ACRES condemns taped-up bird cruelty in incident

SINGAPORE – A woman is seen in videos apparently handling a bird whose beak and wings are taped up, prompting criticism from animal welfare group Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (ACRES).

Three of four videos accompanying a Sept 29 Facebook post, which is now unavailable, show a woman “scolding” a restrained bird, which appears to be a mynah. In the clips, the bird’s beak, wings and legs appear to be taped up.

According to the woman, whose face did not appear in the videos, the bird had flown into her house repeatedly to eat her food.

ACRES said in a media reply on Oct 1 that it is aware of the videos and is deeply disturbed by the content.

“According to the accompanying post, the bird was subjected to this treatment as ‘punishment’ for entering a home,” ACRES said.

“There is no justification for such cruelty. A bird entering someone’s home does not deserve to be forcibly restrained, taped up and mistreated.”

The animal welfare group urged the authorities to investigate the incident thoroughly, and for a penalty that reflects the severity of the act to be meted out, if offence is established.

It added that the Animals and Birds Act, “which provides for offences involving animal cruelty”, should be upheld “whether the animal is a beloved pet or a commonly encountered wild bird”.

“No animal should be considered undeserving of protection simply because they are common or perceived as a nuisance,” ACRES said.

In the first video, the woman can be heard referring to the bird as “huai dan”, a Chinese term used to refer to someone who has behaved poorly.

“I’ll untie you if you admit you have been bad,” the woman says.

The bird, with its eyes wide open, can be heard shrieking loudly.

She apparently prods the restrained bird in a plastic bag in the second clip, claiming in Hokkien that it had attempted to bite her after being caught.

The third video shows the bird trapped in a shoebox with several holes on its lid. The woman claims she tried to release the bird, whose beak is now no longer restrained, but it did not fly away.

The last clip shows the bird immediately flying away once the shoebox lid is lifted.

The text accompanying the videos described the bird as a “bold little myna” and “Gordon Ramsay on a mission”.

“The bird didn’t just get caught… it got a full-on TED Talk lecture about manners, respect, and why you don’t mess with someone’s homecook meal,” the text said.

A screenshot from a conversation in what appears to be a family chat was also posted online, where a member wrote “whoever did this… committed animal abuse criminal offence”.

In response, another member explained that the woman had caught the bird after “it come inside s*** everywhere” and “go in our pot to eat our food”.

The Straits Times has contacted the National Parks Board and Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals for comment.