5,000 Pets Were Found Dead Inside Shipping Packages In China
Heartbreaking. :'(
By Tamara Jayne — 01 Oct 2020, 02:53 PM
At least 5,000 dogs, cats, rabbits, and guinea pigs were recently found dead inside cardboard boxes at a logistics station in Henan Province, China
The animals were enclosed in plastic or iron cages and left in shipping packages with breathing holes.
A member of a local animal rescue group, Hua, told CBS News that they were only able to save 200 rabbits along with 50 cats and dogs.
"It was like a living hell," she added.
Many of the small animals had died from suffocation, starvation, and dehydration
They had been abandoned for about a week without food or water before authorities discovered them at Dongxing Logistics station in Luohe city.
Hua explained that the pets were likely to have been bought online and legal issues led to the tragedy.
She told the news daily that the animals had possibly been left stranded because the logistics company "refused to sign off on a shipment violating transport laws".
The animals had allegedly come from illegal breeding farms in East China
Global Times reported that the pets were transported from the farms to Henan's capital, Zhengzhou, on 17 September, and were later taken to the logistics facility. However, many of them had died along the way.
Rescue volunteers buried the dead pets and those that were found healthy and alive have been adopted. A volunteer, Dan, told Global Times that the unhealthy ones were sent to veterinary clinics for treatment.
Authorities are currently investigating the incident.
Hua has also since urged the public to adopt instead of illegally buying animals online.
