Thanks to Chinky for sending this in - we were both commenting that it seems that some posters at least try and explain about littering, and not leaving food around. An improvement at least!
Showing posts with label TC. Show all posts
Showing posts with label TC. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
TC poster
Thanks to Chinky for sending in this blog post on a better TC poster. TCs still don't quite get that caregivers are not 'owners' of community cats but it's still a better poster than the 'don't feed cats' posters we see.
Thursday, July 17, 2008
No feeding of cats
Certainly yesterday's poster was better than this gem sent in by coboypb. Is one of the cats chasing the others? And if it's about stopping irresponsible feeding why is there no evidence of feeding at all? If I didn't read English, it'd look to me as if it said no cats - perhaps the subliminal message the TC is trying to put across?
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Feeding Poster
Thanks to Chinky for sending this in. As he very succinctly put it, this is better than a 'no feeding' poster but still isn't a responsible feeding poster. Would it really kill TCs to put up a poster telling people to feed responsibly?
Monday, June 30, 2008
Irresponsible Feeding
I was speaking with a caregiver today about a woman who feeds in her estate. The woman feeds early in the morning and goes off to work and then does not clear up often till afterwards, which can be as late as in the afternoon when she comes home. The caregiver said that if it rains, it looks as if someone has vomited all over the area because the food gets smeared.
She has spoken with the feeder several times and she says that she doesn't want to get the feeder into trouble because the feeder's husband doesn't like her to feed. The irony in this case is that she says the TC has been quite sympathetic but that the area is a mess and she can see why there are complaints.
After the TC called the last time, she said that she spoke with the feeder again. The feeder threatened to stop feeding - but then left food again that same night. The caregiver explained that the cats might get rounded up and killed, but the feeder was unmoved and said that if that was what happened, then so be it.
I told the caregiver she may have no choice but to let the TC know whom the feeder is. Perhaps if the feeder's husband finds out and is disapproving, that may be a factor that will cause her to stop - and stop putting the cats in danger.
She has spoken with the feeder several times and she says that she doesn't want to get the feeder into trouble because the feeder's husband doesn't like her to feed. The irony in this case is that she says the TC has been quite sympathetic but that the area is a mess and she can see why there are complaints.
After the TC called the last time, she said that she spoke with the feeder again. The feeder threatened to stop feeding - but then left food again that same night. The caregiver explained that the cats might get rounded up and killed, but the feeder was unmoved and said that if that was what happened, then so be it.
I told the caregiver she may have no choice but to let the TC know whom the feeder is. Perhaps if the feeder's husband finds out and is disapproving, that may be a factor that will cause her to stop - and stop putting the cats in danger.
Monday, June 16, 2008
Bad Poster
Again thank you Chinky for this.
Here on the other hand, is an example of a bad poster. This came from a bigger poster on feeding pigeons as well. This poster also makes no sense - if the cats are fed, they are LESS likely to go into garbage bins. Hungry cats do that - but well fed cats are far LESS likely to do that.
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Be a responsible Owner Poster
Having some problems with my internet connection so my blog entries may be a bit more sporadic.
Here's a poster Chinky sent in. Thanks Chinky.
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Emotional Blackmail
I received an email from a caregiver today to mention that she has been having problems with her TC. Her fellow caregivers and herself have been working well with the TC, then it seemed a few months ago, there was one persistent complainant. This led the TC to start threatening to remove the cats if there were complaints. They also refused to let her speak with the complainants.
The caregiver is worried as she does not want to jeopardise her working relationship with the TC so doesn't want to bring this up higher. While I totally agree with her that working with the TC is the most ideal situation, one of the things to bear in mind is this - what happens when the TC won't work with you?
If someone holds something that you value dearly as ransom to make you do something you don't want to do, then it's termed emotional blackmail. That's what is happening here - the TC knows that the caregivers are worried about the cats. They also know that the complainants on the other hand have nothing to lose. So whom do they choose to lean on?
The problem is this - when does the emotional blackmail stop? When the complainant (who in this case, the caregiver said is unreasonable) stops complaining? When all the cats have been removed (and the TC officer mentioned that there would be no complaints if there are no cats at all?)? What happens then when new cats move in?
I sympathise with this caregiver because I know she's trying to make the best of a bad situation and anyone would be worried if their cats were threatened. The problem sometimes is that in a case like this, there is no more good working relationship. There is just a TC officer who is bullying the person who has more to lose.
This doesn't mean that there aren't good TC officers of course - there are and the good ones would not resort to this. Praise should be meted out where praise is due - but correspondingly, if someone is going back on your agreement, and threatening you and your cats, then it may be time to seriously rethink what you need to do.
The caregiver is worried as she does not want to jeopardise her working relationship with the TC so doesn't want to bring this up higher. While I totally agree with her that working with the TC is the most ideal situation, one of the things to bear in mind is this - what happens when the TC won't work with you?
If someone holds something that you value dearly as ransom to make you do something you don't want to do, then it's termed emotional blackmail. That's what is happening here - the TC knows that the caregivers are worried about the cats. They also know that the complainants on the other hand have nothing to lose. So whom do they choose to lean on?
The problem is this - when does the emotional blackmail stop? When the complainant (who in this case, the caregiver said is unreasonable) stops complaining? When all the cats have been removed (and the TC officer mentioned that there would be no complaints if there are no cats at all?)? What happens then when new cats move in?
I sympathise with this caregiver because I know she's trying to make the best of a bad situation and anyone would be worried if their cats were threatened. The problem sometimes is that in a case like this, there is no more good working relationship. There is just a TC officer who is bullying the person who has more to lose.
This doesn't mean that there aren't good TC officers of course - there are and the good ones would not resort to this. Praise should be meted out where praise is due - but correspondingly, if someone is going back on your agreement, and threatening you and your cats, then it may be time to seriously rethink what you need to do.
Friday, April 4, 2008
Assertive, not aggressive
I spoke with a caregiver this morning. It seems that the town council officer gave her 24 hours to remove a cat because it hissed at someone. She mentioned that she quickly had it removed because she was worried. Another caregiver was however quite unhappy about this, thinking the TC officer had been unreasonable and I tend to agree.
The caregiver who called me also felt the officer was not being fair, but she's worried that if she complains, that he won't call her in the future. Also she said that the cat was actually wandering around upstairs on the third floor of a block.
I asked her if she had spoken with the officer about not removing the cat and asked if she thought it was aggressive. She said the cat hisses but is defensive. I also asked if she had tried to find the feeder so the cat won't go up as the cat is highly unlikely to be walking upstairs otherwise. She said that she was worried that the people in the block would mind her asking. She also said that they might not admit to being the ones who fed the cat or who were the cat's owners.
I told her that if she doesn't try, then she'll never know whether they do come forward or not. In addition, if you knock on peoples' doors or slip flyers underneath, they may mind, but what other options are there?
I also told her that she has to be more assertive with the officer. There is a big difference between being aggressive and rude and being more assertive. The problem is that this particular caregiver tends to be easily intimidated - by other caregivers, by the TC, by residents. As such, she tends to give it.
If the officer has two competing parties - one party complaining loudly that the cats be removed on one hand, and a timid, shy caregiver on the other, who will the TC listen to? It's much easier to lean on the caregiver and get them to remove the cats.
Is this fair? Of course not - but if you happen to have an officer who is trying to resolve a problem as quickly as possible, they'll try and work on the party who is less likely to complain. It's human nature. In this case, if the officer tells the caregiver the cats are a problem she removes them promptly. Problem solved for the officer.
So it is absolutely essential to be a bit more firm when dealing with officers. It's not about being hostile and unfriendly - it's about not being a pushover. Either that or you have to be prepared to keep removing cats for the long haul whenever you get a call.
The caregiver who called me also felt the officer was not being fair, but she's worried that if she complains, that he won't call her in the future. Also she said that the cat was actually wandering around upstairs on the third floor of a block.
I asked her if she had spoken with the officer about not removing the cat and asked if she thought it was aggressive. She said the cat hisses but is defensive. I also asked if she had tried to find the feeder so the cat won't go up as the cat is highly unlikely to be walking upstairs otherwise. She said that she was worried that the people in the block would mind her asking. She also said that they might not admit to being the ones who fed the cat or who were the cat's owners.
I told her that if she doesn't try, then she'll never know whether they do come forward or not. In addition, if you knock on peoples' doors or slip flyers underneath, they may mind, but what other options are there?
I also told her that she has to be more assertive with the officer. There is a big difference between being aggressive and rude and being more assertive. The problem is that this particular caregiver tends to be easily intimidated - by other caregivers, by the TC, by residents. As such, she tends to give it.
If the officer has two competing parties - one party complaining loudly that the cats be removed on one hand, and a timid, shy caregiver on the other, who will the TC listen to? It's much easier to lean on the caregiver and get them to remove the cats.
Is this fair? Of course not - but if you happen to have an officer who is trying to resolve a problem as quickly as possible, they'll try and work on the party who is less likely to complain. It's human nature. In this case, if the officer tells the caregiver the cats are a problem she removes them promptly. Problem solved for the officer.
So it is absolutely essential to be a bit more firm when dealing with officers. It's not about being hostile and unfriendly - it's about not being a pushover. Either that or you have to be prepared to keep removing cats for the long haul whenever you get a call.
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Pest Control
Someone in an earlier post remarked about all the pest control companies embarking on an islandwide scheme to trap cats. I mentioned that I didn't think this was likely based on a few things. Firstly, the sheer logistics of the thing - the number of workers that would need to be employed, the vans, cages and whether AVA would even be able to take in all the cats on a single day. Also as anyone who has trapped cats knows, it really isn't that easy. It's not as if you can assemble a squad team, trapping cats from all areas on the same day? Also of course it brings up the question, why would you, considering how difficult it is logistically.
The other thing that was brought up is that all TCs hire the same pest control company by yearly tender. They do not as far as I know and from what I have heard from the TCs. This is why when you're out you see different pest control companies in different estates. I also decided to do a google search and found out something interesting this morning. Some town councils, including Hong Kah and Marine Parade, have put up their tenders online. What is interesting is the price that the pest control companies bid and also that the period is longer than a year. Also the contracts all start at different times, presumably because not every TC was set up at the same time.
The other thing that was brought up is that all TCs hire the same pest control company by yearly tender. They do not as far as I know and from what I have heard from the TCs. This is why when you're out you see different pest control companies in different estates. I also decided to do a google search and found out something interesting this morning. Some town councils, including Hong Kah and Marine Parade, have put up their tenders online. What is interesting is the price that the pest control companies bid and also that the period is longer than a year. Also the contracts all start at different times, presumably because not every TC was set up at the same time.
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Working with your TC
I was just speaking with a caregiver who said that she was having some problems with the TC. She said that though they had said they would not trap the cats, apparently they had told her that she could not handle a case, because right after she had gone down to handle a case of defecation on the canopy outside a second floor flat, the complainant called up the very next day to complain it had happened again. The complainant had told her that they could not use mothballs up there as her son was allergic so she went away and felt she could not do anything.
The first thing I asked her was why the cats went up there and she said she did not know. She mentioned that it is above a coffeeshop. Later she clarified that there is a man who likes to throw food on the canopy for the cats. Apparently the man said he had been approached by TC before to stop feeding the cats there.
I told her that the main thing here is that both she and the TC were focusing on the same thing - stopping the defecation temporarily. She and another caregiver were trying mothballs, the TC by trying to either use bleach (which the complainant said worked) or by trapping the cats. However no one was tackling the real problem - ie the man throwing food and luring the cats up.
I asked her why she didn't tell the TC about this man. She said that it was because he feeds the cats and she is afraid that if he stops, they may starve. I asked her which was better - cats going downstairs to look for food, or the cats getting killed because they are in the wrong place?
If a TC has agreed to work with you, the idea is to ensure that you try your best to solve the problem. If the problem cannot be solved as in this case, because the problem is that there is a person who is causing the issue in the first place such as an irresponsible feeder (which is mostly the case), then you need to let the TC know and ask them to work on it together with you. Otherwise it looks like you have dropped the ball so to speak and cannot be counted on to handle problems. Let's put it this way - if a TC handles you problems and you consistently do not seem able to handle them, do you think the TC is likely to continue working with you?
Since then, apparently nothing has happened, nor was there any followup on the caregiver's side, until an unsterilised cat was caught in another area yesterday. She then called me and asked why the TC was still trapping cats. From the meeting they went to which I attended with them, I remember the TC agreeing not to trap the sterilised cats without giving them a chance to solve the matter first.
Again, it is important to ensure that if the TC comes to you and tells you that they don't think you're doing a good job that you handle it right away. Do not wait a month to find out what went wrong and to refute those allegations if they are false and not because a cat was caught before you do something.
I advised her to call the officer up and update him on what she had done since the last time he had called her (which unfortunately has been nothing, so she will go and try and look for the feeder again this week). I also told her it wouldn't hurt to call him up and just wish him a Happy Chinese New Year. She said she was worried he might think she's being insulting in some way. I told her that it's always a good idea to thank TC officers when they have been helpful (and one of the officers help secure the release of one of her unsterilised cats just a short while ago) because everyone appreciates a bit of gratitude and well-wishes . I'd also be very surprised that he would impute any negative intention to a simple seasonal greeting, especially as they've not had any altercations in the past.
The first thing I asked her was why the cats went up there and she said she did not know. She mentioned that it is above a coffeeshop. Later she clarified that there is a man who likes to throw food on the canopy for the cats. Apparently the man said he had been approached by TC before to stop feeding the cats there.
I told her that the main thing here is that both she and the TC were focusing on the same thing - stopping the defecation temporarily. She and another caregiver were trying mothballs, the TC by trying to either use bleach (which the complainant said worked) or by trapping the cats. However no one was tackling the real problem - ie the man throwing food and luring the cats up.
I asked her why she didn't tell the TC about this man. She said that it was because he feeds the cats and she is afraid that if he stops, they may starve. I asked her which was better - cats going downstairs to look for food, or the cats getting killed because they are in the wrong place?
If a TC has agreed to work with you, the idea is to ensure that you try your best to solve the problem. If the problem cannot be solved as in this case, because the problem is that there is a person who is causing the issue in the first place such as an irresponsible feeder (which is mostly the case), then you need to let the TC know and ask them to work on it together with you. Otherwise it looks like you have dropped the ball so to speak and cannot be counted on to handle problems. Let's put it this way - if a TC handles you problems and you consistently do not seem able to handle them, do you think the TC is likely to continue working with you?
Since then, apparently nothing has happened, nor was there any followup on the caregiver's side, until an unsterilised cat was caught in another area yesterday. She then called me and asked why the TC was still trapping cats. From the meeting they went to which I attended with them, I remember the TC agreeing not to trap the sterilised cats without giving them a chance to solve the matter first.
Again, it is important to ensure that if the TC comes to you and tells you that they don't think you're doing a good job that you handle it right away. Do not wait a month to find out what went wrong and to refute those allegations if they are false and not because a cat was caught before you do something.
I advised her to call the officer up and update him on what she had done since the last time he had called her (which unfortunately has been nothing, so she will go and try and look for the feeder again this week). I also told her it wouldn't hurt to call him up and just wish him a Happy Chinese New Year. She said she was worried he might think she's being insulting in some way. I told her that it's always a good idea to thank TC officers when they have been helpful (and one of the officers help secure the release of one of her unsterilised cats just a short while ago) because everyone appreciates a bit of gratitude and well-wishes . I'd also be very surprised that he would impute any negative intention to a simple seasonal greeting, especially as they've not had any altercations in the past.
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Bad service
I received an email from a feeder who said that a TC officer came up and told her off for feeding in her estate. He then proceeded to call the police and was apparently quite rude with her. The police officer apparently told her that she could complain about the officer too. The feeder then got worried and thought about relocating the cats.
Relocation should only ever always be the last option. Removing the cats just means new cats will move in. You cannot keep removing cats forever - nor does it help.
In this case, I urged her to call up the TC and complain. She is thinking of waiting to see the MP, which is fine - but she can also make a complaint based on the behaviour of the officer. For example, the officer does not seem to know what is allowed or not allowed under the bylaws, and is trying to threaten her - all of which is pretty bad customer service. You can, and should, complain to the TC if the officer is in any way rude or threatening. It's just bad service - and every town council officer is the face of their TC and should be expected to adhere to a certain standard of service.
Relocation should only ever always be the last option. Removing the cats just means new cats will move in. You cannot keep removing cats forever - nor does it help.
In this case, I urged her to call up the TC and complain. She is thinking of waiting to see the MP, which is fine - but she can also make a complaint based on the behaviour of the officer. For example, the officer does not seem to know what is allowed or not allowed under the bylaws, and is trying to threaten her - all of which is pretty bad customer service. You can, and should, complain to the TC if the officer is in any way rude or threatening. It's just bad service - and every town council officer is the face of their TC and should be expected to adhere to a certain standard of service.
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