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Video: Chinese health workers brutally kill a dog while the owner was in quarantine

The three-year-old dog named Snowball was 'beaten to death with sticks' after the owner was sent into isolation on March 2

The article contains disturbing footage

Yi Zhi Xue Qiu, a Chinese woman from Huizhou, Guangdong, posted a statement about her dog, Snowball's death on Weibo. In the statement posted on March 4, she said that her three-year-old Samoyed dog was "beaten to death with sticks" after she was sent into isolation at a quarantine facility on March 2.

Qiu revealed that her boyfriend tested positive for Covid-19 after which she was sent to the isolation facility. She said she was not allowed to bring Snowball with her but was told that city workers would disinfect her home. The footage she posted showcases two workers dressed in protective gear as they approach Snowball with possible metal rods in hand, while the dog barks at them and backs away.

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The workers cornered Snowball and started beating him again and again. They took continuous swipes at the dog, while he whimpered and barked. The workers only ceased beating Snowball when he stopped making any sounds. After killing the dog, the workers moved out of the room.

Qiu also included screenshots of her conversation with the workers, where she had notified them about Snowball before they arrived to disinfect her apartment. She told them the room he would be in and assured them that the dog was not aggressive and would not bite them. But the workers beat the dog to death, despite Qiu's reassuring messages.

"Snowball is like family to me. Without this CCTV evidence, we might still be deceived that our pet was 'humanely' put down. I was told by anti-epidemic officials that they would just be disinfecting my home, not killing my dog. Who gave them the right to do that? I also applied and pleaded for the dog to just be sent into quarantine with me, but no one gave me that chance," Qiu said through her statement.

 "We spent these two days and nights in endless regrets and pains. We raised a dog together for three years and three months. It was already part of our family, but now he died tragically in his own home," she added.

Snowball's death was confirmed in an official statement by the authorities who acknowledged the cruel manner in which it had been killed and said the two workers responsible had been suspended from their posts. "We have apologized to the dog owner and will counsel and suspend the workers," read their statement. They also claimed that Snowball was likely infected with Covid-19 since it had lived in the same apartment as Qiu's boyfriend, but the dog had not been tested to verify this before his death.

"Jail- that's it. Names, pictures, jail. No vague assurances of justice. Jail and specific legal protection for pets. No one is going to quarantine without a fight if you are going to murder our pets you suck f**ks. You will lose to the pandemic because no one will cooperate," tweeted a user.

"This is ALL over Weibo- Any Pro-China influencers avoiding it? They're getting paid. Any obfuscating, whatabouting or defending it? They're getting paid. You want to know who's getting fat envelopes of cash from [China flag emoji]? Ask them about this and you'll see. JUSTICE FOR SNOWBALL!" the user further added.