On April 25, 2025, a pregnant blue cat was found barely alive on a lawn near Lianxi Road metro station in Pudong, Shanghai. Public reports said she wore a collar bearing the name “Zhaocai,” had severe injuries to all four limbs, and died after being rushed to a pet hospital. A CT scan reportedly showed four fetuses in her womb had also died.

From a suspected fall to confirmed severe harm

Global Times, citing Xinwenfang and public posts by Shanghai Adoption Home, reported that at 10:46 a.m. on April 25 a rescue account first asked for help, saying a blue cat near Lianxi Road metro station might have fallen from a height. About two hours later, rescuers found the cat and realized the situation was far crueler than a fall: doctors said she was suspected of being abused and all four limbs had been cut off.

The rescue posts quickly drew local attention and reached Weibo local trending topics. Images preserved by several media outlets show the cat was found on a lawn near the metro station or near a residential gate, not in a remote wasteland but inside ordinary urban space. That makes the harm even harder to accept: a weak life was left where people pass every day, still waiting in pain.

A collar, bells, and a belly still faintly moving

Photos in reports show the blue cat wore a collar marked “Zhaocai.” A collar, bells and a name all suggest she had once been cared for and called, perhaps as part of a household. Rescuer Ms. Tong told media the cat was surrounded by flies when found, with her abdomen still faintly moving and signs of life still present, but she was already extremely weak.

Ms. Tong also said doctors believed from her body type that she was very likely a domestic cat. During intubation, leaf residue was reportedly found in her throat; she had hematoma and edema over the body, clean wound surfaces, exposed bones, and no infection, so the injury was suspected to have occurred the previous night. Reports also said CT imaging showed she was pregnant and close to giving birth, but the four fetuses had died.

Police intervention and public questions

Global Times reported that Shanghai police had intervened; on.cc also quoted Beicai police station near the metro station as saying the case was under investigation. Public reports available so far did not show a final investigative conclusion or responsibility finding, so this archive does not replace the police investigation with speculation.

But caution is not indifference. Zhaocai’s death is not an abstract entry: she was a mother cat carrying new lives, a domestic cat wearing a named collar. Whoever the perpetrator was, injuring an animal to the edge of death and abandoning her reflects a total trampling of pain, life and basic mercy.

This cannot be reduced to a “pet dispute”

Some people asked where the owner was; others asked why current rules struggle to answer cruelty this extreme. Those questions matter. When severe harm to a companion animal is treated only as property loss, public-order trouble or a search for an owner, the central fact is hidden: the victim was a living being who could feel pain, fear and the coming of birth.

This archive records the case to remember Zhaocai and the children who never had a chance to be born, and to remember that such cruelty occurred in a corner of the city. Kindness toward animals should not remain a private virtue; it should also become society’s bottom line in saying no to cruelty.

Timeline

• April 25, 2025, 10:46 a.m.: Shanghai Adoption Home posted for help, saying a blue cat near Lianxi Road metro station was suspected of falling and needed assistance.
• Around noon, April 25, 2025: Rescuers found the cat, suspected serious abuse and grave limb injuries, and sent her to a pet hospital.
• April 26, 2025: Rescuer Ms. Tong disclosed treatment and examination details; reports said the cat died despite rescue efforts and four fetuses had died.
• April 26-27, 2025: Global Times, Sing Tao Headline, on.cc and others reported the case; public information said Shanghai police had intervened.

Public Sources

• Global Times: pregnant mother cat found on a Shanghai lawn, suspected of being abused and having all four limbs severed
• Sing Tao Headline: pregnant Shanghai cat with severed limbs died after emergency treatment
• on.cc: pregnant blue cat abandoned on lawn after severe mutilation, died after rescue
• Sohu repost: police intervened after pregnant blue cat was found severely injured and died