Chinese city orders killing of Covid-19 patients' pets, then backtracks and apologises
A northern Chinese city ordered the killing of all indoor pets belonging to Covid-19 patients in a neighbourhood, but thankfully backtracked on the order the next day after appeals from residents.
China News Service reported that local authorities in Anci district of Langfang city had ordered the mass culling of indoor animals belonging to Covid-19 patients on March 29.
However, a staff member at the Langfang Centre for Disease Control (CDC) and Prevention said work stopped at 5pm on the day.
A notice put up on Weibo by the local government said it was due to feedback from residents, and that after looking into the matter, the authorities found the move inappropriate.
The notice also apologised for any inconvenience caused.
It is not known how many pets, or if any, were put down.
Chinese Internet users reacted with outrage to the news.
"Is there any use to apologise? If you have greater power, you may even catch and kill humans."
"Whoever proposed this measure please come out and get beaten."
Hebei province, where Langfang is located, recorded hundreds of new Covid-19 cases in recent weeks, China's CDC reported.
Half of Shanghai – which has a population of about 26 million – went into lockdown over the past week (LINK) after thousands of new cases were recorded there. The other half will lockdown on Friday, April 1.
The US CDC has said that pets have been infected with the virus that causes Covid-19. However, the risk of pets spreading the virus to people is low.
It also cautioned not to place masks on pets as masks could harm them.
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