OpinionBuying purebred dogs and cats from pet shops and online is wrong, with animal cruelty rife throughout the business. When will people in Hong Kong wake up?
- Two shocking recent animal-cruelty cases once again highlight the horrific conditions that purebred dogs, cats and other animals can endure in the pet industry
- ‘Adopt don’t shop’ is one way people can help curtail the cruel trade
It’s been a distressing month for pet lovers in Hong Kong.
The haul of young and pedigree breeds was estimated to be worth more than HK$1.4 million (US$178,000).
According to Senior Inspector Tang Sau-yin, of Hong Kong customs’ marine enforcement group, the animals were either bought online by private buyers before being smuggled into Hong Kong from mainland China, or they were bound for the city’s pet shops.
Animal-rights activists were up in arms. “I’ve been told that someone paid 60,000 yuan [US$9,000] for one of the cats,” says Sally Andersen, founder of Hong Kong Dog Rescue. “The best thing about this case is that these people will lose their money.
“The animals, some of which are sick, will now have to go through four months of quarantine. The puppies will grow up knowing nothing in terms of training, just like all the breeder dogs we take in from time to time.”
