Police in Vietnam have rescued more than 500 cats after dismantling a suspected cat meat trafficking network in one of the country's largest animal welfare operations in recent years.

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The raid, carried out in and around Ho Chi Minh City last week, followed an investigation into a series of pet thefts. Authorities detained nine suspects and uncovered hundreds of live cats allegedly destined for the meat trade, according to local media reports and animal welfare groups.

Major Rescue Operation

Police discovered 45 cages containing around 400 live cats, along with four foam containers packed with ice that held about 80 dead cats. A further 21 live cats were recovered at another location, bringing the total number of animals seized to more than 500.

Authorities said the suspects admitted collecting and trapping cats across southern Vietnam over the past three years, including in Ho Chi Minh City and the cities of Tay Ninh and An Giang.

More than 40 rescued cats have since been reunited with their owners. However, animal welfare groups said dozens of animals later died because of the poor conditions in which they had been kept.

Families Reunited With Pets

Karanvir Kukreja, who leads a campaign against dog and cat meat consumption for Humane World for Animals, described the case as a stark reminder of the scale of Vietnam's cat meat trade.

Phuong Pham, the organisation's country director in Vietnam, said thousands of cats are believed to be stolen, transported and slaughtered for meat across the country each month.

Several of the rescued cats were pregnant, and some have since given birth while in police care.

Chris Gindelhumer of Vietnam Cat Welfare, which is helping care for the animals, said the rescue effort had been emotional for both volunteers and pet owners.

He said many families had arrived searching for missing cats, with some successfully reunited with their pets while others were unable to find them.

Veterinarians and volunteers have been working continuously to treat and care for the rescued animals.

Debate Over Cat Meat Trade

The consumption of dog and cat meat remains legal in Vietnam, although vendors are required to hold permits verifying the origins of the animals they sell.

Some local authorities are seeking to reduce the practice. The city of Hoi An has been working with international animal welfare organisations to discourage dog and cat meat consumption.

Following South Korea's decision in 2024 to ban the dog meat trade, Vietnamese officials said they planned to strengthen legal protections for pets and their owners.

The latest rescue has also drawn public attention. An Pham, a graduate student and cat owner in Ho Chi Minh City, said the case had shocked many people and increased awareness of the issue of cat meat consumption.

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Adapted by ASEAN Now. Source 17 June 2026

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Disgusting Trade !!

Can’t beat a varied diet.

Taste like chicken!

I lived in Vietnam for a number of years. There have always been dog meat restaurants (though far fewer now than in the past), but I never heard of anyone eating cat meat 🤷

A barbaric practice that has no place in the world in this day and age. I hope they are able to return more of the stolen cats to their rightful owners, but unfortunately that's only going to be a small proportion of the hundreds stolen by the meat traders.

Meat is meat isn’t it?

Personally I love eating pussy.

21 hours ago, webfact said:

rescued more than 500 cats after dismantling a suspected cat meat trafficking network

So, fewer meat burgers on Vietnamese street food stalls?

49 minutes ago, Keeenok Powell said:

Meat is meat isn’t it?

Personally I love eating pussy.

And Mrs Slocombe was always mentioning hers (Are You Being Served UK comedy series)

3 hours ago, banyanman said:

A barbaric practice that has no place in the world in this day and age. I hope they are able to return more of the stolen cats to their rightful owners, but unfortunately that's only going to be a small proportion of the hundreds stolen by the meat traders.

For reference (Google)

Cat meat is primarily consumed in a few countries across Asia and Africa, though it is a minority practice that faces growing legal bans and social opposition.

Vietnam: This is the most prominent country for cat meat consumption, where the dish is locally known as "Little Tiger" (tiểu hổ). It is particularly popular in northern regions like Hanoi and Thai Binh,

China: While pet ownership has surged and major cities like Shenzhen and Zhuhai implemented historic bans on eating cats and dogs in 2020, an unregulated trade persists in some regional pockets

Indonesia: Cat meat is eaten by specific ethnic minorities, though it is far less common than dog meat.

Ghana: In some regions, cat meat is considered a distinct delicacy and is affectionately referred to by the local nickname "Joseph"

Madagascar & Republic of the Congo: Localized or historical consumption occurs during times of severe economic hardship or within specific regional traditions.

Switzerland: In highly isolated, rural regions (such as Appenzell and St. Gallen), old traditions legally allow farmers to slaughter dogs or cats strictly for personal consumption.

India: The trade is illegal nationally, but small-scale, unregulated consumption has been documented in specific indigenous communities in northeastern states like Nagaland.

If you're going to eat cows & pigs, what's wrong with cats and dogs. Most Somalis would agree with you!

Go veg, you fools!

I think that all the people who are pet owners would like me be horrifid at the thought that a pet cat or dog would be slaughtered for human consumption.

3 hours ago, Burma Bill said:

And Mrs Slocombe was always mentioning hers (Are You Being Served UK comedy series)

I’m free.

I was in China on a holiday visa run, Canton. Came out of my hotel one morning and was waiting for a taxi outside the door.

A truck pulled up, and a delivery man threw frozen dogs in front of the next door restaurant. It was horrifying.

The same week went to a well known Pekin Duck restaurant.

It was expensive and very smart. I was alone and sat on a big round table . During my meal, at the next table sat some smart looking Chinese, spitting out bones on the floor.

Quite spoilt my meal.

When the Chinese tour tourists come to France, they are refused in practically all restaurants. God knows where they eat. I’ve never seen that in Vietnam tho when I’ve been there.

I think it’s kept to the back streets.

Future news today

January, 2027: Vietnam facing famine, Gov't recruiting 1,200 more dog catchers.

I have an expat buddy in VN, he loves the place. He doesn't like jokes like this.

Despicable as the cat meat trade may be, they probably saved hundreds of thousands of local birds and small mammals, many of them endangered species, by getting rid of feral cats.

I'm 100% against trapping pets that have collars. (Even if the owners are irresponsible, letting their pets roam wild and kill birds.) But they need to keep the feral cat population down or they'll end up like Australia where the cats have killed off many local species.

My mate has now had two pet dogs stolen in the past 3 years.

He's gutted about it because we all know that they are not killed instantly but are tortured both physically and mentally to release adrenalin to make their meat tastier.

They watch each other being tortured to give them fear and then its their turn.

They aren't killed for a few days, but are when they are so hungry and weak.

I've seen trucks full of dogs squealing and packed so much that they are on top of each other whilst being driven down the road. Nobody bats an eyelid, it's been happening for years to overcome famine and is generally accepted.

for those who say no difference from eating cattle...

how many rats do cattle catch and eat?