A wild boar seen limping across the road attracted much sympathy from netizens here.

A video of the boar making its way from one side of the road to the other was shared on the Singapore Wildlife Sightings Facebook group on Apr. 17.

The video showed the boar walking slowly and laboriously, as it appeared to have lost one of its feet.

According to Facebook user Mami Tini, who uploaded the video, the encounter happened about a week ago, near the Nanyang Technological University (NTU).

"My heart sank when I saw it cross the road. I wonder how it get hurt... hope it will survive..." said the video's caption.

How might the boar have gotten injured?

Wild boar do not have natural predators in Singapore, according to NParks.

Some commenters suggested that the boar might have been the victim of a boar trap, adding that they were aware of boar trapping being carried out in other forested areas.

However, other commenters pointed out that if the boar had lost its foot to a trap, it did not seem to be a recent injury, and that the boar appeared to be surviving well even in its current condition.

Traps may be used by poachers who hunt boars for their meat, according to ACRES's website. This is an illegal practice, and the relevant penalties were enhanced recently, in Mar. 2020.

Traps may also be used by the authorities, however.

For example, NParks said that it would trap and remove a wild boar which injured two people in Punggol in Feb. this year.

The boar was eventually caught, and had to be euthanised due to its aggressive behaviour.

A recent incident involving a boar trap left a Pulau Ubin dog with a massive wound.

The affected leg eventually had to be amputated.

What to do if you see poaching activities

ACRES suggests that members of the public can help to gather evidence of poaching activities and report suspected poachers to the authorities.

ACRES also asks members of the public to forward evidence of such activities to them for documentation purposes.

Top image via Mami Tini on Facebook