Strays

Ah Tuen

Ah Tuen is missing. I have not seen him since last Fri evening. He wasn’t around to greet me on Sat morning when I reached my office car park; nor did he appear when I played with my car remote - I usually tooted to let him know I was there. I made 2 trips to my office block on Sunday hoping to find him but up to till this morning there was no sign of him.

I’ve adopted quite a few strays ever since I started working here. Each time a stray goes missing, my heart aches a little.

The first was ‘Ah-Girl”, so named by the ladies working in my area but I re-named her SharPei because I believe she is of mix-heritage, half Sharpei and half don’t-know-what. She was one of the ugliest dog I have ever seen, yet a favourite among the nearby offices’ staff, which included a Malay nurse who fed her chicken legs on a daily basis. One of the ladies claimed that Girl escorts her to the car every evening. I’m not surprised because she used to walk me to the car too and the nurse told me that Girl sits outside the clinic till it closes. Our area can get pretty deserted in the evening and the clinic stays opened till night. Because she was a big dog, Girl’s presence gave the nurse a sense of security. I believe Girl got so used to company that during one of the long weekend holidays she must have gotten lonely and wandered off. We all thought she would return after a few days but she never did.

Next was a dog that perpetually stayed in the toilet of the deserted shop lot 2 doors away. She used to be somebody’s dog because she wore a collar. We learnt of her presence one morning when we heard her howling. Our attempts to draw her out the next few days were in vain so each day I had to leave food in the stinking toilet. I called her “Kow-Chai”. Weeks later, she would wander out for a few minutes a day whenever I called her. One day, some people came to clean up that vacant lot and shooed the dog away. I couldn’t find her for about 2 days but on the 3rd day I saw her lying dead on the side of the main road while I was driving by.

Then there was Blackie, who looked like a Border collie. He was black except for his white chest. I assumed Blackie was a stray because you could always find him lying at our company’s directors’ makeshift garage but one day, after feeding him for months, an Indian boy staying at the squatter area told me that Blackie was his. The squatter houses were about to be tore down and the boy felt that he should inform me of his intention to take Blackie with him to their new house. Anyway, Blackie went away for about 2 weeks but one day I saw him lying at his regular spot. For some reason or another, the family disowned him. Sadly, Blackie didn’t live very long after that.

Other than the strays, there was a dog that belonged to another Indian family staying at the squatters. The owner told me his name was “Cowboy” and he looked like my Max except that he was brown and very friendly. Cowboy had a girlfriend called Pinky who was a stray. When Cowboy’s family moved, Pinky was left behind and so I ‘adopted’ her. At that time, Blackie was around and they became friends. After some months, Pinky gave birth to 6 puppies. Just before that, Blackie died but Pinky didn’t feel the loss until one by one her puppies were taken away. One Sunday I came to feed her in the morning but kept half the food so that I could feed her a second round later but I couldn’t find her when I came in the evening. Since then, I have not since Pinky.

Then came Ah Tuen. He is serious faced yet looks dopey hence the name, Ah Tuen. He’s totally white but is incapable of keeping himself clean. He sleeps beneath an abandoned truck and each time I drive past, he knows it is mealtime and comes running after me. I don’t know how he does it but he is able to distinguish my car engine from others. If I come from the other direction where I don’t need to pass him, I only need to play with my remote a few times and he will appear. He seems able to tell time too. When I am late and arrive after 9.00 a.m., he will wait for me where I park.

It’s been 4 days since he disappeared. In the next few weeks I will probably still look out for him even though I have a feeling he’s gone for good. His disappearance leaves a hollow feeling inside me but it is to be expected, strays come and go. Yet each time it happens I grieve and I mourn. How am I ever going to be a volunteer for SPCA or PAWS?? F