~by: Russel Low~
I refer to the Follow-up Survey on Pet Shops and Pet Farms which was published a few days ago. It appears to me that the crux of the problem is still not being addressed.
Currently, everyone is fixated with the culling of dogs in Punggol. Many of the dogs are strays or dogs which have been abandoned and allowed to multiply. There is no sterilisation program in place and AVA’s zero tolerant policy towards strays usually translates to the end of the road for many of them. Over the last few weeks, people have been campaigning and lobbying AVA to review its stance, to work with animal lovers (and not just AWGs) and to be more transparent. All of these are lives issues which needs to be addressed and resolved.
But the more pertinent issue remains, how we do reduce the incidences of abandonment, neglect and abuse. Whilst there may not be a direct link between this and the culling of strays, AWGs and animal lovers alike would have more resources to help manage the stray population if they didn’t also have to deal and cope with the number of dogs, cats and rabbits (both mongrels and purebreds) which are being neglected and abandoned.
And the only reason why we have so many cases of neglect and abandonment isn’t just because the public is not educated sufficiently on responsible pet ownership, or the laws are not strictly enforced by AVA or the sentences meted out are not harsh enough. It is mainly because of the pet trade in Singapore.
AVA has the power to impose restrictions on the pet trade, such as banning puppy/kitten mills and farms and prohibiting the sale of live animals in commercial pet shops. But it doesn’t do so. It comes up with guidelines which pet shops ignore. All pet shops are concerned with is commercial gain, not ethics and definitely not responsible pet ownership. The results of the Follow-up Survey (see HERE) speak for themselves.
If people truly want a dog or a cat, they either adopt or they acquire one through licensed breeders either in Singapore or abroad. Such pets will be licensed at the point of sale and registered not just with the breeder but also the new owner. They will also need to undergo an eligibility test to determine suitability. If people really want a dog or a cat, they must be prepared to go through the trouble and expense of doing so.
This is an effective way of differentiating the committed and responsible ones from those who buy out of impulse. This is just a rough framework and details will need to be worked out, and whilst it may not be 100 per cent effective due to things like the “underground pet trade”, it would still make a noticeable difference in the numbers of animals which are being abandoned and neglected.
If Singapore can cope with things like the COE, they can certainly live with the restrictions and difficulties involved in pet ownership. Time and time again, people have called for these restrictions to be put in place, but nothing appears to be put in place.
At the end of the day, AWGs, shelters, animal lovers and AVA themselves bear the burden and brunt of cleaning up the very mess which AVA themselves could have largely prevented.
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See also: SPCA continues push for pet ownership law
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This article first appeared on Russel Low’s Facebook. We thank him for allowing us to reproduce it in full here.
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picture credit: Stop the cruelty in puppy mills
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