Something to share - Leash Training

Came across this sad incident shared by people at facebook.

*Appeal for witnesses* Pet husky killed by cab in hit-and-run at Old Jurong Rd


STOMPer David's husky was knocked down and killed by a taxi at Old Jurong Road on Saturday (Jun 30). The STOMPer is appealing for witnesses of the hit-and-run accident who caught sight of the taxi's licence plate.


Said David:

"Sincerely seeking for car drivers that witnessed the accident which caused the death of my sister’s husky.

"Hope to find drivers who can remember the hit-and-run cab driver's car plate number.

"The accident occurred on Saturday (30 Jun 2012), around 3pm. My sister had brought him out for a walk.

"My sister’s dog (Ah Boy) was knocked down by a yellow cab at Old Jurong Road, from Bukit Batok towards Upper Bukit Timah Road.

"Apparently, something startled ah boy, and he walked onto the road. There were a few cars then, and ALL cars on the road managed to stop at a distance, without much difficulty as traffic was slow.

"All this happened in the blink of an eye.

"Being shocked, my sister was rooted to the ground, and wasn’t able to respond appropriately.

"Then there was this yellow cab. As described by an eye-witness who was jogging by, it accelerated suddenly after slowing down, and seemed to deliberately ram into Ah Boy.

"The Taxi stopped and Ah Boy limped back to the pavement with my sister shrieking.

"As bystanders were crowding around Ah Boy and my sister, the taxi sped off.

"Ah Boy struggled and cried in pain for a good 10 minutes before passing away.

"My sister and some helpful passers-by could do nothing but watch.

"Some kind passer-by and drivers had passed us their contact numbers, agreeing to be our eye-witness but sadly none could remember the car plate number.

"I sincerely hope any kind drivers/passers-by who can remember the taxi's car plate number, would kindly come forward and help us.

"Any advice is welcome. Many thanks."


Most people's first reaction to this incident would be to catch the hit and run driver that left the poor dog suffering on the road. In my point of view, it was the owner's fault for not putting the dog on leash during walks. Of course the driver should be caught and punished, but the owner could have prevented this accident. I could see from the picture that the leash is beside the dog, obviously the owner did not put the leash on during the accident, if he/she did, they would be both hit by the car instead, and judging from the article, it said that "Apparently, something startled ah boy, and he walked onto the road". People always don't listen when it comes to leash training, they ignore advise given, they think that putting a dog on leash is cruel and training it with the leash and pulling them around makes the dog suffer. This is not true, dogs are often very happy to be guided, they love to listen to their owners and then get rewarded after. Leash training in my opinion is the first thing i would recommend every new dog owner to teach their dog, you do not want your dog to pull you around every time you go for walks, anyone will get frustrated sooner or later and then give up their dog thinking that it is stupid and does not listen. The worst thing i can think of is to put your untrained dog off leash, sure you can proudly tell people that your dog follows you wherever you go, sure your dog can sit when asked to, but can your dog refrain from rushing out of your door whenever you open it? Would your dog starts to chase anything that moves? Cars, bicycle, birds, cats and children, these are all very important things to consider when you put your dog off leash, dogs often get distracted and starts to run across road to chase things that moves and then put themselves in danger without knowing. It takes at least 6 months to fully leash train a dog, it is not just to put the leash on your dog and pull it around for 6 months, but you have to do it correctly, understanding how well your dog is learning is also very important, only then one can start to remove the leash for a short period at a time to see if their dogs are well trained enough to be let off leash. Your dog have to walk beside or behind you all the time, does not get distracted with moving objects and would sit down before crossing any road, it also have to react to your calls whenever you demand it. If not please keep it on leash every time you get out of the house with your dog, do not put them in danger and then cry when something happens. A leash can help to stop a dog from running off, it can also keep the dog from hurting other animals or children, it also improves human and dog relationship and many other benefits. Please let this husky be the last to get hurt due to lack of training and understanding from owners. And please, get a leash and put it on, always.