Man charged after dog died at Tanjong Katong grooming facility; it was allegedly left unattended
Shaffiq Alkhatib
The Straits Times
Sept 24, 2026
A man was handed an animal cruelty charge on Sept 23 following the death of a standard poodle after it was allegedly left unattended for about 1½ hours at a pet grooming facility.
Chan Yew Heng, 51, was a director at Pawsome.sg in Tanjong Katong Road at the time of the alleged offence.
He is accused of committing the offence between 9.15am and 10.45am on Oct 30, 2025.
According to court documents, no one was attending to the dog, Buddy, when its forelegs were trapped in a playpen, resulting in extensive traumatic injury to the limbs.
The dog, which was around four years old, died soon after.
Chan is expected to plead guilty on Oct 21.
A first-time offender convicted of the crime can be jailed for up to two years, fined up to $40,000 or both.
In November 2025, The Straits Times reported that Buddy’s owner Tanish Dhillon had said that a transport service picked up the white dog at around 8.30am on Oct 30 that year.
Buddy was later dropped off at Pawsome at around 9.15am.
Dhillon added that at 11.45am, he received a call from the grooming facility, telling him that Buddy had died.
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