Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Spelling mistakes and grammatical errors

Many of my posts have spelling mistakes and grammatical errors. I have not much time. It is either produce perfect English or creating content. Sometimes I revise and see "catch catcher" in one article. It should be "cat catcher". I will edit when free. For now, it is better I create imperfect writing in many numbers rather than one. I have around 3 hours of free time to write and this may seem a lot of time, but it is not.

288. Jan 3, 2011 interesting cases

Jan 3, 2011

My car's dashboard showed "check coolant level" again after repair last month. The mechanic had replaced the pump and had said the radiator was OK. It was a poor diagnosis as now the problem re-surfaced. I had to send the car down again. It was a radiator leak.

On the way, I visited my mentor, a senior vet to wish him a Happy New Year. "Where's XXX?" he asked about the 4th year vet student who was supposed to do internship. "He's got to re-sit his exam and has to study." I said. I asked about his son who had started an ice-cream production using artificial sweetener. He was already producing the ice-cream. The nurse brought in two cones in the vet's office where a fish tank of ordinary small golden fishes were kept (to give life to the office, the father said). "How's the ice-cream?" the son asked me later. "Too sweet," I said. "That's strange. The others said it was not sweet." I said: "Not as sweet as The Magnum ice-cream but I prefer less sweet so as not to over-work my pancreas and get diabetes at my age." He asked: "Take a tub back to the vet office." I declined as I did not have a big fridge there. I advised him to accept investors and not worry about "dilution of the brand." I said: "Cash flow is important. If investors provide the cash flow, you can invest in better equipment and retail stores." At the moment, he is selling it online.

INTERESTING CASES
Case 1. The 12-year-old Silkie with two firm and enlarge testicles.
"You removed his kidney stones 5 years ago," the young couple said. "It cost us $600." I looked at the 2007 records and yes I did the surgery for $300. "Any difficulty in peeing?" I asked. "No more. Sometimes we see blood in the urine."

4 weeks ago, Vet 1 had treated the dog for fever. 2 weeks ago, Vet 1 gave some medication for the testicular problem but the size of the two testicles did not reduce. They were 3x the normal size. "Did Ve1 1 propose surgery?" I asked. The couple went to Vet 1 as it was nearer to their place but had wanted me to operate in 2007 as I was cheaper. "I think so," the young man said. I scheduled the dog for surgery the next day. "No other way to cure" I said. "Likely to be testicular tumours or cancer. You need to pay for histopathology lab to check out."

"What if I don't want the lab test?" the young man asked. "It is a personal decision," I said. "What advantages in having a lab test?" he asked. "If the growth is not cancerous, the dog will live to its normal life." I said. "If cancerous, medication may be needed."

"There are only 3 types of testicular cancer in the dog," the young man said.
"No, there are more but 3 main types," I said. "Only a histopathology will tell. In your dog, he is very old. You may not see him alive again if his heart fails during anaesthesia," I warned the couple. "I will try to shorten the surgery. I still need to cut off the whole black scrotum instead of just taking out the testicles. It will take some time to stitch."
The young man asked: "Why?"
I said: "Just in case there is cancer and the scrotum, if not removed, still harbours the cancerous cells."
I hope all will be well during the anaesthesia.
Blood and urine tests are done. "It costs $600 like last time," the young man said. "You are fortunate that your dog costs you so little over the last 12 years as he needed only a bladder stone surgery," I replied. "For some owners, they spend thousands of dollars for treatment of their sick dog. The $600 include histopathology, blood and urine tests which should be done." I did not include consultation fees for this couple. It was a joy to see the dog again. I do recognise him now as he has that golden hair in his head.

I was thinking sadly of the 12-year old Schnauzer Cross admitted yesterday Sunday due to fits and recumbency. He died at 4 a.m today. His owner had spent some money trying to prolong his life and would be getting TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) from Vet 1 today, Monday. He had chronic kidney failure and was gasping and recumbent and had fits and was hospitalised. He vomited food and died around 4 am. "How do you know it was 4 am?" the owner asked when he came at 11 am to make cremation arrangements. "My staff was on duty," I said.

Case 2. As regards a dog in recumbency (unable to sit or stand up), an older man and a gentleman friend brought in his Mini-Bull Terrier with pus in the eyes and flat out. His dog was OK and was boarded at a friend's place. Such old dogs are seldom vaccinated. "Very high fever" I said. "Was he boarded in a dog kennel?" I asked. "No," he said. "A laundry." I took the blood test, gave the dog IV drip, anti-fever and anti-antibiotics. The fever went down and the dog sat up and looked around at around 6 p.m. I was glad he was OK for the time being. As to the cause of his very high fever, it is hard to tell.

Case 3. The 15-year-old Beagle with a painful mouth.
A couple in their late 50s asked: "Is it possible just to give antibiotics every time the dog has painful mouth instead of anaesthesia and extraction? We don't want the dog to die on the operating table!"

"Antibiotics will not work over time," I replied. "They will not be effective. The bacteria will spread all over the dog's body. As he gets much older, his immune system will not cope. He will die of toxaemia and bacterial infections." Sounds dramatic? The husband showed me his iPhone picture of the dog's teeth. They were clear pictures and showed tartar and red ulcers at the gum level. He lifted the dog's side and showed me the real gum and teeth.

"You are aware of the high risk of anaesthesia in dogs over 8 years of age," I advised. "This dog is 16 years old." I checked the heart. He did not have serious heart murmurs. "There is one swelling below his right eye and a smaller one in his left," the husband pointed the lumps to me. "Yes," I said. "They will be the starting of the carnaissal tooth abscess. The bacteria from the root of the teeth had punctured the facial bone and abscess will pop out below the face some time later. It is also called an oro-nasal fistula." I took out the Hills' Anatomy book and showed the picture of the carnaissal tooth abscess.

Anaesthesia and dental work would be done tomorrow. It would be very high risk and the owners had expected a good outcome.

Case 4. Pyometra? A very thin Shih Tzu female around 1 year old had been vomiting for the past 6 days. "What's the cause?" the owner asked. There were no diarrhoea or abdominal pain or swelling or fever. The owner did not want blood test. This was difficult. The only finding was that the vulval area was inflamed and wet. "When was the dog on heat?" I asked. "Some 4 weeks ago." he said. So, the probable diagnosis was open pyometra. I put the dog on IV drip and antibiotics and kept her for 2 days. Owners don't like longer hospitalisation.

Case 5. Luxated lens. The father did hit the dog on the head 2 weeks ago. The dog had been rubbing his left eyelid area and it was red. "Is it glaucoma?" the owner asked me yesterday and pointed to a black spot in the upper eyelid. I examined the dog properly under general anaesthesia (domitor and isoflurane). There was a slight increase in intro-ocular pressure in the left eye. The main problem was that the lens had luxated into the anterior chamber, causing pain and eye rubbing. Surgery was advised. Much depends on the owner.

Case 6. 12-year-old dog with teeth extracted.
The young man and his father brought the old dog for dental extraction (periodontitis Grade 4 - the worst of the disease) and was boarded yesterday. They bargained hard. "$400 is the lowest rate for everything including hospitalisation, IV drips and antibiotics, anaesthesia and surgery," I said. The dog survived the anaesthesia. The 10 rotten teeth were kept but my man did not show him at first. He phoned me as I was off work. "I pay $400 just for some dental work and one day stay," he said over the phone in an "taken for the ride" tone of voice. This is the type of calculating client I dislike a lot. This is not the way to conduct business.

I said: "The fees have been agreed. I cap it at $400 for you so that you know the costs. It should be much more. I charge $20/tooth extracted." I asked my assistant to get the teeth out to show him. It is best to attach all evidence next time. Later he text messaged me to apologise. I text back "Thanks." All vets get all types of personalities a day and some of them can be abusive to staff.

As you can see, there is a variety of conditions encountered today, even in one species, the canine. No cats or hamsters came today.

Monday, January 3, 2011

287. Jan 2, 2011 (Sunday) cases

Bright sunshine day. Sunday. Most vet clinics are closed but Toa Payoh Vets has traditionally been open on Sundays. As Dr Vanessa is on leave till Jan 10, 2011, I work the whole day. If not, I will work from 9 am to 11 am on Sundays and weekdays.

INTERESTING CASES
CASE 1. GUINEA PIG NEUTER
A young man wanted his 2-day-purchased male 6-month-old guinea pig to be neutered. "The female is still with Pet Lovers' Centre," he said. "I don't want her to get pregnant. So I keep her there first." It is best not to neuter so soon after purchase.

"Is the guinea pig adjusted to your new home? Is he passing stools?"
"Yes," the man said. "Lots of stools. Too much. He is running around happily. In fact, I purchased the anti-stress powder as advised by Pet Lovers' Centre."

Since the guinea pig was OK, I agreed to neuter him. There is no point rushing to neuter newly purchased guinea pigs or pets as demanded by owners as they may be incubating diseases. After the surgery, the disease shows the symptoms and the vet gets the blame.

ANAESTHETIC RISK
This guinea pig weighed only 500g. What anaesthetic to use? The following was done successfully.

PER KG Bodyweight, Domitor 0.2 ml and Ketamine 0.1 ml in one syringe, totalling 0.3 ml.
I prepared the above and shook the syringe a few times. In this 500g guinea pig, I injected 0.15 ml SC. The guinea pig squealed during injection. 5 minutes later, surgical anaesthesia was excellent for the next 5 - 10 minutes. Neuter using 1 ligature (twice knotted) on the close tunica was done.

ANTIDOTE. Many guinea pigs will wake up slowly by themselves. As the guinea pig was young, I decided to wake him up after surgery. He was breathing but not standing. I gave Antisedan 0.1 ml (with saline) SC. Within 2 minutes, he was awake and squealed when carried to the crate.

When the owner came, the guinea pig was standing. Pain-killers, antibiotic and Fibreplex were given. This was the ideal treatment regime for this guinea pig.

CASE 2. 8-YEAR-OLD SCHNAUZER HAD FITS AND VOMITING. The young couple had been giving, at home, the Hartman and saline drips SC from Vet 1 who had diagnosed chronic kidney failure. Since Vet 1 was closed today (Sunday), I was consulted as the dog had 3 episodes of fits and was gasping for breath. Vomiting had occurred.

"Vet 1 would be giving TCM tomorrow," the couple said to me. I had to be frank with them that their dog will not live long once fits are seen as the toxic blood from the kidney failure causes uraemic fits. "It may be kinder to let the stop more suffering as some dogs die violently vomiting blood." It was bad news. In any case, I advised that the dog be given IV drips (glucose of 50 ml, dextrose saline, antibiotics, anti-fits, anti-diuretics and painkillers).

"Vet 1 had not given antibiotics but this is a matter of judgment," I said to the owners. "Each vet has his own way of treatment and I don't want to cause blame on Vet 1 nor do I want other vets to cause blame to me."
The dog was hospitalised and we would wait 24 hours. Economics play a great part. The couple did not want blood tests and so the present treatment would suffice. There is no kidney dialysis and transplant for dogs in Singapore and if there were, the costs would be too much for the ordinary folks. This was a very sad case.

CASE 3. The black cat bit the lady's nose.
A handsome couple. I noted the bespectacled fair lady had a 2-cm scratch on the left side of her pale white nose and kept quiet. She had came with her husband to visit the hissing black cat hospitalised and given treatment by my associate Dr Jason Teo yesterday (Saturday).

"How's the cat today?" the slim lady in her 30s asked me. "No more high fever," I replied. "She can go home to her safe environment as she looks stressed here."
There is no pure cat clinic in Singapore and some cats may not be happy to be hospitalised with dogs. I put sick cats in a different location away from dogs but still there are dogs around.

"What's the cause of the fever?" the young lady lawyer said that the cat was brought outdoors on a leash the day before. The cat was reluctant to go out and rushed to hide inside a shrub. She had been frightened sometime ago when a dog came towards her. She was perfectly happy in the apartment but the owners wanted to give her some outdoor exercise. "Is she suffering from a viral infection?" the young lady asked. The cat had her vaccinations.

"Some bacterial infection from the soil," I speculated. "Then you put more chemicals on her body by using body wipes and she tried to lick the perfumed smell away. Together, with the stress of outdoors, she developed fever as her immune system must be down."

As my associate did not take a blood sample, I did not confirm the bacterial infection but the sudden onset of high fever and outdoor exposure to soil would point to a bacterial infection rather than a viral infection.

"Did the cat scratch your nose?" I asked the lady.
"She bit me on the nose when I said hello to her," the lady laughed. "Just a gentle bite and she did not dig her teeth into my nose."
"Fortunately you are married," I presumed. "If not, your marriage prospects are poor!"
It would not be true as the lady had that innate inner beauty expressed through her communication, facial gestures, physical attributes and voice. It is hard to describe this inner beauty presented in some handsome young ladies. Charisma? You just feel the good and gentle vibrations.

The cat went home. Later the gentleman phoned: "The cat is not eating." I said: "Wait another 24 hours. She may be recovering from her stress."

CASES 4 & 5. BACK SPINAL AREA ITCHY IN 2 CATS. Two cats, with back spinal area itchy. One grey cat had grown a different golden brown patch of hair but was still itchy. I could not find any fleas as I thought it could be flea-bite allergy. The owner could have given treatment. I checked the anal glands. Dried, black grey particles of oil. This could be a cause. It is hard to say. I gave an anti-itch injection. As for the second cat, its back area was matted. It was fat and had dirty years. It was constipated despite being fed "hair ball diet" from Royal Canin. I got the groomer to clean her up, clip her coat and hospitalise her one or two days to treat the constipation and observe her.

CASE 6. PERIODONTAL DISEASE STAGE 4. The father and son tried to delay dental treatment but now the old 8-year-old Silkie had pus in the mouth and lost weight. "My cat must be in Stage 5," the son said when I showed them the pictures of Stage 4. "No more stage 5," I said. "The worst stage is Stage 4." I hospitalise the dog for IV drip and antibiotics treatment before doing dental work the next day (Monday).

CASE 7. TRAUMATIC INJURY IN LEFT EYE. "Can it be glaucoma? Do you do eye glaucoma test?" the lady presented me an old mixed terrier with a white cataract eye. The dog had been scratching the left eye as I noted that the eyelid areas were reddish.

"Did this acute conjunctivitis happen after the injury?" I asked. "Yes," she said. "In this case, it is best to check for traumatic injuries in the upper eyelid." The lady said: "There is a black spot inside the upper eyelid." Indeed there was if you evert the upper eyelid fully. I took some pictures. "This could be a foreign body stuck inside, making the dog crazy and painful in the eye. Therefore he rubs his eye trying to get rid of it."
I will be examining the dog under anaesthesia on the next day and cut off the black spot. Sometimes, the cause is not obvious and we think of glaucoma which may still be present.

I finished work at 6 pm and went to watch "Gullivers' Travels" at Ang Mo Kio Hub with my family. It was probably more interesting to a child.

Sunday, January 2, 2011

multi-media stories compared to photo stories

Almost all my articles at www.toapayohvets.com and in this blog have been photo stories as it takes a lot of time to produce photos and to write.

Multimedia stories - more demanding. I will need character-driven narratives, strong personalities whose issue can connect to readers and globally via the world wide web. Audio needed. Scenes with impact and evoke feelings. There is a need for collaborators from animators and multimedia graduates and money. So, it may not be financially possible as such projects are very expensive and time-consuming. Producing one project may take months.

Producing a simple educational video may be possible as one done on dental scaling in dogs. See www.toapayohvets.com.

Any volunteers interested, please contact me at judy@toapayohvets.com

285. Factors for success --- Chinese saying: tian shi, di li, ren he

Chinese saying: "tian shi, di li, ren he". This means the factors for success are time, place and people.

You still got to be energetic and hardworking even if you have the 3 factors.

Saturday, January 1, 2011

284. Dec 31, 2010 cases: rare puppy eyelid growths & Others

Dec 31, 2010. Last day of the year. I was on duty and finished work at 6.40 pm.
Bright sunshine and blue skies while some European and American airports are filled with snow and cold winds.

Traffic Warden. I happened to be in the waiting room and saw a parked golden car with its left side door at the side of the surgery marked: "Chubb and Enforcement". A slim bald man in his late 30s, wearing sunglasses, in white shirt and blue trousers stepped out of the car. I snapped a picture of him. He strode towards my car which was parked beside a fire hydrant as I was to go out soon and it was a shaded lot. I went out of the surgery and apologised to him. I drove my car away and put a parking coupon on my car dashboard. He drove off with his driver. So, it was all clear? Some 15 minutes later, I saw the same car in the same location (round the bend, at the side of the Surgery). The same warden was inside the car and looking at the rearview mirror. I was surprised. It seemed sneaky business. Why not use an unmarked car?

Only yesterday, 2 lady traffic wardens in similar starched white shirt and blue pants but from another private enforcement company (Certos?) were around in the afternoon. I saw them as I was in the waiting room and managed to avoid being booked. They were kind people and forgave me for not displaying a parking coupon. My parking area is one of the last rare lots in Singapore not boxed in by automated barriers and so these private wardens are employed to catch offenders.

Back to some interesting cases

Case 1. PROBLEM SOLVING IS WHAT THE OWNER WANTS
Shih Tzu of 3 months old has 3 eyelid growths in the left eye. Veterinary medicine is full of surprises. I am 60 years old and have seen 30 years of small animal practice. But a puppy with 3 eyelid growths is a rare occurrence. Older dogs do have them but "never" puppies. So, this was a big surprise on the last day of the year.

"I am still searching for a vet," the mother of 4 children said. Her puppy had 3 eyelid growths of around 3 mm x 2 mm. What were they? They exploded during the last 2 weeks. She bought the puppy 4 weeks ago.

"The first vet gave me an eye ointment tube to apply," the young-looking mother in her 40s said. "The growths were still there and I consulted Vet 2. He gave me this Surolan ear drops to apply. Not effective. That is why I am still looking for a vet!"

As the puppy is young and small, weighing around 1.3 kg, the eyelid growths look prominently big. "They look like warts. Give eye drops," my assistant gave his advice to me quietly. "Eye drops will not work," I explained to him. "These are solid growths on the eyelids."

Another merry-go-around with a different brand of eye drops would not do for this first-time puppy owner. "Surgery is needed to excise the 3 growths," I said. "There are no other solutions for this problem."

I knew that the other 2 vets did not want to suggest surgery as a 3-month-old puppy is a very high anaesthetic risk. According to one vet report I read, this is because the liver of the puppy is still immature and unable to clear the anaesthetic drug normally. So, the puppy dies.

You can't excise without anaesthesia as it would be painful and impossible. My assistant produced a anaesthetic consent form as he does for my associate vets. "No need," I usually don't use this form. I usually explain clearly orally the risks involved in any anaesthesia. As the mother was quite stressed out (going to a vet the 3rd time, puppy keeps rubbing the left eye), I did not tell her it would be high risk. If anaesthesia is done carefully, the risk is minimal.

ANAESTHESIA
"What anaesthesia will you use?" I asked my assistant (as part of mentoring process). "Diazepam and Ketamine," he said.

"You don't use two sedatives in the puppy," I advised. "One is already risky."
My assistant said: "Domitor?"
"Zoletil will be the best as it is said to be the safest. In the past I use xylazine with no problems."

So, Zoletil 100 at 0.01 ml with saline was injected IV. Isoflurane gas by mask was given at 5% to effect. "Don't wake till the eyelid reflexes are totally absent," I advised. "The puppy may be dead!".

I used electro-surgery to excise the 3 growths. (Pictures taken). Then 5/0 absorbable sutures to close the wound. E-collar and medication. Problem solved. That is what the owner wants. This is what I learn from my 30 years of experience. The same applies to car owners or other services.

INTERESTING OBSERVATION. I noted that the puppy kept pushing its tongue out and licking its nose, as if yawning, during Zoletil and isoflurane anaesthesia. This happened a few times. Could it be the effect of Zoletil? "Shivering" was the complaint of the owner some 1 hour after surgery. She had bought a puppy coat as the whole puppy had been clipped bald (ringworm infection of one toe and right neck). "This shivering is normal after anaesthesia in some puppies," I said as we put the puppy coat on. "It will go away soon.

Case 2. WILL MY FEMALE DOG BE PREGNANT AFTER SPAYING?
"I feel lucky today," the lady owner in her early 30s said when I told her that there was a small risk of bleeding in spaying a female dog in the middle of heat. Her male Jack Russell dog was pestering the female poodle and she could not sleep the whole night trying to ensure no mating. "The male dog just persists in smelling her backside," the owner explained. She had many questions to ask, like the owner of the Shih Tzu with the eyelid growths.

"No, the dog will not be pregnant after spaying," I assured her. "But the male dog will persist in wanting to mate with her for the next few days." There was no need to neuter the male dog for the time being as she was so desperate to prevent aother pregnancy. The puppies had died due to being stuck and delays in seeking a vet. They were born in Sep 2010. Now, the female had an extremely swollen vulva but no bleeding. "So was she in heat?" the lady asked. "Well, she would be in heat in July 2010. Pregnancy in September would be correct as that would be 2 months. From July, 6 months of interval between heat. Now it is nearly Jan 2011. So that is 6 months and she is definitely on heat."

The female was spayed. Domitor and isoflurane gas. I incised at MG 4 and MG 5 which was too low. I hooked up the two uterine bodies and horn from the 1-cm incision. The whole space was crowded and I had no space to pull out the ovary (which was large at 8 mm long when I saw it later). What to do?

The normal procedure is to extend the incision cranially by another 5 mm. Or I could push back the uterine bodies and hook again. Another solution was to ligate the uterine body first. The uterine blood vessels were 3 mm thick and the dog would bleed to death if they were not properly ligated. So, clamp, transfix ligature below the clamp. Unclamp and ligate again. Then excise uterine stump. Now there was space to pull out the ovaries and ligate once the cranial end by pulling the ovary out more. Check PROPERLY that the ligature was tight before putting the ovary inside the abdomen.

The dog was OK and the owner came later in the evening wanting to bring the dog home. She had no crate and reluctantly accepted my advice to hospitalise the dog for one night as the male dog would be frenzied in looking for the female. She would also have sufficient rest. All should be well by the next day.

Case 3. A cat with a badly infected left eyeball was operated. The eyeball had to be taken out.

Case 4. A woman who wore head scarf and her young adult daughter (studying political science) brought in a fat cat for spaying. She had booked an appointment for the spay at Vet 1 (who had rejected the Golden Retriever neuter case). So, she came to me. She had several stray cats neutered and ear clipped at her own expense.

"Are you sure you spayed her?" she asked me when she saw that the wound was around 8 mm in length. "One vet cut 3 cm long," she extended her thumb and forefinger. "Another did longer than yours."

I assured her that the cat was properly spayed. Each vet has his own method of incision but the owner makes comparisons.

Friday, December 31, 2010

283. Common problems of the first-time Singapore Landlord

COMMON PROBLEMS OF THE FIRST-TIME SINGAPORE LANDLORD

E-MAIL TO DR SING DEC 31, 2010

Hi Dr Sing,

Thanks for the advice given on your web page (www.asiahomes.com), I am sure it has benefited a lot of people. I hope you can help advise me on my situation.

I am a first time landlord. My agent just told me that my new tenant has decided to break the lease barely 1 month into the contract. The reason being his company is not properly registered here hence he has to return to his home country.

Pls advise:
1. I have already paid the 1 month commission to the agent. Should the agent return me the pro rata commission since the lease has not been fulfilled to 2 years

2. The co-broke agent has been demanding his share of the commission, saying that I have already forfeited the tenant's 2 month's deposit, so he is entitled to it. I feel he does not deserve to be paid since he did not conduct his due diligence on the tenant hence causing unnecessary inconvenience to me.

3. My own agent took the full month's commission and said that I still need to pay commission if she finds me another tenant. All in I have to pay 2 month's commission through no fault of mine. Is this the norm or am I taken for a ride?

4. How do I recover compensation from the tenant? My agent advise me against it citing that it is difficult to do so since the tenant can easily return to his home country. She advises that u let things be and just pay up the commission and look for another tenant and thus incur another commission. I feel she is not acting in my interest.

5. The co broke agent refused to return me the keys, access cards and transponder unless he gets his commission. Does he have a right to? What recourse do I have.

Thank you so much for your time and I hope to hear from you soon.

Regards,
Ms Ang

Sent from my iPhone




In reply, see CAPITAL LETTERS BELOW

On Thu, Dec 30, 2010 at 7:59 PM, Orange Whale wrote:

Hi Dr Sing,

Thanks for the advice given on your web page, I am sure it has benefited a lot of people. I hope you can help advise me on my situation.

I am a first time landlord. My agent just told me that my new tenant has decided to break the lease barely 1 month into the contract. The reason being his company is not properly registered here hence he has to return to his home country.

Pls advise:
1. I have already paid the 1 month commission to the agent. Should the agent return me the pro rata commission since the lease has not been fulfilled to 2 years


THIS DEPENDS ON THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF THE COMMISSION AGREEMENT. I PRESUME YOU HAVE ONE. IF NOT, MUCH DEPENDS ON NEGOTIATION.


2. The co-broke agent has been demanding his share of the commission, saying that I have already forfeited the tenant's 2 month's deposit, so he is entitled to it. I feel he does not deserve to be paid since he did not conduct his due diligence on the tenant hence causing unnecessary inconvenience to me.



CO-BROKE AGENT? IS HE YOUR AGENT OR NOT? NORMALLY A LANDLORD HAS ONLY ONE AGENT TO ACT FOR HIM.


3. My own agent took the full month's commission and said that I still need to pay commission if she finds me another tenant. All in I have to pay 2 month's commission through no fault of mine. Is this the norm or am I taken for a ride?


IN REAL ESTATE, MUCH DEPENDS ON THE WRITTEN COMMISSION AGREEMENT OR CONTRACT OF REAL ESTATE. IN SOME AGREEMENTS, THE LANDLORD GETS BACK THE AGENCY COMMISSION PRO-RATED IF THE TENANCY IS TERMINATED PREMATURELY. IN OTHERS, NOTHING IS STATED AND THIS IS WHERE THE LANDLORD HAS PROBLEMS.


4. How do I recover compensation from the tenant? My agent advise me against it citing that it is difficult to do so since the tenant can easily return to his home country.


YOU NEED A GOOD LAWYER TO ACT FOR YOU FOR BREACH OF TENANCY AGREEMENT. IF THE TENANT RETURNS HOME, YOUR LAWYER CAN STILL SUE HIM ON YOUR BEHALF VIA THE COUNTRY'S LAWYER.

IF THE TENANT IS LEAVING THE COUNTRY, HE CAN PROVIDE DOCUMENTARY PROOF.


She advises that u let things be and just pay up the commission and look for another tenant and thus incur another commission. I feel she is not acting in my interest.


THE CEA (COUNCIL OF ESTATE AGENTS) HAS JUST BEEN FORMED IN NOV 2010 TO ADDRESS YOUR CONCERNS AND COMPLAINTS AGAINST THE PRACTICE OF HOUSING AGENTS. YOU MAY WISH TO CONTACT CEA AT 5TH FLOOR HDB HUB.


5. The co broke agent refused to return me the keys, access cards and transponder unless he gets his commission. Does he have a right to? What recourse do I have.


IS THERE A COMMISSION AGREEMENT YOU SIGNED WITH THE CO-BROKE AGENT? HAVE YOU BREACHED THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF THIS AGREEMENT? YOU CAN SEEK ADVICE FROM HIS HOUSING AGENCY AND/OR CONTACT THE CEA.


Thank you so much for your time and I hope to hear from you soon.


IN YOUR SITUATION, THE TENANCY AGREEMENT HAS BEEN SIGNED AND THEREFORE THE AGENTS HAVE COMPLETED THEIR TASKS. AS TO THE RETURN OF AGENCY COMMISSION ON A PRO-RATED BASIS, MUCH DEPENDS ON THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF THE COMMISSION AGREEMENT.

YOUR RECOVERY OF 2 MONTHS' RENTAL DEPOSIT FROM THE TENANT IS FOR BREACH OF TENANCY AGREEMENT.

THEREFORE THIS MATTER OF LOSS OF RENTAL INCOME AS CONTRASTED TO NOT PAYING THE CO-BROKE AGENT AND RECOVERY OF PRO-RATED COMMISSION FROM THE MAIN AGENT IS A SEPARATE ISSUE AS THERE ARE TWO SEPARATE CONTRACTS (tenancy agreement and commission payment agreement). If you agree to pay commission on securing of the tenancy (signing of the tenancy agreement) and have not stated on return of pro-rated commission on premature termination of the tenancy agreement, you will need to consider whether you need a lawyer to act for you. I am not a lawyer and so the above is free advice. I will advise you consult a good lawyer to act for you. Best wishes.

The written contract is usually the main document which the lawyers and judges will refer to.