If you take your dog out in public, it's a good idea to ensure that they're leashed and under control.

On July 30, a woman named Marilyn Chow posted about her encounter with a dog owner on Facebook.

According to Chow, she's a cat feeder who takes care of "community cats" around her neighbourhood.

She was headed to her friend's apartment at around 9:30 pm when she heard a dog barking and a cat yowling loudly.

Dog unleashed

Chow saw a dog chasing a cat around, and intervened to stop it. However, this wasn't a stray dog.

It had a leash, and its owner was nearby.

Chow confronted the dog owner, but said that she seemed unconcerned about the cat. Said Chow in her post:

"Then after confronted her that it’s wrong to unleash the dog in public, she replied no and asked me to google.

I asked her what if her dog injured the comm cat? She proudly said she is a veterinary student."

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Chow didn't see the dog owner unleashing her pet, but the dog owner claimed that she let go of the leash to let the dog poop. Unfortunately it went off chasing the cat instead.

The dog's owner tried to walk away, but Chow stopped her and started taking photos of her. The dog owner asked Chow to delete the photos, but she refused.

She then followed Chow all the way to her friend's apartment. Feeling frustrated, Chow posted on Facebook about her encounter at around 9:50 pm.

Parents got involved

But that wasn't the end of it.

According to Chow, the dog owner's parents turned up at her friend's apartment after 10:00 pm, and allegedly threatened to call the police about the Facebook post.

Chow's friend didn't want to get involved, but the parents showed up again past 11:00 pm, making the same request.

According to the Animals and Birds (Dog Licensing and Control) Rules, Paragraph 9, dogs need to be kept on a leash and kept under control while in a public space.

Otherwise, the person in charge of the dog may be fined up to $5,000.

We have both dog lovers and cat lovers in Singapore, and living in a common space means that we need to make sure no one is hurt by our pets.

Top image adapted from Marilyn Chow's Facebook page.