The New Paper
28 Oct 2004

We refer to the article ‘100 dogs living in urine and filth’ (TNP,
October 28) about the terrible conditions in which dogs, cats, rabbits
and other animals were kept at the farm in Lim Chu Kang.

We wish to thank The New Paper for alerting the authorities about this
case and sincerely hope that those responsible for keeping animals in
such terrible conditions will be brought to justice.

While this is perhaps the worst case of animal abuse ever seen in
Singapore, the House Rabbit Society of Singapore (HRSS) constantly
receives reports of inhumane housing conditions of rabbits at
pet-breeding facilities and pet-shops all across the island.

In our experience, most animal farms have little concern for the welfare
of their animals. In recent months, we have been alerted to mistreated
rabbits at farms in Choa Chu Kang, Seletar and East Coast. We advise
members of the public to promptly report all such abuse cases to the
authorities. Under the Animals and Birds Act, anyone found guilty of
cruelty to animals faces a fine of up to $10,000 and up to a year in jail.

Each month the SPCA receives at least five complaints of possible animal
abuse in pet-shops. In the same period, HRSS volunteers refer between
three and five pet-shops to AVA to investigate unsatisfactory housing
conditions in which rabbits are kept. In a letter to the Straits Times
in June, AVA admitted that it fined 50 pet-shops for breaching its
licensing conditions last year alone.

HRSS is also concerned about the very sizable and completely unregulated
trade in pets by private breeders who sell over the Internet. There are
absolutely no checks or restrictions for these individuals whose only
motive is profit.

To arrest this disturbing trend we have been urging AVA to impose
tighter restrictions on sale of animals and to step up its enforcement
checks.

However, AVA has consistently insisted that it does not wish to impose
restrictions on the number of pet-shops or pet-breeding farms in
Singapore, as such measures would be contrary to the policy of allowing
businesses in Singapore to operate on a free market basis. Earlier this
year, AVA said that it will explore the possibility of enforcing
legislation to curb the sale of animals over the Internet. However,
nothing has been done yet.

In an apathetic society like ours, we feel AVA can’t just rely on public
feedback (or TNP reporters) to identify animal abuse. If AVA intends to
stick to its policy of free trade in the pet market, it needs to
significantly boost the size of its enforcement team and conduct more
spot checks to deter breeders and pet-shop owners from abusing animals.

In our opinion, unless the government is willing to radically rethink
its policies, the state of animal welfare in this country will only get
worse.

Sincerely,

Kapil Sharma