After Chng Leng Khim moved out of her landed home in Paya Lebar Crescent, the landlord stumbled upon a ghastly find two days later — three severely malnourished, sick and tick-infested dogs left behind.
The 43-year-old mother of three has since been sentenced to 10 days in prison for causing the dogs unnecessary suffering by not taking them to the vet for treatment, The Straits Times reports. She was fined $3,100 as well for failing to comply with an order by the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) to help in their investigations — she kept the dogs without a valid licence.
It was in June 2013 that she abandoned her dogs at the Paya Lebar Crescent house when she stopped paying the rent. The landlord found a five-year-old bull mastiff and chow chow, which were reportedly thin and unwell, infested with ticks and surrounded by their urine and faeces.
Her eight-year-old poodle — also thin, malnourished, tick-infested and unwell —was found near the house the day she moved out. Though the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals managed to trace the dog to Chng through a microchip, attempts to contact her were unsuccessful.
AVA found the home to be in poor condition, unhygienic and not well-ventilated. Chng did not leave and food or water behind.
The dogs were rehomed promptly, but the bull mastiff had to be euthanised months later due to a failing heart and other ailments.
Chng had also refused to cooperate with the AVA in their investigations and repeatedly did not comply with their instructions. She was finally arrested on June 30.
Though she initially pleaded guilty to five charges, she wanted to retract her plea last Friday during a sentencing hearing. Probably knowing that she was a lost cause, her lawyer also applied to discharge himself. Earlier today, her second lawyer applied to discharge himself as well.
Chng is currently out on bail of $10,000 pending an appeal. She could have been jailed for a year and fined $10,000 for causing unnecessary suffering to an animal, and fined $5,000 for keeping a dog without a licence. This on top of a six-month jail term and a $10,000 for failing to comply with an AVA order.
