While seeing small animals around the neighbourhood can be a welcoming sight for most, there’s no doubt that these animals can also cause a great deal of havoc to residents’ homes.
And that’s precisely the case for this neighbourhood in Bedok which has been significantly affected by the damage caused by civet cats roaming about in the area and entering houses.
Recently, polytechnic lecturer Su Youping (Hanyu pinyin name) spoke to Lianhe Zaobao regarding how he has noticed the existence and impact of civet cats around the landed properties at Jalan Chempaka Puteh, a neighbourhood located in Bedok.
And despite their misleading name, civet cats aren’t actually cats: they are nocturnal animals that are more similar to mongooses than cats and are a relatively common sight in Singapore.
Residents’ Encounters With Civet Cats
Mr Su, 64, told reporters that he first saw a civet cat in his neighbourhood in 2018 when he found a civet cat in the car park after being bitten to death by a dog.
A few weeks after that, he recalled seeing a civet cat hiding in a cabinet and had no choice but to let it leave by itself.
However, that wasn’t all. Sometime later, he found out that his kitchen had been ransacked, with his glass biscuit jars broken and his washing powder spilt all over the place.
Bought Cages to Catch the Civet Cats
After encounters with the civet cats, Mr Su decided to invest in a cage two years ago to catch them. Since then, he has caught six civet cats with the cage.
He caught one in December of that year and called the Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (ACRES) for further assistance on how to deal with the civet cat.
Last week, he noticed traces of another civet cat and caught one at around midnight on 26 November.
Releases Civet Cats Elsewhere, Cages as a “Last Resort”
Regarding his decision, Mr Su explained that placing the cages there was a “last resort” to try and prevent the civet cats from doing more damage to his home.
He also added that he would drive for around 20 minutes each time after catching a civet cat to release it around the Tanah Merah area.
In addition to the inconvenience brought about by the damage, Mr Su expressed that he and his neighbours are concerned that civet cats might be disease transmitters.
Civet Cats Broke Ceiling of Another Resident’s Home
Apart from Mr Su, other neighbours also brought up similar complaints, with a neighbour by the name of Patricia claiming that civet cats have broken into her house around four to five times to wreak havoc.
According to her, the civet cats have defecated in her living room and eaten her fruit at home.
The 62-year-old housewife also recounted how her son has witnessed multiple civet cats climb onto the antenna between the pillars outside the house on various occasions; she believes that they have climbed to the top of her roof via the antenna on previous occasions.
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And that’s not all.
There was even once when she heard noises coming from the ceiling near the second-storey stairwell, and two civet cats fell through the ceiling shortly after, causing damage to the house’s ceiling.
Afterwards, the civet cats started fighting on a bed in her house, with one escaping through the window and another hiding in the toilet after the fight ended.
Ms Patricia then revealed that her family spent $2,000 on repair works for the ceiling.
However, they said they are more concerned about the civet cats nesting in the house’s ceilings.
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Residents’ Committee’s Response
When contacted by Shin Min, Zhong Wuwei (Hanyu pinyin name), chairman of the Residents’ Committee (RC) at Chempaka, pointed out that around five to six residents have complained about civet cats entering their homes over the past two to three years.
In total, the RC has received ten complaints of such nature in recent years.
On another note, he also revealed that a parrot kept in a cage at the rooftop garden of one of the houses was attacked by a civet cat many years ago, causing the parrot to lose one of its legs. It did not survive after being sent to the vet.
Since then, residents have been asked to keep their bird cages inside their houses after nightfall to prevent such incidents from happening again when the civet cats roam about at night.
The 68-year-old chairman revealed that apart from Mr Su, another resident has also bought cages to try and catch civet cats. That resident has been able to catch civet cats as well.
Mr Zhong, a retiree, also shared that he has relayed these concerns regarding the civet cats to the relevant authorities.
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The authorities responded that residents should not catch wild animals, but he added that the residents had done so out of “self-defence” to prevent further damage to their homes.
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Featured Image: Shin Min Daily News
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