In September 2021, a confirmed COVID-19 patient in Harbin was receiving treatment in hospital isolation when community staff informed her that the three cats left at home had tested positive twice and would be euthanized. The owner appealed on Weibo, asking that their lives be spared or that a more humane and cautious solution be used. On the evening of September 28, multiple reports said the cats had already been euthanized. This was not a typical case of individual cruelty, but it clearly showed a cold secondary harm of pandemic management: companion animals were quickly treated as risks to be removed, while the owner’s plea, the animals’ lives, and the psychological trauma that followed were pushed aside.

An isolated owner, three cats left at home

Public reports say the owner was already hospitalized as a confirmed COVID-19 patient. The three pet cats at her home were tested and were said to have tested positive twice. Community staff then notified her that the cats would be euthanized.

This was not an ordinary pet-management decision. The owner was not at home and could not protect, move, or arrange care for them herself. The cats could not speak for their fear, pain, or attachment. Both the isolated person and the animals left behind were in a vulnerable position.

Her appeal did not change the result

China Digital Times preserved a post by The Beijing News saying that on September 27 the owner was told the three cats would be euthanized after two positive tests, and that by around 6 p.m. on September 28 the cats had been euthanized. VOA Chinese and Animal Friendly Network also reported the case.

The owner asked online for a chance to save them. She was not evading isolation or refusing treatment. From a hospital room, unable to return home, she was speaking for the lives closest to her daily life. That plea failed, and the helplessness itself became a severe psychological injury.

A positive test should not automatically mean death

Public health agencies have long stated that COVID-19 spreads mainly from person to person and that the risk of animals spreading the virus to people is low. Even if a pet tests positive, that should not automatically lead to killing or euthanasia.

More reasonable options include isolation and observation, reduced contact, cleaning, professional care, retesting, and veterinary assessment. Administrative convenience should not overwhelm the basic caution owed to life.

Disregarding animal life also harms people

Companion animals are not disposable belongings. For many families, cats and dogs are part of daily life, emotional support, and intimate relationships. During isolation, treatment, and fear, their safety directly affects the owner’s mental state.

For the cats, the decision ended their lives. For the owner, it added another blow on top of infection, isolation, social pressure, and medical uncertainty. She had to learn of their deaths while unable to go home.

More humane alternatives were possible

Later public reports described pet boarding, feeding visits, temporary care, testing, and observation arrangements for owners in isolation. Shenzhen’s pet shelter program and Chengdu staff caring for isolated residents’ pets showed that pet care during a pandemic was not an unsolvable problem.

The Harbin case should be remembered because it warns that crisis management must not count only speed and efficiency. It must also see the emotional bonds and living beings affected by each decision.

Timeline

• September 27, 2021：The owner, in isolation treatment, was told that the three cats at home would be euthanized after two positive COVID tests.
• September 28, 2021：Media reported that the three cats had been euthanized, triggering wide discussion on Weibo and other platforms.
• Later discussion：Media, animal-protection platforms, and legal commentators continued to discuss necessity, procedure, and more humane alternatives for pets during pandemic control.

Sources

• 中国数字时代：【网络民议】用几只猫阳性就强行暗示如果不服从管理就是影响整栋楼，影响全市全中国。https://chinadigitaltimes.net/chinese/671470.html
• VOA 中文：宠物染疫后被安乐死，引发中国网友质疑。https://www.voachinese.com/a/Pet-Cats-Killed-After-Infection-Of-COVID-20210829/6250481.html
• 动物友善网：中国哈尔滨三家猫新冠肺炎检测阳性，隔离饲主请命无果，猫咪全数遭安乐死。https://animal-friendly.co/pet/30797/
• 财新：疫情期间扑杀宠物引关注，法律界人士认为涉嫌违法。https://m.caixin.com/m/2022-04-10/101868023.html
• CDC: COVID-19 and Animals。https://www.cdc.gov/covid/about/animals.html