HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam — 18 June 2026, AP reported on Thursday that Vietnamese police revealed progress on a major crackdown against a network allegedly involved in stealing and trafficking cats for meat in Ho Chi Minh City last week.
They had rescued more than 400 cats. However, during the multi-day operation, some of the rescued cats later died because of poor living conditions, although at least 40 have since been reunited with their owners.
During a raid on a house, officers discovered 45 cages containing around 400 live cats and four ice-filled foam containers holding the carcasses of about 80 cats. Additionally, another 20 live cats were found at a separate location. In total, police seized more than 500 cats, both alive and dead. This is one of the country’s largest crackdowns on the cat meat trade in recent years.
Karanvir Kukreja, who leads campaigns against the dog and cat meat trade at Humane World for Animals, the international animal welfare organization, stated that this operation serves as “a disturbing reminder of the widespread cat meat trade in Vietnam”.
Meanwhile, local media reported that the investigation by Ho Chi Minh City police into widespread pet theft led to the arrest of nine suspects, who allegedly admitted trapping and collecting cats from several locations in southern Vietnam over the past three years, including Ho Chi Minh City and the provinces of Tây Ninh and An Giang. According to police reports, cat meat sells for around 70,000 Vietnamese dong (about 86 baht or 2.66 US dollars) per kilogramme.
Although the consumption of dog and cat meat remains legal in Vietnam, sellers are required to hold licences verifying the origin of the animals. Some localities, including the central city of Hoi An, have been working with international animal welfare groups to end the consumption of dog and cat meat.
