The 700 rescued cats were believed to be stolen, and animal traffickers were planning to sell them onto restaurants to be slaughtered for their meat.
EMILIA JIANG: Around seven hundred cats have been rescued in northern China after they were found locked up in a filthy backyard ‘ready to be served as food’. Heart-wrenching footage shows the poor felines whining in pain while being crammed inside a dozen rusty cages in Linfen, Shanxi province. Many of the moggies were believed to be stolen and animal traffickers were planning to sell them onto restaurants to be slaughtered for their meat… The cats are being looked after and will be re-homed soon, a local animal rescue group said…
The horrific scene was captured on camera yesterday by an animal lover, known by her surname Li, who uploaded the footage online. Ms Li discovered the cats in the backyard of a budget hotel after being alerted by some labourers who worked there. She told reporters that the animals had been brought in from different places and were waiting to be transported. Shocked by the scene, Ms Li can be heard in the footage saying: ‘Hundreds of cats here, hundreds. ‘They are waiting to be served as food on the table. Help them’…
Linfen Small Animal Rescue, a local rescue group, immediately arrived at the scene on Thursday after seeing Ms Li’s post. The group told MailOnline that all of the cats, amounting to 700 or so, had been rescued and were being looked after by its volunteers. ‘We have moved pretty much all of them into pet cages. We are giving them water and food,’ a spokesperson said. ‘Vets are checking if there are any injured or ill cats.’ A clip released by the organisation shows Linfen police arriving at the hotel shortly after the incident.
The local authority is investigating the matter, according to reports… The news comes as China has stepped up its protection efforts for animals – particularly wildlife – in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak. Experts in China said in January that the coronavirus had likely jumped onto humans from wild animals sold as food at a wet market in Wuhan, a city of 11 million in central China… Two Chinese cities banned their residents from eating dogs and cats with a new law in response to the global health crisis. SOURCE…
RELATED VIDEO: