SPCA Condemns Cruel Live Crab Claw Machine At Punggol Seafood Restaurant

If you’re not familiar with claw machines, it’s a type of arcade game that makes you question your sanity and develop homicidal tendencies.

One auntie even tried to shake one because she was so frustrated with her lack of stuffed toys.

It’s basically a glass vending machine full of stuffed toys that you try to pick up with a tiny crane.

And it usually ends in tears and defeat.

One local seafood restaurant thought it would be fun to have a similar game, only this time it would involve live crabs.

SPCA Condemns Cruel Live Crab Claw Machine At Punggol Seafood Restaurant

On 30 Sept, House of Seafood announced it would be launching Singapore’s first claw machine featuring live crabs.

If it sounds like a claw machine where you get to eat a crab that you pick up, well, that’s exactly what it is.

The seafood restaurant explained in their post that customers will be able to catch their own crabs by playing their new claw machine.

Any crab they manage to catch will be cooked and prepared for their meal.

Customers can get one play at the machine for S$5.

Shout

Media company Shout tried the the new crab-claw machine and posted a live demonstration video online with upbeat, cheery music in the background:

The machine’s claw can be seen cruelly grabbing a crab and lifting it into the air. The crab is still alive and its legs are struggling weakly.

Will someone please stop this unnecessary suffering?

It even included video footage of the claw cruelly failing to grab the poor crab.

After numerous tries, much to the crab’s detriment, it finally gets successfully picked up and plonked into the side ready to be cooked and eaten.

Animal cruelty

As you can imagine, netizens were not pleased. Many found it cruel to subject crabs to such a game, and they condemned the restaurant for not “respecting” the crabs.

Netizens weren’t the only ones who criticised the crab-claw machine, however.

SPCA’s Response

The Singapore Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) responded a day later in a Facebook post with the caption “SAY NO TO LIVE CRAB CLAW MACHINE”.

They slammed the claw machine and its creators, saying “The game causes unnecessary harm to the animals and it also encourages people to see animals as nothing more than objects to play with and goes against our vision of a kinder society.”

“Crabs are living creatures, not toys. SPCA advises members of the public to not partake in such activities.”

SPCA executive director Jaipal Singh Gill also voiced his displeasure in an interview with The Straits Times, saying “We are disturbed by the concept and the harm it causes animals for the sake of human entertainment.

“We feel that this needs to be shut down immediately. We have reported it to the Animal and Veterinary Service (AVS) and hope that swift action can be taken,” Gill added.

I personally feel like it’s cruel to use crabs as toys for our own entertainment just because we have the power to.

We hope this machine is shut down and that the restaurant gets punished for this vile marketing gimmick.