Hamster in cage found with donated items at SPCA, man who abandoned it caught on CCTV

He might have thought he was doing a good deed.

A man was caught on CCTV abandoning a hamster at the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) in Sungei Tengah Road on Dec 29, 2023.

SPCA posted on its socials on Feb 2 screenshots of a grey-haired man with a mask walking into the reception area with a blue bag and a red bag at 1.51pm and then leaving without the bags one minute later.

The hamster was abandoned in a cage at the SPCA where it was left alongside other donated items.

"Thankfully as we were clearing donated items, a staff member noticed a live hamster in the cage," said the post.

"Upon checking our CCTV footage, we were able to ascertain that a man had left the hamster in our premises. A report has been lodged with the authorities."

SPCA added that the hamster, named Poncho, is now up for adoption.

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by SPCA Singapore (@spcasingapore)

But Poncho wasn't the only animal found abandoned in the area recently, according to the post.

A passer-by spotted a pair of terrapins in a plastic container left under a tree in front of the SPCA on Jan 2, 2024.

"The terrapins have since been surrendered to the authorities as the SPCA does not have appropriate housing facilities for them," said the organisation.

"These are some of the more fortunate animals who were found in time by our staff. There are many more who don't survive."

Abandonment is an offence under the Animals and Birds Act. Anyone found guilty can be imprisoned for up to 18 months, fined up to $15,000 or both.

While some netizens agreed that the culprits deserve punishment, others were a little more sympathetic.

One commenter said: "Actually, I think them making the effort to bring the animals to SPCA shows that they really did not want their animals to die, despite not wanting the animals anymore. Better than those who just abandoned at void deck or even rubbish chute."

Another pointed out: "I also think if the guy who brought and left it at SPCA didn’t know it was illegal. Probably some older folk who think this is the right move instead of just tossing at HDB."

According to an SPCA report released on Jan 30, hamsters accounted for 27 per cent of the animals abandoned in 2023 while terrapins 6 per cent.

The most abandoned animals were cats, which was 45 per cent.

SPCA said it attended to 127 abandonment cases involving 285 animals last year, twice the number in 2022.

It added that the 79 per cent increase in reported cruelty and welfare cases in 2023 was the highest in 11 years.