Once sick and abandoned in a neighbourhood, he was found by cat rescuers Mai and Rafiq, who nursed him back to health.

Today, he is frolicking around a foster home in Kampung Attap called Kolektif Kucing which serves as a safe space for rescued cats awaiting adoption.

The foster home is a passion project for husband-and-wife Wan Mohamad Hidayat and Khairina Ibrahim, long-time cat lovers.

“We also aim to serve as a ‘third space’ for cat rescuers and other interested members of the community, to come together,” co-founder Khairina told FMT Lifestyle.

“Burnout is very high among cat rescuers, and we hope to help address the issue by holding events and sessions for all involved, to keep us focused on our mission,” she added.

Kolektif Kucing began when Khairina and Wan started rescuing stray cats around their condominium.

But the pair eventually took an hiatus from rescuing due to burnout: at about the same time, however, they fell in love with Professor, a stray who often lurked around their favourite nasi lemak stall.

“We knew we had to save her, because she was a senior cat who could never survive on her own. We decided we could spend money on boarding her at another location, or use it as capital to create something that could help both Professor and other cat rescuers,” Khairina said.

“So that’s the long answer. But the simple answer is just that we love cats a lot!”

So around June last year, the couple opened Kolektif Kucing’s pilot foster home in Wangsa Maju. About five months later, buoyed by increasing demand, they opened a second foster home in Kampung Attap.

Their Kampung Attap centre is at full occupancy, currently housing Po the Dragon Warrior and nine other cats. Six others are being cared for at Wangsa Maju.

Khairina estimates they have fostered about 30-40 cats since they started, with 15 cats successfully adopted so far.

Every cat undergoes a series of health checks before being housed, to ensure they are disease-free and pose no risk to the other cat-guests.

The space here is carefully curated to encourage human and feline interaction. Cats are not caged here, but roam freely, either playing or snoozing in sunny corners.

Standard cat-care staples such as food bowls and water fountains are provided, and feline-themed artworks adorn the walls, much to the amusement of the humans who visit.

Kolektif Kucing collaborates closely with 15 local cat rescuers, who bring new felines to the home to be fostered.

One of them is Kya Cahaya, who started rescuing after her cat Peanut died from heart failure. Stricken by grief, Kya realised that if she couldn’t help Peanut, maybe she could still help other cats.

This led to her discovering Kolektif Kucing via social media: one of her rescued cats, Mawar, now resides at the one in Wangsa Maju.

“The cat rescue community is really strong. We all have each other’s backs. I’m quite new at this, and I’m glad to get support from them.

“Rescuing can make you feel very ‘alone’ at times, and to have community as encouraged by Kolektif Kucing is nice,” Kya told FMT Lifestyle.

The couple hope to create more foster homes, seeing 2026 as a “year of growth”. They also plan to enhance their existing standard operating procedures so they can continue helping as many cats as possible.

“There’s just something fulfilling about the role. And being able to work with cat rescuers, these hardworking men and women who sacrifice their time and effort to help these animals, is very rewarding,” Khairina said.

“Having a cat adopted is always a very joyful thing. In the beginning, I used to get very attached to them, so I would cry every time a cat had to leave us. But I’m glad they are going to a happier place,” she said.

Follow Kolektif Kucing on Instagram.