A Vietnamese restaurant that killed up to 300 cats a month over a soup recipe has closed its doors in Vietnam at the request of the owner.
According to the Human Society International (HSI) website, Mr. Pham Quoc Doanh has been running his cat meat restaurant and slaughterhouse in Thai Nguyen town for five years. Every month he drowned up to 300 cats to serve his customers a dish called “thịt mèo” (cat meat).
The 37-year-old particularly regretted the killing of mostly stolen pets. The closure of the restaurant is part of a program launched by HSI to end this trade in Vietnam.
Around twenty cats and kittens were rescued at the beginning of December. They were given up for adoption.
“It’s overwhelming”
The owner himself turned to the organization to receive a grant to close his business. Mr. Pham Quoc Doanh decided to open a grocery store to make a living. He wants the dog and cat meat trade to be banned in the country.
“For some time now I have felt a real desire to leave the cruel cat meat trade and move on to something else as quickly as possible,” said the main stakeholder in an HSI press release. When I think of the thousands of cats I have slaughtered and served here over the years, it is overwhelming.”
“Cat theft is so common in Vietnam that I know that most of the cats sold here were the family's favorite companions, and for that I am very sorry,” he added. I am pleased that thanks to HSI, my wife and I can now leave the cat meat business behind us and start anew to continue serving my local community.”
The HSI program was launched last year. In Thai Nguyen, two slaughterhouses or dog restaurants have already been closed. HSI estimates that nearly a million cats are killed for their meat in Vietnam every year.