4,000 animals found dead in Chinese logistics depot.
About 4,000 dogs, cats, rabbits and other animas have been found dead at a logistics hub in Luhoe, Henan province, after being stranded there for nearly a week. Many of these animals had been purchased online and packaged in delivery boxes, bound for onward consignment through to other parts of China.
On 22 September 2020, tens of thousands of pets were found trapped inside delivery boxes for six days as delivery trucks were held up at Dongxing Logistics Park, Luohe City, Henan Province due to logistical issues.
Upon discovering an online post made by employees at the Logistics Park regarding the plight of the trapped pets, volunteers immediately made their way to rescue the remaining surviving pets. Government officials have also launched an investigation into this matter.
One of the animal rescue groups that participated in the rescue operation said that 1,074 pets have been rescued between 23 and 24 September 2020, including: 877 rabbits, 99 hamsters, 70 dogs and 28 cats. Most of the surviving pets have already been adopted, but a number of the rescued pets are still looking for new homes.
According to various news outlets in China, a large number of pets were expected to be delivered to Anhui Province, including approximately 30,000 - 40,000 rabbits and few thousand cats and dogs. It was reported that three delivery trucks carrying tens of thousands of pets initially arrived at a logistics park in Zhengzhou city of Henan Province on 17 September 2020. However, the logistics park refused to take in the pets due to both the COVID-19 situation and the failure to show that the dogs have obtained the requisite permits required under the law. The delivery trucks then made its way to an animal breeding facility in Anhui Province, but when it was discovered that a number of pets have already died due to lack of oxygen or food or water, the trucks were refused entry so as to prevent other animals inside the breeding facility from being infected. It was when the delivery trucks finally arrived at Dongxing Logistics Park at Luohe City on 22 September 2020 that the news that thousands of pets had died in transit caught media attention.
It is illegal to transport live animals via the courier system under China’s postal law. They can be transported on planes if the sender can provide required documents such as vaccination records and health certificates and an approved pet transport crate for the journey, according to the civil aviation rules.
Article 33 of the ‘Rules for the Implementation of the Postal Law of the People’s Republic of China’ which came into effect in 1990 expressly states: -
“it shall be forbidden to post and deliver or to insert in postal materials… (6) various species of live animals…”
Article 16 of the Joint Announcement by the State Post Bureau, Ministry of Public Security and Ministry of State Security on ‘Issuing the Regulations on the Management of Prohibited Items’ also provides that if any person violates this regulation by posting prohibited items by mail, or conceals or falsely reports any prohibited items, it shall be a criminal offence and such person shall be liable for compensation if such violation has caused any personal injury or property damage. However, if such violation does not constitute a criminal offence, the relevant penalty shall be in accordance with the “Public Security Administration Punishments Law of the People's Republic of China” and other relevant laws and administrative regulations.
That said, it has been reported that many vendors on various e-commerce sites continue to sell and deliver pets despite the existence of the aforementioned rules and regulations. In 2018, a woman from Weinan City in Shanxi Province was fatally bitten by a many-banded krait (an extremely venomous species of elapid snakes) she bought online.
Courtesy of Nicole Liang.
Main Source: Sky Post and SCMP
Video: Youtube (SCMP Clips)