Vietnamese police discovered about 2,000 dead cats intended for use in traditional medicine, state media said on Friday.
The bodies of the cats were discovered Thursday at a slaughterhouse in Dong Thap province in the Mekong Delta (south) along with 480 other live cats, according to the province’s official newspaper.
The cadavers, with a total volume of four tons, were stored in a cold room before being transformed into traditional medicine products through a long cooking process, according to the newspaper.
Some Vietnamese believe that extracts from cat bones can help cure diseases like asthma and osteoporosis.
The frozen carcasses have now been destroyed while the rescued cats undergo health checks.
Eating dogs and cats is still legal in Vietnam, and many restaurants in the country serve meat, but those involved in this trade are required to provide certificates proving the animals’ origin.
The Dong Thap slaughterhouse did not provide any documents authorizing the slaughter and detailing traceability.
In this case, no one has been arrested so far.
According to the NGO Four Paws International, up to a million cats fall victim to this trade in Vietnam every year.
In Asia, traditional medicine also encourages the illegal wildlife trade, and Vietnam is both a consumption and transit center.