Vietnam restaurant that served cat soup by killing 300 cats per month closes down

A Vietnamese restaurant has closed down after the owner expressed moral objections to the practice of slaughtering cats for a soup recipe. Around 300 cats used to be killed each month for a soup recipe, Metro UK reported.

The Humane Society International said that in early December, the owner, Pham Quoc Doanh tore down the sign advertising cat meat, or "thit meo," outside his Gia Bao restaurant.

As a result of the closure of the restaurant, nearly two dozen cats that were to be slaughtered, have been saved.

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"Before selling cat meat at this restaurant I served other normal food and drinks. However, the income was not enough to cover the living cost of my family. It was then I tried selling cat meat since there was no other available restaurant serving this in the area," Doanh, who is a father of two children, said, according to reports in the British media.

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Every year, Vietnam witnesses the slaughtering of around a million cats including stolen pets and strays for meat, according to the Humane Society International.

The Humane Society International gave him a one-time grant to set up a grocery shop instead.

How the cats used to be slaughtered?

The owner of the restaurant said that he drowned the cats by holding them with a stick in a bucket of water. "I felt sorry for them when I saw them suffering during slaughtering. It was all about money since I had to make money for my whole family," he said.

"For a while now I have felt a genuine desire to leave the cruel cat meat business and switch to something else as soon as possible. When I think of all the thousands of cats I've slaughtered and served up here over the years, it's upsetting. Cat theft is so common in Vietnam that I know many of the cats sold here were someone's loved family companion, and I feel very sorry about that," he said, further stating that he is thankful that he is no longer a part of this "brutal and crime-fuelled trade".

(With inputs from agencies)