AVA: Dogs must be licensed before sale, starting 1 March

From 1 March 2017, all dogs intended for sale by pet businesses must be licensed before they are sold.
In addition, individual dog owners who sell or give their dogs away will have to inform the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA) that they are no longer keeping the dogs.
AVA announced this amendment in a media release on 31 Jan. The objective of the change is to:

1. Improve the trace-ability of pet dogs in Singapore, especially in the event of a disease outbreak such as rabies;
2. Discourage pet abandonment; and,
3. Help reunite lost dogs with their owners.

AVA said, since November last year it has been working with pet businesses to prepare them for the revision.
Ms Jessica Kwok, Group Director of AVA’s Animal Management Group said: “We have received encouraging feedback thus far. Our stakeholders are receptive to, and are ready for this change. Some of the businesses said that the change will reduce the amount of paper work and help them keep track of their sources, which is important for disease control.”
“We will continue to engage our stakeholders and provide assistance where required, to ensure that the transition is smooth.” said Ms Kwok.
Under the new rules, when a dog is sold, pet businesses must transfer the ownership of the dogs to their new owner via AVA’s online portal for pet licensing, the Pet Animal Licensing System (PALS).
To make it more convenient for dog farms and pet shops to comply with the revised licensing requirements, they will be able to register multiple dogs intended for sale under a single ‘group’ licence. The licensing fees will be tiered according to the number of dogs intended for sale, AVA said.

AVA added that Dog owners who sell or give away their dogs will have to update AVA with the particulars of the dog’s new owners. This can also be done via PALS, it said.
However, such regulations will not be able to address the issues brought up by ACRES, a local Non-government Organisation on animal welfare about the online trading of pets. Pets are traded online through platforms such as Ebay and are not regulated. Even though posts are taken down when a complaint is filed, there is no persecution of the trade by relevant authorities.