This week, meet one of the nicest guys with the biggest heart around – Kuan Siong!
Kuan Siong started out the way many of us did: as an SOSD follower on Facebook. Through the page, he learned about the plight of the rescued dogs of SOSD and he then stepped forward to Sponsor a Dog, donating to SOSD regularly.
Before long, Kuan Siong decided he wanted to contribute more: he started to volunteer as a transporter. This included ferrying dogs to events, vet visits and between potential fosterers’ or adopters’ homes. Progressively, Kuan Siong started volunteering at the shelter and in attending to SOS cases.
Today, Kuan Siong is one of the most senior volunteers at the shelter. He not only walks the dogs regularly but plays an important role in the volunteer training team, showing new volunteers the ropes so that they, too, can walk the dogs in SOSD.
Kuan Siong shares, “I first started volunteering as I felt sorry for the stray dogs in Singapore. As Singapore becomes more urbanised with less forested land, dogs get forced out of their “natural habitats”. They always seemed so pitiful and hungry, roaming the streets to scavenge for food. That was when I decided to volunteer at SOSD so I could help these poor dogs. Of course over time, the motivations have evolved but I remain in my conviction to help the street dogs.
“It is difficult to describe the fulfillment one gets from volunteering at SOSD: the joyful look on the dogs’ faces, the affection the dogs give, the way they eagerly pounce on you in excitement and love… these make the efforts all worthwhile. At the same time, there is no better contentment than seeing injured stray dogs getting nursed back to health, and seeing them find their furever homes.
“We may all think that we are just one person — how much change can one person make? But no one is dispensable; we all work together and play a significant part in changing the dogs’ lives for the better.”
Thank you Kuan Siong for your dedication and contributions! You are definitely an indispensable part of SOSD, as all our volunteers are!
