Ho Chi Minh City/Phnom Penh, 24 September 2025 – Global animal welfare organisation FOUR PAWS’ online reporting tool, designed to combat the ubiquitous dog and cat meat trade (DCMT), is now available throughout Vietnam and Cambodia. After an initial pilot phase in selected Vietnamese provinces in late 2022, the expanded platform now empowers citizens and tourists in both countries to safely and anonymously report incidents related to the trade. Encountering dog and cat meat restaurants, meat markets, or witnessing pet theft – with 364 reported cases being the most frequent incident, as highlighted in a recent report – can be deeply distressing, especially for tourists and families with children who may feel powerless to intervene. This online tool empowers the public to indirectly support the enforcement of existing laws and helps to protect millions of pets and stray animals across Southeast Asia.

Since its inception in the Vietnamese provinces of Quang Nam and Da Nang, the FOUR PAWS reporting tool has garnered substantial public interest. Between November 2022 and December 2024 a staggering 597 DCMT-related reports of animal cruelty were registered through the tool, affecting a total of 6,081 dogs and 3,695 cats.

The complexity of the trade

Many of these reports document a series of incidents (in total: 1,549). In Vietnam, nearly one in four (23%) incidents involve the theft of a companion animal. Reports of cruelty at dog and cat meat trade restaurants appear in 22% of cases. Alarmingly, 206 incidents (13%) describe the use of poisoned bait to capture animals – a method that endangers not only the targeted animals but also other wildlife and humans. Furthermore, the timing of the trade is telling: more incidents occur during the week than on weekends, suggesting that traffickers treat this cruelty as a full-time occupation.

“Experiencing any aspect of this cruel trade can be a difficult and traumatic experience for every person, but especially for children. For children the context is difficult to grasp, being highly susceptible to their surroundings and then seeing the injustice and pain that is inflicted on these animals. With this reporting tool we not only want to protect the lives of millions of cats and dogs but also shield locals and tourists.” says Ms. Phan Thanh, Companion Animal campaigner at FOUR PAWS Vietnam.

The legal side calls for a holistic approach

In both Vietnam and Cambodia, next to pet theft, the uncontrolled mass transport of dogs and cats throughout the country is illegal. Alongside legal implications, there also health concerns. The transport of unvaccinated animals in stressful and unhygienic conditions increase the risk of zoonotic diseases, as dogs and cats may transmit pathogens to other animals and those involved in the trade. A 2022 investigation by FOUR PAWS revealed the staggering scale of animal trafficking, particularly in Vietnam’s Ha Tinh province, which functions as a key bottleneck in the dog and cat meat trade.

An easy-to-use online reporting tool for everyone

FOUR PAWS encourages all witnesses of activities related to the DCMT to use the reporting tool, which can be accessed here. Reports can be handed in anonymously by tourists and citizens alike. At this time, the tool gathers data and information about dog and cat meat trade activities; it is not a tool that can currently support immediate law enforcement. If immediate support for an animal in need is required, local authorities or rescue groups in the area should be contacted. Data collected through the reporting tool will be used to inform policymakers, to support legislative efforts, and to guide the organisation's future campaigns. FOUR PAWS remains committed to working with local communities and government officials to ensure a humane and lawful approach towards animals across Vietnam and Cambodia. 

FOUR PAWS’ ongoing efforts to end the DCMT in Southeast Asia

Each year, more than six million dogs and cats are brutally slaughtered in Vietnam, and approximately three million dogs fall victim to the trade in Cambodia annually. To put a sustainable end to the cruel dog and cat meat trade in Southeast Asia, FOUR PAWS has launched a campaign on an international and national level in Cambodia, Vietnam, and Indonesia. The dogs and cats ending up in the trade are often stolen pets or stray animals taken from the streets, crammed into small cages, and brutally killed at restaurants, markets, and slaughterhouses throughout Southeast Asia. The unsanitary conditions in slaughterhouses and live animal markets also provide the perfect breeding ground for the emergence  and spread of zoonotic diseases, with potentially catastrophic results for global public health. Throughout FOUR PAWS' work in the region, it has always supported local animal welfare organisations and communities with humane and sustainable stray animal care programmes.