SPCA has referred case of dog kept inside locked car for over an hour to AVA

Facebook user Vikna Bhai yesterday shared pictures of a German Shepherd locked in a Toyota Fortuner at The Verge’s 3rd floor carpark. Vikna said:

“The weather was so hot today and this uncivilised owner of this poor shepherd locked him in the car without any water. Will he do this to his child or parents? Just because the dog can’t speak you did this? If you don’t even know how will the dog suffer in such humid weather and inside a closed vehicle you definitely don’t have the rights to own a dog. I waited for about 20 minutes but the owner didn’t turn up so I had to leave. I hope the authorities will teach the owner of the poor shepherd a lesson.”

Vikna also noticed that a note was left on the car by a frustrated passerby. Facebook user Justyn Kang who left the note on the car said that the dog had been in the locked car for at least 90 minutes.

Justyn said that he confronted the dog owner when he noticed her sitting in the car with the dog after he came back from lunch, but that the owner was totally unrepentant. The dog owner claimed that she left the car window only a little open to protect the dog from people like Justyn, and that she had been away from the dog only for a little while.

SPCA has now replied to Vikna’s Facebook post of the incident and said that they have referred the case to AVA for their investigations as SPCA does not have legal powers to prosecute offenders.

“Only the police and the Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority (AVA) have power under the Animal & Birds Act to take action in cruelty cases,” SPCA said.