Recently, a video of a cat being drawn blood from has gone viral on Chinese social media, drawing public attention. Subsequently, a blogger from Guangzhou claimed that some cats have had their blood completely drained and that the blood is sold to pet hospitals at high prices. Within the industry, such cats are referred to as “blood cats,” making the pet blood supply chain a hot topic among netizens.
The blogger who posted the video said they accidentally came into contact with this gray-area industry of pet blood banks and discovered that some blood banks profit from the blood of cats without regard for their wellbeing. However, the relevant account has now been deleted.
According to a report by The Paper, a pet protection advocate said that some cats require transfusions due to health issues. The main sources of cat blood are: another cat in the same home or a friend’s cat; requests for blood made through pet groups or online, where some cat owners who care are willing to let their own cats donate blood, with the owner provided with a subsidy, typically 300 to 500 RMB (177 to 296 MYR), and reimbursement for round-trip transportation; and a commercial cat blood bank, which is much more expensive.
Currently, China has not established a complete pet blood bank system. The advocate stated that for commercially operated cat blood banks, issues such as the sources of the cats, their living conditions, and whether blood is drawn according to standards are indeed causes for concern due to lack of effective regulation. In the industry, these cats specifically used to provide blood are called “blood cats”; however, both the donation process and health conditions are under public scrutiny.
According to public information, when a cat suffers severe anemia due to blood loss, hemolysis or hematopoietic (blood-forming) dysfunction, or has coagulation disorders as a result of poisoning or liver disease, a transfusion is necessary.