SUZHOU, CHINA – Chinese animal activists just recently rescued around 2,000 cats thought to be stolen while they were being transported to restaurants.
The cats were found stuffed in wooden cages on the back of a lorry on a motorway in Suzhou, east China’s Jiangsu Province.
According to the People’s Daily Online, the lorry was en route to restaurants in Guangxi Province in south China, where the animals were to be sold under the guise of rabbit meat or pork.
Volunteers found the truck on a highway heading for Guangxi and notified police who were able to stop the vehicle.
Images taken at the scene show the animals crammed tightly into crates with little room to move around or properly lie down.
Some of the animals appear to be in a bad condition with marks and scratches covering their bodies.
After they were found, the cats were then taken to safety.
Police are currently locating and contacting the owners of these animals.
According to Chinese media, the cats were stolen from areas such as Suzhou and were set to be sold as of rabbit or pork meat.
There have been increasing cases of activists rescuing animals in China over the past year.
In December last year, animal activists rescued over a dozen dogs in Xi’an, northwest China’s Shaanxi province which were being used for experiments.
While earlier in the year, animal rights activists flocked to Yulin Dog Meat Festival in Guangxi province to rescue as many dogs as they could from slaughter.
