A suspected case of animal abuse, where a kitten was allegedly placed in a plastic container and rolled around, is being looked into by the National Parks Board (NParks).
“NParks was alerted to an alleged mistreatment of a kitten at Tech Park Crescent and is looking into the matter,” Ms Jessica Kwok, group director of enforcement and investigation, said in a statement on June 26.
The incident took place in a workers’ canteen at Tech Park Crescent in Tuas on the night of March 26, between 9.45pm and 10.30pm, the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) said in a June 23 Facebook post on the incident.
An informant, a colleague of the suspected abuser, told the SPCA that the kitten had been placed inside a plastic container and rolled around repeatedly.
SPCA’s inspectors conducted an unannounced inspection on April 1, during which they were told that the cat had since been released as it was a community animal, the organisation added in the Facebook post.
SPCA was also told that the worker involved was given a stern warning.
However, an on-site manager declined to show any CCTV footage or facilitate further investigation, said SPCA, prompting it to refer the matter to the Animal and Veterinary Service – a cluster within NParks – for a follow-up.
According to SPCA’s statistics, 220 of 453 reported animal abuse cases in 2024 involved cats, making them the most frequently abused animal species in Singapore.
The types of abuse include physical harm, inhumane trapping, hit-and-run incidents, intentional injury or killing, the use of aversive training methods, and abandonment.
Under Singapore’s Animals and Birds Act, first-time offenders found guilty of animal cruelty can be jailed for up to 18 months, fined up to $15,000, or both. Repeat offenders may be jailed for up to three years, fined up to $30,000, or both.
Angelica Ang for The Straits Times
NParks probing case of kitten allegedly stuffed in container, rolled around
