A woman in Shangrao, China, says authorities promised her dog would be taken care of after she was ordered into quarantine Friday—but workers killed it instead. The woman shared home security footage showing a worker in a hazmat suit hitting her corgi with an iron bar as it tries to escape, the Wall Street Journal reports. She said she tried to talk to the workers through a speaker in her home security camera but was ignored. The workers are later seen carrying a yellow bag away. District officials said they carried out "biosafety disposal" after "imperfect communication" with the woman.
The woman, who was sent to a quarantine facility after somebody in her housing complex tested positive, tested negative for the virus, and there is no sign her dog was infected. The video she shared was viewed millions of times and attracted comments from many angry and worried pet owners, NPR reports. In similar cases in several other cities, cats have been killed after their owners were sent to quarantine facilities, though Beijing and Shanghai allow residents to bring their pets to quarantine with them.
The dog's death caused an outcry over both animal rights and the extreme measures taken by the government as it tries to keep up its zero COVID strategy, CNN reports. "A lot of people are compliant. They stop going out, wear masks every day, and even order takeout instead of going to restaurants," one person wrote on the WeChat app, per the Journal. "Then they are quarantined through no fault of their own and their pets are killed—who can feel safe cooperating with the quarantine?" Authorities in Shangrao say the workers have been removed from their positions. (More China stories.)
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