Recently, the owner of Platinium Dogs Club was arrested after many complaints of mistreatment of pets were made against the facility (Missing dog died while boarded at Platinium: AVA; Jan 10).

Under the Animals and Birds Act, convicted offenders who fail in their duty of care towards animals while conducting an animal-related business can face a fine of up to $40,000, a jail term of two years, or both. The severity of the punishment is not harsh enough to serve as a deterrence to most animal abusers.

Animals deserve to be treated with respect and should be given better protection rights.

I hope that the Government will place more importance on this issue and do its best to reduce cases of animal cruelty.

Clarissa Ng Ming Yi, 16

Secondary 4 student