Frenchies suffer heatstroke after air-con allegedly turned down during daycare transport, NParks investigating
Two French bulldogs reportedly suffered heatstroke symptoms after being transported home from a dog daycare.
The daycare's operator subsequently alleged that a driver from a third-party transport company had turned down the air-conditioning in the vehicle.
Stomp was alerted to the incident by Stomper Elizabeth, who shared posts she had made on RescueWithLoveSG's Instagram account about what had happened.
The dogs, Kreon and Gobu, had attended dog daycare at Adventure Tails on March 6.
Both dogs are turning five in April. Their owner, Eugene, said he adopted the pair from their previous owners about three to four years ago.
Eugene told Stomp that Kreon was returned home in a critical condition.
According to Eugene, the transport van operated by Pyro Logistics arrived at the daycare at about 5pm on the day of the incident and departed with the dogs at about 5.45pm.
This is part of Adventure Tails' standard operating procedures (SOPs), in which vehicles are required to be running for at least 30 minutes to "cool down" before dogs can be loaded by their staff.
When the van arrived at his home at about 6.46pm, Eugene said he immediately sensed something was wrong.
"When the driver opened the van door, I felt a gush of hot air coming out from inside," he said.
He recounted how Gobu immediately rushed out of the van in an attempt to get air, while Kreon remained lying inside the crate unconscious with a leash in his mouth.
Kreon was unresponsive and Gobu appeared weak, prompting Eugene and his partner to rush Kreon to Westside Vet Emergency & Referral Hospital, which was nearest to them.
Eugene claimed the driver showed "no remorse" and casually remarked that the dog was "still alive".
He said the driver had initially wanted to wait with them, but he asked him to leave after noticing there were other dogs still inside the van that needed to be sent home.
Kreon hospitalised with 'severe heatstroke'
They arrived at the clinic at about 7.15pm where Kreon was reportedly found to be suffering from severe heatstroke and had to be placed on a feeding tube as it was unable to eat or walk.
"He also had a low platelet count, many bruises and bloody diarrhoea," Eugene said.
French bulldogs are a brachycephalic breed, meaning they have shorter snouts and can be more susceptible to breathing difficulties and heat-related stress.
Eugene and his partner spent several nights at the animal hospital to monitor Kreon's condition.
Fortunately, Kreon is now in stable condition and out of the critical stage.
"He is on his journey to recovery but still has a long way to go," Eugene said. "His energy has been slightly brighter and he has started eating again."
Gobu was also affected but has since been discharged from VES Hospital.
"Gobu has been a very bright boy and is back to its normal routine," Eugene added.
However, he noted that Gobu appears to miss its companion: "They usually do everything together. Gobu still waits at the gate or outside our room door for Kreon to come home."
Eugene said he was not aware a third-party transport provider would be used to ferry the dogs.
"This was their third time going to Adventure Tails, we placed full trust in them to look after our boys, allowing them to have fun at doggy daycare," he said.
On March 8, Adventure Tails issued a statement on Facebook saying it was "deeply saddened" by the incident and that the safety and well-being of the dogs in its care remains its top priority.
The company said it had conducted an internal review and terminated all engagement with Pyro Logistics with immediate effect.
It also said it would implement improvements to its transportation arrangements, including engaging vehicles equipped with dedicated rear air-conditioning systems to ensure better ventilation and comfort for dogs during transport.
Adventure Tails added that it was working closely with Kreon's owners and remained in contact with them as the dog recovered.
The company said it has been assisting the dogs' owners with veterinary costs.
Gobu was first taken to Westside Vet Emergency & Referral Hospital before being transferred to VES Hospital due to a lack of available admission slots at Westside, Eugene said.
The total bill for Gobu's treatment amounted to about $1,554, according to receipts seen by Stomp.
Kreon, which required hospitalisation, has accumulated interim veterinary bills of more than $10,500 to date.
Eugene said Gobu's medical bill has been fully reimbursed, while Kreon's final hospital bill is still pending.
Daycare operator says driver turned down air-con
When contacted by Stomp, Adventure Tails said the dogs had appeared active and healthy during daycare earlier that day.
"They were active, healthy and drinking a lot of water," a spokesman said on March 12.
Photos and updates had also been sent to the owners during the day.
According to the spokesman, the company had recently engaged a pet transport provider called Pyro Logistics after relocating its daycare facility from Paya Lebar to Kranji about four months ago.
Previously, the daycare operated two of its own vehicles with in-house drivers.
They engaged Pyro Logistics so they would have four vehicles in total to send and fetch dogs from each of the four zones in Singapore.
The spokesman said drivers are required to follow SOPs, including maintaining the vehicle's air-conditioning at fan speed 4.
However, the driver involved allegedly reduced it to fan speed 2 during the journey.
"He felt cold so he turned the fan speed down," the spokesman said.
"This should not have been done as we have repeatedly emphasised this in our SOPs."
He said the company has since introduced additional safety measures.
"Through this, we have learned an important lesson and have installed thermostats in the vans linked to our phones so we can monitor the temperature in the vehicles in real time," the spokesman said.
He added that the daycare has also leased two more vans with rear air-conditioning which are currently being driven by its own staff.
The spokesman said the company had never encountered any incident like this before.
"We will do our part to take legal action against Pyro Logistics," he said.
"However, we take full responsibility for what happened and are in close contact with the owners."
NParks investigating
Both Eugene and Adventure Tails have reported the incident to the National Parks Board (NParks).
In response to a Stomp query, Ms Jessica Kwok, NParks' group director for enforcement and investigation said on March 12: "NParks has received feedback about two dogs that were allegedly transported in unsuitable conditions from a pet daycare facility.
"Investigations are currently ongoing."
She added that under the Animals and Birds Act, persons working with animals in animal-related businesses such as pet daycare and transport sectors are expected to uphold higher standards of animal welfare.
Anyone found guilty of animal cruelty while operating or employed in such businesses may face up to two years' imprisonment, a fine of up to $40,000, or both.
NParks also noted that the Animal & Veterinary Service (AVS) has a Code of Animal Welfare for the pet industry outlining minimum standards for animal housing, management and care.
Any non-compliance with the code may be used as evidence to support enforcement actions.
Eugene said he hopes the incident will raise awareness about animal welfare.
"I hope this incident can raise awareness for the voiceless and that Singapore can continue improving animal welfare standards," he told Stomp.
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