A woman was fined S$2,500 for abandoning two pet ducks in a box at Bukit Timah Nature Reserve in 2020.

She did so after her friend told her that raising them would give her bad luck.

Ng Siok Hui, 61, was handed two animal abandonment charges under the Animals and Birds Act, Shin Min Daily News reported.

She is also barred from keeping pets for a year.

According to court records seen by Mothership, the ducks were handed over to the Director-General for Animal Health and Welfare.

Details of case

The court heard that Ng and her son lived together.

Both of them kept nine other birds of varying species at home besides the two ducks.

Ng felt that she had no choice but to stop raising the ducks as pets after her friend said the animals would bring about misfortune.

Travelled in lorry

The woman then put the two ducks in a box and covered it with a red cloth on Sep. 28, 2020.

With a friend, she took the box in a lorry to Bukit Timah Nature Reserve and left it there.

A pair of National Parks Board (NParks) staff members found the abandoned ducks at 12:38pm on the same day.

The Animal and Veterinary Service was alerted.

Told judge she was made to abandon ducks

Ng was not represented by a lawyer in court.

She pleaded guilty to one of the charges while the other was taken into consideration for her sentencing.

She pleaded with the judge to be lenient as she was unemployed and that her sister would have to help pay the fine.

She claimed that she was reluctant to abandon the ducks and was made to do so by her friend.

When the judge asked how her friend forced her to stop raising ducks, Ng said the friend had repeatedly told her to stop.

Ng could have been fined up to S$10,000 and jailed for up to 12 months for each charge.

Top photo via Shin Min Daily News