China police rescue over 1,000 cats from being slaughtered and sold as mutton, pork

An animal activist says cat meat is sold at 4.50 yuan (60 US cents) a pound, while mutton is 30 yuan (US$4) a pound, incentivising dealers to pass off feline flesh as mutton or pork. - ILLUSTRATION: UNSPLASH

BEIJING (The Straits Times/Asia News Network): In hauling up a truck loaded with abducted animals, police in China not just rescued more than a thousand cats, but also saved diners from being served the feline flesh passed off as pork or mutton by rogue businessmen.

Animal lovers on Oct 12 alerted police to a “cat car” – dealers in trucks who hunt cats and sell the meat as food – in Zhangjiagang, a county in Jiangsu province’s Suzhou city, Chinese daily The Paper reported.