Man killed pet poodle by hitting it, dropping it in river
His pet poodle To-Bi was struggling as he cleaned it, so Yeo Wee Soon "tapped" the dog twice to discipline it. And a third time when it bit his finger.
The male dog, which Yeo had bought just a week earlier, collapsed. To revive it, Yeo, 48, hit the dog's head against the bathtub twice, placed it in ice water, and showered it in cold water until it was motionless.
He then placed the dog in a pail and dropped it into a river near his home in Delta Avenue.
Yesterday, Yeo admitted that his unreasonable actions led to the unnecessary death of his dog, pleading guilty to an animal cruelty offence under the Animals and Birds Act.
A second charge of keeping a dog without a licence was taken into consideration.
National Parks Board prosecutor Packer Mohammad did not explain what Yeo's "taps" were or how they led to To-Bi's collapse.
He said the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore was alerted to the incident on Feb 7 last year.
Yeo's parents lodged a police report when they could not find To-Bi. They had heard To-Bi wailing at about 8pm on Feb 6 and saw Yeo taking a pail out of the home and returning without it.
Investigations revealed that Yeo bought To-Bi from an online platform a week before the incident, and he had washed the dog as his mother was unhappy that its fur was smeared with faeces.
At yesterday's hearing, Yeo's lawyer, Ms Violet Netto, said her client regretted what had happened and said he had no intention of harming To-Bi.
She said her client was mentally unfit and in no position to be behind bars.
District Judge Eddy Tham called for suitability reports for a mandatory treatment order (MTO) and a community service order (CSO) for Yeo.
If given an MTO, he must undergo treatment for his mental condition in lieu of jail time, and if given a CSO, he must perform supervised community service for a given period.
Yeo will be sentenced on Sept 17.
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