Operator of Platinium Dogs Club faces 13 charges related to pet boarding facility

SINGAPORE - The operator of pet hotel Platinium Dogs Club is expected to be charged on Monday (June 15) over several offences, such as those related to animal abuse.

The 31-year-old woman is slated to face 13 charges, the police, National Parks Board and the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority said in a joint statement on Monday.

These charges include six counts for failing to ensure that an animal is provided with adequate food and water. Those found guilty for this offence under the Animals and Birds Act can be fined up to $40,000 or jailed up to two years, or both.

Other charges against the woman include one count for failing to ensure that an animal is protected from or rapidly diagnosed of significant injury or disease, another count for causing unnecessary pain or suffering to the animal, and one count for providing false information to a public servant.

She is also accused of failing to make reasonable efforts to recover an animal when it is missing, as well as obstructing, preventing, perverting or defeating the course of justice.

Lastly, the woman faces a charge for not registering a business under the Business Names Registration Act, and a charge over abetting false information given to the Registrar of Business Names.

The agencies have conducted thorough investigations into various aspects of the case and all parties involved are advised to refrain from speculating or commenting on the case until after the court proceedings are over, the statement said.

Platinium Dogs Club, a pet boarding facility which advertises a variety of services on its website, including overnight board for dogs, day care, and grooming, has had run-ins with the authorities.

In December 2018, the pet boarding house in Bukit Panjang was raided by the authorities following complaints that pets in its care were allegedly mistreated.

The then Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority subsequently took temporary custody of animals found on its premises.

Law and Home Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam later weighed in on the matter, reassuring Singaporeans in a Facebook post in January last year that thorough investigations would be conducted and anyone who has engaged in illegal acts would face the consequences.

In another incident, a dog which was reported missing from Platinium Dogs Club died while boarded at the facility in January last year. Investigations revealed that Prince, the Shetland sheepdog, had died while boarded there and was cremated by a pet cremation service provider.

The dog owner had paid $945 to check Prince into the facility in December 2018 before she went overseas.

This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.