Recognising Animal Sentience in Singapore Law:Dogs as a Defensible Paradigm for Part IV Welfare Reform

Singapore law already protects animals through cruelty offences, duties of care, licensing rules, and administrative controls, but it does not yet state that animals are sentient beings. This article argues, cautiously, that Part IV of the Animals and Birds Act should be amended to recognise the physical and psychological welfare of protected animals, with dogs as the clearest paradigm case. Roy and Barrie support a welfare-based reading of existing law, while comparative materials from the European Union, the United Kingdom, and New Zealand show that express sentience recognition can be framed without destabilising property law or public safety regulation.