Heart of gold: Penang man who spends salary on food for stray cats and dogs gets helping hand

PETALING JAYA, May 7 — A young man in Penang is melting hearts after the internet learned he spends most of his salary to buy food for stray cats and dogs.

Anfalazie Anuar works part-time as a car park attendant with an RM30 daily wage and uses the entire amount to feed stray animals, mStar reported.

But it’s nowhere near enough to bear the cost of chicken and fish which the 30-year-old buys from the market and has to owe the sellers until he gets paid RM850 from his fulltime job as a cleaner.

“The job as a car park attendant pays daily but I do it two weeks in a month and it’s not enough for the cats and dogs’ food which is around RM50 a day.

“While waiting for my fulltime job’s salary, I have to owe the remaining cost. I do pay the market sellers back from time to time because the main thing is to feed the animals every day,” he told the Malay language portal.

Because of a lack of funds, Anfalazie often owes sellers at the market. — Picture via Facebook

Anfalazie’s passion for feeding stray cats and dogs around Buki Mertajam was first made known on social media when Facebook user Azman Ali shared the story.

The young lad from Butterworth, Seberang Prai, who prefers to be called Ann, never thought his story would go viral, casting the spotlight on a charitable deed he has been practicing for years.

“I’m actually a shy person and was surprised when the story grabbed the attention of many.

“It felt great that people were so accepting of what I’ve been doing. There are others who feed strays too, not just me. Compassion for animals is everyone’s responsibility,” he said.

Since Ann’s story became viral, he has been receiving a lot of messages and calls offering help through his phone number that was shared on social media.

The eldest of three siblings said the monetary help he received was used to cover the cost of the stray cats and dogs’ food.

The 30-year-old Penangite has been receiving calls and messages from the public offering to help since his story went viral. — Picture via Facebook

While grateful for the public’s generosity, Ann is most glad that he is able to settle his debts for the animals’ food that has amounted to over RM1,000.

He told mStar he was now free of debt and even has a surplus enabling him to buy more food.

When Ann’s motorcycle was damaged, he had to borrow his sibling’s motorcycle to travel to 10 locations around Bukit Mertajam to feed strays every morning and evening.

“There was an individual who stepped forward to offer to repair my bike. Before this, I didn’t think of repairing it because I only had enough money for my own expenses and to buy food for the cats and dogs.

“I’m still thinking about the offer because I’m so overwhelmed by the public’s response,” he said.