NUS PhD student & husband fined S$52,500 each for breeding Ragdoll kittens in HDB

A married couple has been sentenced to one week’s imprisonment and a fine of S$52,500 each for illegally breeding and selling Ragdoll kittens in their Housing and Development Board (HDB) flat.

From May 2022 to May 2023, the pair bred a total of six litters, totalling 30 kittens, for sale.

They earned a total of S$46,300 by selling eight Ragdoll kittens in seven months, despite being aware that their actions were illegal.

In the Nov. 20 sentencing, the prosecution called it "one of the most egregious cases of unlicensed cats discovered by NParks". 

Unlicensed cattery

According to Shin Min Daily News, the couple, both aged 29, were originally from China. 

The wife, Qiu Shiwen, is a Singapore Permanent Resident and a PhD student at NUS's faculty of medicine.

Her husband, Wen Tianhao, is a Singaporean.

In 2021, the couple wanted to start a cattery and imported one male and four female adult Ragdoll cats for breeding purposes. 

According to court documents viewed by Mothership, they reasoned that the "Ragdoll cats offered for sale in Singapore were of low quality and there was a business opportunity available to them".

They had planned to mate the cats and offer any kittens born for sale.

Attempted to acquire licence

Wen called NParks a year later to enquire about a pet shop licence for selling cats.

Following which, he asked if a licence was required if they wanted to breed cats for sale.

NParks replied that a valid licence is needed for the commercial breeding of pets at any premises, and that such a venture should only be conducted on NParks-licensed farms.

Wen applied for a pet shop licence on Jun. 1, 2022.

While the application was being processed, the Animal and Veterinary Services (AVS) received a tip-off that the couple was running an unlicensed home-based cattery.

They were each fined S$300 on Sep. 12, 2022 after being investigated and caught.

Told to rehome kittens

On Sep. 15, 2022, Wen was told that his pet shop licence application had been approved.

But there was a crucial condition.

“You must only display or sell kittens or cats sourced from AVS-licensed pet farms, imported from overseas or from other AVS-approved sources.”

Wen signed the letter of undertaking for the pet shop licence, but wrote in for an exemption to sell 11 kittens they had bred themselves.

His request was rejected.

On Sep. 20, 2022, he was told to rehome the 11 kittens through family and friends.

Continued breeding & selling kittens

On Jan. 18, 2023, the AVS once again received feedback that the couple were backyard breeding kittens for sale.

Inspections were conducted on Jun. 15 and 20, 2023 at their HDB flat, and seven cats were seized for investigations.

During a further inspection on Aug. 8, 2023, 14 more cats were seized.

Court documents revealed that the couple set up social media accounts and a website to sell and promote the Ragdolls.

The cats were ranked, classified, and priced into three tiers by the couple.

There were "pet level", "show level", and "supreme show level" tiers, with prices ranging from S$4,000 to S$7,000.

In total, they bred 30 kittens for sale.

They sold eight of these and earned S$46,300.

First in Singapore

The couple faced a combined total of 63 charges — 31 for Wen, and 32 for Qiu.

Their case was the first in Singapore where imprisonment has been sought for illegal pet breeding.

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Top photo from Canva and Shin Min Daily News.