Fined RM8,000 in lieu of eight months’ jail by a Petaling Jaya magistrate on Jan 8, Terry Yee Kok Chew has paid a high price for hitting Furby, the guard dog, last year.
Besides the fine, the 57-year-old businessman said he lost the rights to distribute US-based outdoor brands Nalgene and Osprey and UK-based Craghoppers after they dropped him as a local distributor for their products following social media pressure.
In addition, his employees had been threatened and harassed over the phone in the aftermath of the incident.
“I’ve lost my reputation, livelihood, my family thinks I should leave Malaysia,” he told The Star in an interview yesterday.
He said he is now looking for new ways to earn a living but is unsure of the future.
Animal lovers were horrified after watching a video, which went viral over the Internet, of Yee hitting Furby, a brown-white male mongrel, at a security post in Taman Melody, Bandar Kinrara last April 2.
Some social media users went as far as to unearth details of Yee’s business, sharing them online and urging a boycott of the products.
Protests were also held in the neighbourhood, with calls for his arrest.
Yee said he knew his actions were wrong and apologised during his guilty plea.
“I want to come on record that I’m remorseful, it is something that has happened, it may happen to the best of us, to you or someone you know, and I’ve learned…I’ve learned,” Yee was quoted saying.
He claimed his three-and-a-half-year-old dachshund, named Waldi, and he had been chased and attacked by Furby many times before the abuse incident.
He also alleged that another neighbour said Furby had lunged at him when the person tried to feed it.
He said he has no ill feeling for Furby, adding that what happened to him was ironic because he loved animals and had rescued them and contributed to animal welfare societies.
He revealed that he was very close to Waldi and when he took trips home to Singapore, his pet would be placed in a free-roaming dog boarding house.
“He sleeps with me…I’m not doing this for show, we cannot be apart. We only got 15, 16 years together, so I want to make those years count,” he was quoted saying.
Earlier reports:
Jan 9, Terry Yee Slapped with RM8K Fine for Dog Abuse
Aug 3, Singaporean Charged with AbusingFurby, the Dog at a Guard House
Apr 13, It Gets Worse for Dog Abuser
Apr 11, Poetic Justice: Dog Abuser LosesBusiness Deal