FRANCIS LAW Today Online 10 Nov 15;
SINGAPORE — Several months after they were found to be flouting guidelines on basic animal welfare, five pet farms and one pet shop are still failing to provide their animals with adequate living conditions, an investigation by Animal Concerns Research & Education Society (ACRES) showed.
Four other pet shops that complied with providing their animals with adequate living conditions in the first probe failed to do so the second time.
The latest undercover operation was conducted by the non-governmental organisation between October and early this month, as a follow-up to a similar investigation in May, to determine if errant pet shops and farms had mended their ways.
Following the May investigations, 11 of 29 pet shops and 10 of 12 pet farms were found to have failed to follow the basic animal welfare guidelines laid out in the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority’s (AVA) Pet Shop Licence Conditions. These include giving the animals sufficient space in enclosures and making sure no pregnant or nursing animals are on display.
Among the findings of the follow-up probe, one pet shop was found to have flouted the guidelines despite being given the top grade under the AVA Pet Shop Grading Scheme. At the shop, six cages with animals did not contain any drinking water, while two cages were too narrow.
Two of the 10 errant pet farms have closed down.
In response to TODAY’s queries on the positive grading for the pet shop that had flouted the guidelines, an AVA spokesperson said it reviews grades at the point of licence renewal and when a pet shop is compounded for non-compliance of conditions, “with the severity of the non-compliance and its immediate and direct impact on animal welfare taken into consideration”.
He added: “In general, pet shops with poorer grades are inspected more frequently as compared to pet shops with better grades. Additional inspections are also carried out in response to public feedback on animal welfare issues. All inspections of pet shops are unannounced.”
The spokesperson also said that AVA will follow up with its investigation on ACRES’ latest findings.
“Enforcement actions will be taken against pet shops/pet farms that do not comply with licensing conditions, which can range from warning letters to fines to suspension of licences to revocation of licences,” he added.
The latest investigation showed that there have been improvements in the overall situation, ACRES said. It added that the improvements were due to the public’s constant pressure on the pet shop industry, as well as the actions that AVA took in response to the May probe. The AVA had conducted unannounced inspections of 31 errant pet shops and farms identified by ACRES, and found that most of them had satisfactory conditions, save for some “minor lapses”.
Mr Tan En, ACRES director of advocacy, said: “There is still room for improvement as a few businesses continue to fail the animals and (the) trust of their potential owners. With the public’s support, we will continue to engage with pet shops and farms to (improve) the welfare of animals.”
More pet shops, farms providing basic welfare for animals: ACRES
The improvement comes after the animal welfare group found in an undercover investigation that several pet shops and farms did not provide enough cage space or flooring support for pets.
Wendy Wong Channel NewsAsia 9 Nov 15;
SINGAPORE: There has been an “overall improvement” in animal welfare standards at pet shops and farms in Singapore compared to six months ago, the Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (ACRES) Animal Crime Investigation Unit announced on Monday (Nov 9).
Between October and early November, ACRES conducted an undercover investigation into 11 pet shops and 10 farms that had previously failed to provide basic animal welfare, according to an earlier investigation conducted between March to May. Since then, the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA) has conducted its own probe into these pet shops and farms.
ACRES' probe was based on seven conditions listed under the Pet Shop License Conditions Display and Sale of Dogs and Cats, such as providing adequate cage or enclosure dimensions for animals, firm and comfortable flooring support, and providing clean drinking water at all times.
Its investigators found that as of November this year, out of the 11 pet shops that were flagged in May, three stopped selling cats and dogs, and and all but one out of the remaining seven provide basic animal welfare. That offending shop has an 'A' grade, ACRES said.
Also, out of 10 pet farms that failed to provide proper care for animals, two have since closed down and five still fail to meet the basic conditions. Just three made the cut.
ACRES said the pet shops and farms that earned bad marks most commonly did not provide adequate space and flooring support for animals. Cages should be at least one-and-a-half times the length of the animal.
ACRES attributed the improvements to "media publicity, public awareness and positive consumer forces on the pet industry.” It encouraged the public to continue playing a proactive role in the pet industry by making consumer decisions wisely.
"At the end of the day, businesses respond to consumers," said ACRES' director of Advocacy Tan En. "If they can feel that potential pet owners would like them to treat the animals better, they will respond."
"Of course this will also be in conjunction with AVA’s enforcement efforts (and) our undercover investigations, but really I think in the Singapore context ... a big part of this is due to the general public’s awareness about the pet shops and welfare for the animals," he added.
ACRES said it has shared its findings with AVA to follow up on enforcement.
- CNA/ww
Animal welfare in pet shops and farms improves, but room to do more
Yahoo Newsroom 9 Nov 15;
The standards of animal welfare in pet shops have improved in recent months, but there is still room for more to be done, the Animals Concern and Research Education Society (ACRES) said on Monday (9 November).
In May, an ACRES investigation found 11 out of 29 pet shops and 10 out 12 farms failed to provide basic welfare for animals like adequate space and comfortable flooring, as well as clean water.
Results of a follow-up undercover investigation from October to November found seven of the 11 pet shops that had failed earlier now provided basic animal welfare, as did three of the 10 pet farms.
However, one shop and five pet farms still did not meet the requirements, though three of the farms did show “marginal improvements”.
In images provided by ACRES, larger breed dogs like a border collie and a golden retriever could be seen being kept in small enclosures.
Under the requirements under the Pet Shop Licence Conditions Display and Sale of Dogs and Cats, the length of enclosures need to be at least two times the length of the animal from its nose to the base of its tail, while the width and depth need to be at least one and a half times.
Animals also need to be provided with comfortable flooring, and no pregnant or nursing animals are supposed to be displayed.
Two farms which failed the May investigation appeared to have closed down, ACRES said, while three of the pet shops had stopped selling dogs and cats.
In a statement, ACRES thanked the Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority of Singapore for following-up on its May investigation, as well as mindful members of the public who raised awareness about substandard animal welfare.
“ACRES is glad to find that there is significant improvement in the display conditions of the pets that are sold since our last investigation. This is in no small part due to the media and general public’s constant vigilance,” said Tan En, ACRES’ Director of Advocacy.
“However, there is still room for improvement as a few businesses continue to fail the animals and trust of their potential owners. With the public's support, we will continue to engage with pet shops and farms to increase the welfare of the animals,” Tan said.
