SINGAPORE — The number of reported cases of animal cruelty and welfare issues investigated by the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) surged by 79 per cent from 511 in 2022 to 915 in 2023, which is the most reports it has received in a single year for the past 11 years.

In its Animal Cruelty and Welfare Report 2023 on Tuesday (Jan 30), SPCA added that the reported cases included 285 abandoned animals and 30 hoarding cases involving 480 animals.

It told TODAY that one potential reason for the rise in mistreatment of animals was that pet owners had little education and understanding of animal care and training — especially for dogs — when they first bought pets during the Covid-19 pandemic peak.

"Initially acceptable behaviours can quickly be seen as a nuisance at home, especially as the pet matures and grows bigger in size.

"For example, the harmless nips of a puppy can turn into painful bites by an adult dog. Owners may wrongfully resort to violence or intimidation to make their dog ‘behave’."

Other reasons included the financial strain of rising costs that caused owners to withhold medical treatment, as well as owners not sterilising their pets, which lead to breeding and unwanted litters.

There were also six cases of animal cruelty involving youth, the registered charity said.

It said in a Facebook post: "These are only the cases we know about. How many more are suffering in silence?"

Of the 915 cases reported to the animal welfare charity, close to 40 per cent relate to abuse and cruelty, and the remaining 60 per cent were welfare and neglect cases. 

Notably, SPCA said that it attended to 137 pet abandonment cases involving 285 animals last year — a two-fold increase from the 62 cases recorded in 2022.

Small animals such as rabbits, hamsters, guinea pigs, terrapins and birds made up half of the number of pet abandonment cases. In one case, 17 guinea pigs were found inside two thermal GrabFood bags, while another was of hamsters abandoned next to a rubbish bin without access to food or water.

HIGH RISE SYNDROME, NEGLECT

The animal welfare charity received four to six cases of "high rise syndrome" each week. This means an animal being injured due to falling from height.

Such scenarios happen when pets fall from windows or balconies that lack proper safety measures such as gates or meshes, and the animals slip or lose their footing.

Falling from as low as the second floor can cause severe injuries and trauma, or even death. "More often than not, these cases are preventable," it added.

SPCA saw 558 cases relating to animal welfare and neglect, of which two-thirds of these cases were due to unsatisfactory living conditions for animals.

Giving an example of such cases, it said that it had received reports of multiple rabbits housed under poor living conditions or pets being left in a car for more than 40 minutes.

For cases of abuse involving pet businesses, SPCA received 31 reports of such incidents.

Some examples included:

• Pony rides organised by Gallop Stables at a bazaar, which raised concerns about the ponies' welfare given the heat and crowd of the venue
• A video allegedly showing a trainer from dog training centre K9 Connection repeatedly hitting a dog with a metal bowl

SPCA said that it is committed to preventing animal cruelty on all fronts. 

Some measures that are in place include the gathering of pertinent information to build the weight of evidence that may help escalate animal cruelty cases to the authorities, and lobbying for stronger legislation and enforcement to safeguard the well-being of animals, it told TODAY.

It is also deploying a special operations manager to provide relief and advice to pet guardians who are in difficult circumstances such as animal hoarding cases.

Other efforts include a free pet health screening for low-income households introduced in May last year, educational outreach promoting responsible pet ownership and youth engagements focusing on tackling animal abuse.

Should anyone come across cases of animal abuse or neglect, they may report these to SPCA's hotline at 6287 5355 or online at www.spca.org.sg/report.

It also reminded pet owners to exercise responsibility and advocate for better animal welfare. 

The public may help SPCA's efforts in investigating animal cruelty and welfare cases by donating to the charity's cause, it added.