SINGAPORE - A driver has come under fire online after he was caught on video hitting a dog in Portsdown Road on Monday morning (March 26) but allegedly drove off after the accident.

An eyewitness shared dash-cam footage of the incident, which was posted online by traffic channel Roads.sg and Derrick Tan, founder of animal welfare group Voices for Animals (VFA), on Monday.

The woman, who gave her name only as Ms Huang, told The Straits Times she had been in her vehicle with her husband when they saw the accident, which occurred at about 8.45am to 8.50am in Portsdown Road, towards the Ayer Rajah Expressway.

She said the dog dashed across the road, prompting most of the cars there to brake, except the Volkswagen Golf which knocked the dog over.

"However, the driver did not even slow down or stop to check on the poor dog," she wrote in a Facebook post by Roads.sg.

"Further down the road at the traffic light junction, we stopped next to his car and asked him why he did not stop to render assistance to the dog or call for help."

She claimed the man, who appeared to be in his 40s, responded: "What you want me to do? What you expect me to do?"

When she and her husband told the man that it was an offence not to stop and help after knocking over a dog, he "was irritated" and said: "I don't know, I don't know."

"We requested for him to U-turn back to check on the dog, he said 'yeah, yeah, okay' but did not do so," Ms Huang, who is self-employed, said.

"We returned to the location after confronting the driver, but the dog was no longer there," she said.

"We made a few rounds but couldn't find the dog. It may have been rescued by someone or ran off on its own - we are not sure," she said.

She lodged an online traffic violation feedback form on the Singapore Police Force's website, but said she had not received acknowledgement by e-mail yet.

VFA founder Mr Tan told ST that he was unsure if the dog was a stray or a pet.

"From the video it looks like it was wearing a collar - we were uncertain as well," he said. "We're trying to find out who the person is."

Mr Tan added that "nobody expects a dog to be running out on the road near the expressway".

"But the least the person could do was to stop and give assistance."

Motorists are required to help when they hit and injure an animal.

Animals, according to Section 84 of the Road Traffic Act, include horses, cattle, asses, mules, sheep, pigs, goats or dogs.

Failure to stop and help would result in a fine not exceeding $3,000, or a jail term not exceeding 12 months.