The public will be consulted by end-2025 on new legislation to penalise errant veterinarians and regulate Singapore’s growing vet sector.
Making the announcement yesterday, National Development Minister of State Alvin Tan said the Veterinary Practice Bill will create a stronger system for managing complaints, inquiries and investigations involving veterinarians, as well as a mechanism for appeals.
Cases of professional misconduct or negligence will be overseen by a Veterinary Council, he told members of the veterinary community at an event.
This comes as the number of licensed veterinarians in Singapore has increased from 122 in 2006 to 674 as at September.
Tan, who is also Trade and Industry Minister of State, said the law will also introduce a new registration framework for veterinarians, which includes a register for veterinary specialists that recognises those with additional training and qualifications.
All veterinarians currently licensed by the National Parks Board’s Animal and Veterinary Service (AVS) will be onboarded to the new framework, he added.
The proposed law will introduce penalties for veterinarians that can be enforced by the Veterinary Council, which will comprise representatives from the private and public sectors.
Currently, such cases are handled by AVS.
The body will also set out professional standards for continuing education, practice, conduct and ethics of veterinarians.
Singapore Veterinary Association (SVA) president Teo Boon Han said the formation of a Veterinary Council will send a strong signal that policymakers and society see the profession in a different light now.
“Decades ago, there were very few vets,” said Dr Teo. “Now, with people having more pets and pets being increasingly seen as family members, I think the awareness of what vets do and their contributions to society has increased.”
Tan also announced a set of Veterinary Therapeutic Guidelines jointly developed by AVS and the SVA in response to growing interest in unconventional therapies for animal patients.
This provides guidance for treating pets with non-conventional therapies like novel therapies, which are treatments with minimal or no established history for a specific ailment in a particular animal species, as well as alternative therapies or treatments that rely on the body’s healing processes.
Dr Yam said AVS had noted a general increase in the use of non-conventional therapies by pet owners and vets.
“Nowadays with the Internet, there’s a lot of information that people can access online, so there’s been an increase in the interest, and also people wanting to try to explore more options for their pets,” she added.
Examples of novel treatments include stem cell therapy and administering medications originally formulated for horses to dogs and cats.
With the document, pet owners and veterinarians will learn the factors that should be considered when deciding which therapy should be applied.
Dr Chow Haoting, who participated in the formulation of guidelines for animal therapies, said the guidelines will help vets and pet owners to navigate new trends showing up on TikTok and Instagram.
“Nowadays, potential therapies get amplified on social media,” he said. “It can be very enticing when a certain individual shares a story that without any form of medicine, with natural therapy, they are able to cure a particular disease.” — The Straits Times/ANN
