UPM apologises over culling of stray dogs in its premises

Amid brickbats, Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) apologised over an incident involving the culling of stray dogs on its premises, allegedly with the assistance of a third party.

The university also vowed to cooperate with the police and the Veterinary Services Department in their investigations.

“UPM is committed to fully cooperating with the authorities in their investigations,” it said in a statement today.

The university also announced that it has relieved its director of occupational safety and health management from duty until the investigations are completed.

Last week, Serdang district police chief Farid Ahmad said police have launched an investigation into the matter, with a complainant expressing dissatisfaction with the institution for allegedly hiring a private pest control company to kill the animals.

Farid said the investigation is being conducted under Section 30(1) of the Animal Welfare Act 2015, which provides for a penalty of between RM20,000 and RM100,000, or imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years, or both.

The Organisation for the Preservation of National Heritage Malaysia (Peka) had earlier alleged that UPM had engaged a Sentul-based service company to “kill” dogs at a rate of RM400 per animal.

While UPM initially denied the matter, a leaked email from the university management to its students and employees acknowledged that it had hired third-party contractors to handle complaints related to disturbances by stray dogs on its campus.

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