahas long been controversial among animal lovers and pet owners. According to the SPCA (HK)’ｓannual report, 4128 animals had been euthanised by the society in 2007 to 08.[3] During the past few years, there were more and more reports about the society’s euthanasia policy.
Publications
Pawprints
Pawprints(足印) is a quarterly newsletter published by the SPCA (HK). Its contents range from the SPCA (HK) news and announcements to international news concerning animal welfare. Interviews with the SPCA (HK) staff and vets are also featured. The public can go to their official website to read the past issues of Pawprints.
See also
References
External links
