A PET shop where 19 dogs and cats were found starved to death was operating illegally, the Agriculture and Fisheries Department revealed yesterday.
The owner of the Fung Shing Pet Shop in North Point, who has still not been traced, was selling and boarding animals but did not have a licence to operate a boarding kennel.
The store was broken into by police and firemen on Sunday and 13 dogs and six cats were found dead. The owner had last been seen three days before Lunar New Year.
An department investigation has shown that the store was licensed only to trade in animals, which allows for the buying and selling of domestic animals, but not boarding.
Owners of the dead and sick animals had left their pets in the care of the shop while they went away for the New Year holidays.
A department spokesman said the shopowner could be fined up to $2,000 for the offence and have his licence revoked. He may also be charged with animal cruelty.