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brown cat lay still over a newspaper page on a porch in Pondok Gede, Bekasi, West Java, on a Sunday morning. Its wistful eyes did not move as its owner'€™s hands stroked back and forth between its head
and back.

Meters away from Yuri and her cat, another cat owner, Levina, puts on a brave face while waiting for her pet, which was resting in one of the cages lined up in the house garage.

'€œKimo, my cat, is still 10 months. I have come here to tame his sexual lust,'€ said the girl, who traveled from Grand Duta in Tangerang to Pondok Gede.

Yuri and Levina were among cat owners who signed up for the subsidized pet neutering program organized by pet-lover community Steril Yuk (Let'€™s Neuter).

Assisted by a team of five veterinarians and two volunteers, the community, established in 2012 by three women named Upi, Lily Wijaya and Wid Endah, provides a biweekly sterilizing service for cats and dogs with subsidized prices of between Rp 100,000 (US$7.40) and Rp 400,000 per pet. Without the subsidy, prices for the service for cats ranges from Rp 300,000 to 400,000 and for dogs at least Rp 600,000.

Upi, who cares for hundreds of cats '€” including strays '€” in her house, said that neutering was a part of Steril Yuk'€™s efforts to put a stop to violence against cats and dogs as uncontrolled births had resulted in people going to such lengths as killing the animals.

In addition, many people recklessly bought kittens and puppies then abandoned or sold them when they grew sick or old, said Upi, who opened the doors of her house in Pondok Gede to the Steril Yuk cat neutering service.

Aside from Upi'€™s house, Steril Yuk also welcomes dozens of dog owners wanting to sterilize their pets at Lily'€™s house in Meruya, West Jakarta.

Though not ruling out the possibility of servicing purebred or mix-breed ones, Steril Yuk aims to help stray animals.

'€œThe abandoned and troubled ones are usually the strays,'€ said Lily who has fostered dozens of abandoned dogs and cats in her house.

Lily said that Steril Yuk had another program called Trap, Neuter, Release (TNR), in which Steril Yuk and volunteers gather, register, neuter and release a number of stray dogs and cats from various places in the city.
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'€œKimo, my cat, is still 10 months. I have come here to tame his sexual lust.'€

Though it had stayed afloat for three years, Steril Yuk had experienced its share of challenges, including defamation, said Lily.

'€œSome of them [veterinarians] defame us through posts on websites, saying that quality was compromised due to subsidized expenses,'€ Lily said.

Nevertheless, the pet social service remains well-known among pet lovers. The 100-pet quota is said to always be full every time the community offers its neutering service, which is usually on Sundays.

'€œSome pet owners still insist on being put on the list,'€ Lily disclosed.

Further information about the neutering service or other Steril Yuk programs can be found on its Facebook fanpage: Steril Yuk. (agn)