The Singapura Cat
With the ban on cats in public housing soon to be lifted, Manager Sie Sie explores the Singapura Cat and its place in not just our homes but also as an ambassador for Singapore.
We see them around our housing estates and void decks. Residents often leave out food for these animals and even fashion shelters for them using cardboard boxes, but did you know that cats have been banned from public housing in Singapore for more than three decades?
A no-cat policy imposed by the Housing and Development Board (HDB) has been in place since 1960. The ban was part of a blanket ban on all animals, possibly to prevent chickens and other animals from being brought along as people made the move from kampungs (villages) to flats. Cats were also thought to be difficult to confine to flats and would dirty public spaces as they roamed around the neighbourhood.¹ The Singapore Cat Club unsuccessfully appealed to HDB to allow cats to be kept as pets in 1978.²
In December 2023, much to the delight of cat lovers in Singapore, it was announced that residents could welcome these furry mammals into their homes from the later half of 2024 — two per HDB flat and they must be microchipped and licensed.³ The Cat Management Framework, under the National Parks Board’s Animal and Veterinary Service, will come into effect in September 2024. Under the Framework, first-time applicants would need to complete a one-time free online pet ownership course covering basics such as pet care and responsible ownership.⁴
Cats have always been regarded as more than household pets or mere exterminator of rats; they are also symbols of Singapore’s vibrant culture. In 1991, the Singapore Tourist Promotion Board (STPB, now the Singapore Tourism Board), debuted “The Singapura Cat” as Singapore’s tourism cat mascot. It was named Kucinta, which was drawn from the Malay words kuching (cat) and cinta (love).⁵
The Singapura is one of the rarest cat breeds in the world and is listed as the smallest recognised breed in The Guinness Book of Records. Singapura cats do not exceed 12 inches and typically weigh between five to eight pounds. It is highly sought after and in the 1990s, cost as much as US$10,000⁶ — almost double what Siamese or Persian cats would have fetched. The Singapura Cat has a short, fine-textured coat and has sepia-brown or warm ivory colours with a long tail tapering to a black tip. It has large ears, and striking green, gold or hazel eyes.⁷
However, the origin of The Singapura Cat is controversial. In 1974, American breeder Tommy Brodie Meadow claimed that she had created the Singapura Cat by breeding three stray cats she had found in Singapore. In 1978, the January/February issue of The Cat World in the US featured an article titled “Singapore’s Singapura”.⁸
The Singapore Cat Club, formerly the Singapore Feline Society, contested the article’s description of the Singapura Cat, and claimed instead that Meadow had actually mated her Abyssinian with a local cat.⁹
These contesting claims were left largely unaddressed until 1991 when STPB decided to feature the Singapura Cat in its National Tourism campaign. Its origin came under scrutiny once again and Meadow — more than a decade later — admitted to the Cat Fanciers’ Association (which had accorded the Singapura its pedigree status in 1988¹⁰) in the US that she had lied about how she had pioneered this unique cat breed using three local stray cats after contradictions were discovered in her breeding accounts.¹¹ Fortunately, the Singapura Cat was allowed to keep its pedigree status and STPB could still use it as the face of its National Tourism campaign.
Cats in Singapore have had a long and interesting history and it’s clear that they have a special place in our hearts and now (officially) our homes.
Sie Sie is a manager at the Resource Discovery and Management. When she’s not looking at books, she’s looking at cats.
[1] Wallace Woon, “ST Explains: Why Cats are Banned from HDB Flats, and What Lifting the Ban Would Take,” Straits Times, 7 September 2022.
[2] Singapore Cat Club, The Singapore Cat Club Year Book (Singapore: The Club, 1981), 5–6. (Call no. 636.800625957 SCCSCC)
[3] Shermaine Ang, “HDB Residents Could Soon Own Up to 2 Cats Per Flat as Govt Proposes Lifting 34-year Ban,” Straits Times, 4 December 2023.
[4] Zhaki Abdullah, “Cat Licensing Scheme to Kick In on Sept 1 in Singapore,” Straits Times, 11 May 2024.
[5] Sandra Davie, “Singapura Cat Used in Posters to Woo Tourists Here,” Straits Times, 5 May 1991, 3. (From NewspaperSG)
[6] Analissa Dass, “Singapura Cat”, Singapore Infopedia, published 1999.
[7] Sandra Davie, “Prize Cat-ch in our Back Alleys”, Straits Times, 25 March 1988, 40. (From NewspaperSG)
[8] Singapore Cat Club, The Singapore Cat Club Year Book (Singapore: The Club, 1981), 5–6. (Call no. 636.800625957 SCCSCC)
[9] Singapore Cat Club, The Singapore Cat Club Year Book (Singapore: The Club, 1981), 5–6. (Call no. 636.800625957 SCCSCC))
[11] Sandra Davie, “Singapura Cat Still a Pedigree”, Straits Times, 12 October 1990, 2. (From NewspaperSG)
