Dog Owners - New Rulings

New rules to hound irresponsible dog owners

SINGAPORE: High tech hounds will roam Singapore come 1st September.

The Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority (AVA) in revising the Animals and Birds(Dog Licensing and Control) Rules will make it compulsory for each dog that is licensed from next month, to receive an ISO compliant microchip. This is to manage the dog population as it will discourage pet abandonment.

New dog owners when getting a license for the canine must submit documentary proof from a veterinarian to show that the dog has been microchipped.

According to the AVA, microchipping is a more effective and permanent identification system than dog badges. It is also a more reliable way to ensure traceability in the event of a health outbreak and at the same time, it would also help AVA to trace and return lost dogs to owners.

Dogs that have been licensed before 1st September will be exempt from the requirement, but owners are being encouraged to have their dogs microchipped nonetheless. The microchipping can be done at any veterinary clinic and costs from S$40 to S$80.

To control the canine population, the AVA has also changed the annual licence fee, setting it at S$70 for all unsterilised dogs, and S$14 for sterilised dogs.

As all dogs above 3 months of age must be licensed, the fine for people who keep unlicensed dogs will be raised.

Responsible pet ownership will also be reinforced with the maximum fine raised from S$500 to S$5,000, on people who allow their dogs to stray or who do not muzzle dogs that are required to be muzzled when in public (eg. the Rottweiller or Mastiff). Repeat offenders may be fined up to S$10,000. -

CNA/sf

New AVA rule calls for dogs to be microchipped before licences issued
By Lynda Hong, Channel NewsAsia | Posted: 06 August 2007 2232 hrs
SINGAPORE: The Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) has announced, starting September 1, a dog must first be microchipped before its owner is issued a licence.

All new dog owners must submit documentary proofs from veterinarians to show that their dogs have been microchipped.

Dogs that are licensed before September 1, 2007 will be exempt, but owners are strongly encouraged to have their dogs microchipped for better traceability.

The cost of microchip insertion ranges from S$40 to S$80, and most dog owners believe it is a small price to pay for the peace of mind the chip provides.

"I'm actually very scared of losing my dog. So in case I lose it, I can actually try to look (for it) and probably people will not put it to sleep, thinking that it's a stray dog," said Cleo Tay, owner of a two-year-old dog.

The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) also welcomed the new regulation by AVA.

According to SPCA, out of the 80 to 90 dogs it takes in every month, less than half are claimed by their owners. It believes the chips will help cut the number of cases of abandoned dogs.

"A lot of them are pedigree dogs too, and many of them are not claimed back. There's no identification on them. So if dogs are being microchipped, it certainly will help us in tracing the owners," said Deirdre Moss, Executive Officer of SPCA. - CNA/ac

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