About 4,000 dogs, cats, rabbits and other animals, that were bought online as pets, were found dead in boxes in China, an animal welfare group said on Thursday. 

This shocking tragedy took place at a logistics hub in central China where the animals were stranded for nearly a week. Rescuers managed to save just over 1,000 rabbits, hamsters, dogs and cats but the rest had perished by the time they arrived at the Logistics facility. 

“We’ve done rescues before but this was the first time I had experienced something this tragic,” said Dan, a volunteer with the NGO Utopia Animal Rescue. 

She continued describing the horrific scene, “When we got there, there were several small mountains of boxes containing animals. Many of them were dead and had started to rot and give off terrible smells.” 

Authorities are investigating the incident, which has again raised concerns over the lack of regulation of online pet sales in China. Once these live animals are bought, these pets are then illegally transported in unsafe conditions by courier companies.

Source: Indian Express