Animal killer on the loose? Acres pleads for help after civet found dead with blow dart in body
PHOTO: Facebook/Martin Yeoh
PUBLISHED ONMay 20, 2021 10:57 AMByAlexander Kyle Thirumaran
A man was walking out to his driveway on Thursday (May 20) not expecting that he would discover a cruel sight – a civet lying dead with a large dart lodged in its body.
User Martin Yeoh uploaded photographs of the dead animal on Facebook and wrote: "Woke up to this in the driveway. Looks like a weasel? Killed by a dart of some sort ... Who the hell would do something like this."
Yeoh told CNA he found the carcass in the driveway of his residence in Kembangan on Thursday around 9.30am.
He contacted the Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (Acres), and they later collected the civet's carcass. Yeoh, who works as a creative director, added that his sister had previously seen them running about at night but he has not seen the animal before.
From media reports, Acres' co-chief executive officer (CEO) Anbarasi Boopal said the carcass has been sent to the National Parks Board's (NParks) lab for a post mortem – and appealed to the public for information on this and similar cases when darts are used on animals.
On Facebook, Acres posted an appeal for help coupled with an image of the carcass, and said: "With no further leads to these investigations, we appeal to all of you for information on anyone using these blow darts."
[embed]https://www.facebook.com/ACRESasia/posts/10158773042951523[/embed]
Boopal added that they have come across several cases of pigeons injured or killed by darts in Tampines and Pasir Ris last year but they are unsure if similar darts were used.
ALSO READ: NParks investigating incident in which blow darts were used on pigeons
Acres added that the blow dart on the civet had a thicker steel shaft which could cause major injuries to both animals and humans.
It said: "Needless to say that, human abuse often begins with the abuse of the voiceless animals."
Nee Soon Member of Parliament Louis Ng highlighted Acres' appeal for information in his Facebook post and called for the banning of blow dart sales in Singapore – adding that this was not the first time. He founded Acres, and was formerly the CEO.
Previously, in March 2020, Nparks investigated an incident where blow darts were allegedly used against two pigeons in Jurong West. Since then, Acres has reported similar cases of birds being struck with darts in Tampines.
When it comes to civets, Nparks advises that they be left alone and that people do not corner or chase them as these actions could provoke them to attack in self-defence. To prevent them from coming onto your property, pet food should not be left outside.