Thieves poison more than 100 dogs in southern Chinese village, sell as meat

Thieves poisoned more than 100 pet dogs in a southern Chinese village over the past few months and likely sold them to restaurants, a village official said Tuesday.

The thieves fed dogs poisoned noodles and later collected their bodies in southern Guangdong province's village of Taian, village council chairman Yu Tiansong said by telephone.

"The thieves come around midnight on bicycles," Yu said. "They roam around the village and feed the dogs with poisonous rice noodles," Yu said.

It was not immediately clear what kind of poison was allegedly used.

Yu said that the dogs died within 10 minutes after eating the tainted food, and the perpetrators were likely taking the carcasses to sell them to restaurants. He said more than 100 pet dogs have been killed in Taian in recent months.

"They only steal the bigger dogs, so in the next morning we can see the smaller dead dogs scattered on the streets," he said.

The Yangcheng Evening News paper quoted the owner of one of the allegedly poisoned dogs as saying budget restaurants are known to buy the animals dead. Dog meat is a common menu item in China.

"A live dog can be sold for about 300 Chinese yuan (US$40; €30), but some cheap restaurants would also buy dead dogs," the newspaper quoted the owner, identified by the surname Liu, as saying.

The Yangcheng Evening News also said the dog killings in Taian have raised fears about the sale for meat of dogs killed by poisoning.

It quoted a health official, identified only by the surname Shi, as saying no one has been arrested for the incidents.

Activists have complained of alleged animal cruelty in China, saying merchants beat cats and dogs to death and even flay them alive for their skins.

One group, Humane Society International, estimates that 5,400 cats and dogs are killed in China for their fur each day.

The government says awareness of protecting animals has risen along with China's economic growth.