Pet abuse case leads to family rift

MUCH has been said about the dog being man's best friend, but it seems all bets are off when a dog bites a man's fiancee. In this case, the man retaliated by hitting the dog - which belonged to his fiancee's brother - with a broken pole.

And because the owner and the victim are siblings, it blew up into a big family row.
Sales manager Pam Teck Soon, 31, ended up sentenced yesterday to a week in jail and was fined $3,000.

He had been reported to the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) by the Siberian Husky's owner, Mr Jason Ong, 30, for hitting it with a broken bamboo pole.

Pam is the fiance of Mr Ong's sister, Miss Janice Ong, 31. Miss Ong recounted yesterday that, on Feb 20 last year, the couple were at her parents' home in Westwood Crescent in Jurong West. Pam was sitting with two friends on a bench opposite the house when Miss Ong was bitten while feeding the dog, Chewie, at the car porch.

'I tried to pull back my hand and when Chewie released it, I rushed to clean the wound. I broke out in a cold sweat and then I felt faint,' said Miss Ong. Pam, who had heard her screams, decided to teach the dog a lesson. It was leashed to a grille and he struck it with the bamboo pole.

As a result, Chewie suffered a fracture on its left front paw. After it was operated on, it was put on painkillers and needed several months to get better.

The court was told the beating had been so severe, the dog howled in pain and neighbours had to shout at Pam to get him to stop.

AVA prosecuting officer Yap Teck Chuan said: 'Throughout the beating, the dog was tied to a grille and at the mercy of the accused without any way of defending itself... This is cruelty at its extreme.'

District Judge Bala Reddy, sentencing Pam. said the beating was not premeditated as the dog had bitten the hand of the accused's girlfriend. However, the judge added, the accused's use of excessive force was widely disproportionate to what the dog did.

The court heard that, as part of his rehabilitation, Pam had been ordered to attend a training session with the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) to understand animal behaviour.

During mitigation, Pam's lawyer, Mr Peter Low, said his client had paid about $2,400 in instalments towards the dog's medical fees. Because he was late with one payment, Mr Ong lodged his complaint with the AVA - about four months after the incident.

Mr Low added that the dog had bitten Mr Ong's mother before. Pleading for leniency for his client, he said the incident has already caused a rift within the Ong family.

Speaking to reporters in court, Miss Ong, who struggled to hold back tears, said to keep the peace at home, she stayed away from the reunion dinner before Chinese New Year. It was the first time she had had to miss it.

She said she has not spoken to her brother since he complained to the authorities about her fiance, and the issue was one reason why she has moved out of the house.