SUBANG JAYA: At 62, retiree Rani Gopal could be cruising across the Mediterranean, dining at fancy restaurants, or simply enjoying long, unhurried days with family and friends – the kind she didn’t always have while working.
Instead, every evening, much to the concern of her family and certain residents in USJ here, you’ll find Rani making quick stops at back alleys and roadsides to care for her “street kids” – all funded from her own retirement savings.
“They will be waiting for me every day. If I don’t take care of them and feed them, no one will. And that is very pitiful,” Rani told FMT Lifestyle.
For the past 20 years, Rani – who lost her husband to kidney failure over a decade ago – has been feeding stray cats in USJ 9-11 and her neighbourhood in Sri Muda, Shah Alam.
At home, she cares for three older dogs and over 20 rescued cats.
“I think this is God’s calling for me. If I don’t help them … I don’t know … I don’t feel good. This desire comes from deep inside my heart,” she expressed.
“Not everyone wants to feed strays because it takes time and money. But I know God wants me to do this.”
Rani worked for a pharmaceutical company in Singapore for 12 years before moving to Shah Alam after getting married. Within a year, she quit her job to care for her ailing husband.
During this time, she rescued her first strays. “There were three of them in a drain. I rescued them and decided to keep them. That’s how this whole thing started,” she recalled.
She later began bringing her rescues to a veterinary clinic in USJ. After her husband’s passing, a doctor there offered her a job.
“I said yes and started working there. That’s when I noticed many street cats near the clinic and began feeding them. And before I knew it, 20 years had passed.”
Rani always keeps dry and wet food in her car, making it easier to feed strays on the go. Aside from her regular spots in USJ, she stops whenever and wherever she sees a stray.
“If I see a kitten, I’ll bring it home. That’s why I have so many cats. And I love all of them,” she said.
She doesn’t rely on donations or ask others for money – everything comes out of her own pocket, which is slowly running low.
“My late husband’s pension isn’t much, so I have to dip into my EPF savings. Most of my money goes to them,” she added.
“If I want to buy something for myself, I have to think twice. I try not to eat out or spend unnecessarily. Wet food is expensive, but that’s what these strays will eat.”
It’s also the reason some in her family have pushed back. “They don’t like me doing this. We’ve had many arguments. They’ve asked what I’ll do in my old age when I run out of money.
“I told them not to worry: I’ll go to an old folks’ home since I don’t have children.”
Rani has also faced criticism from members of the public. Some have scolded her while she feeds the cats, even taking photos of her to share in neighbourhood chat groups as a warning.
“I once asked an uncle, ‘If you are hungry, you will eat, right? The cats are hungry too, they need to eat.’ But sometimes people don’t understand – they can be very cruel to animals,” she said.
Still, nothing has stopped her: not the rain, not the criticism, not even the strain on her finances.
“I don’t care what people think. I cannot stop what I’m doing. I will do this as long as I can,” she concluded.
“The cats are waiting for me. I’ll probably do this until I die.”
