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   From: spotanski@nytimes.com   
      
   A city in southeastern China is reportedly banning the   
   consumption of dogs and cats as well as wild animals due to the   
   coronavirus pandemic.   
      
   “Dogs and cats as pets have established a much closer   
   relationship with humans than all other animals, and banning the   
   consumption of dogs and cats and other pets is a common practice   
   in developed countries and in Hong Kong and Taiwan,” officials   
   in Shenzhen, which is about 16 miles from Hong Kong, said in an   
   order Wednesday, according to Reuters.   
      
   “This ban also responds to the demand and spirit of human   
   civilization,” the order said.   
      
   Experts believe the novel virus likely originated late last year   
   at a wild animal market in Wuhan, China - the city at the   
   epicenter of the crisis - before it spread through the country   
   and across the world.   
      
   More than 926,000 have been sickened by the virus and more than   
   46,000 have died globally as of April 1.   
      
   Amid coronavirus outbreak, China bans consumption, trade of wild   
   animals, reports say   
      
   In February, China’s central government temporarily banned   
   breeding and eating wild animals to combat the spread, but   
   Shenzhen’s order, which goes into effect May 1, is permanent,   
   The Washington Times reported.   
      
   President Xi Jinping said in February the country should   
   “resolutely outlaw and harshly crackdown” on the illegal   
   wildlife trade because of the public health risks it poses.   
      
   Before the ban, 54 species, including pangolins and civets were   
   legal as long as they were raised on farms and at least 3,700   
   markets across the country have been shut down amid inspections.   
      
   Dogs especially are popular in certain parts of the country,   
   Reuters reported.   
      
   “There is no evidence showing that wildlife is more nutritious   
   than poultry and livestock,” Liu Jianping, of the Shenzhen   
   Center for Disease Prevention and Control, told state media,   
   according to Reuters.   
      
   Turtles and frogs will still be allowed under the order.   
      
   The 2003 SARS outbreak is believed to have been related to the   
   consumption of wild animals into the area, according to The   
   Times.   
      
   https://www.foxnews.com/world/chinese-city-bans-eating-dogs-and-   
   cats   
         
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
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