Volunteers and professionals combine to provide help for animal owners

According to a survey by the social media platform Yitiao, there are more than 2 million pets in Shanghai. In 2019, a report by CBNData said local residents spent more on their pets than people in other cities nationwide.

Wang Fen keeps three cats at her home in the city's Baoshan district. Last month, she traveled to Chengdu, capital of Sichuan province, on a business trip, hiring a helper to take care of the animals while she was away. However, the community was then locked down on March 28.

Worrying about the cats, Wang found it hard to sleep almost every day, but she later completed an online document about pets that needed help in Shanghai.

Pet owners state their personal details and requests in the document, which was launched by the NGO Maritime Compass. Volunteers from the organization collate this information.

An epidemic prevention volunteer working in Wang's community contacted her after reading the completed form. The volunteer collected a spare key and rushed to Wang's home to look after the cats. When Wang saw the animals in a video call, she burst into tears.

The volunteer prepared food and water for the cats and replaced their litter sand.

Requests in the online forms are divided into four categories: shortages of pet supplies; drop-in feeding; pet transfers; and pet illness. These categories have three emergency levels.

Some owners' problems have been solved, with others are still waiting for help.

Cai Xiaoyan, 27, who works for a pet medical company, completed the online document on Thursday, applying to act as a volunteer.

In the document, she stated that she could take care of pets in her community whose owners have COVID-19 and also animals whose owners are asymptomatic. Owners outside the community can bring their pets to her.

As of Friday, three owners had contacted Cai about delivering their animals to her.

Cai, a dog owner who lives with her family, said: "As a pet owner, I would also worry about my dog if I needed to go into quarantine. I just want to make a contribution for these pets as long as I am healthy."

She added that she is worried about the health safety of her family, but there is no explicit evidence to show that pets can become infected by or transmit the COVID-19 virus. Her family has not objected to her voluntary work.

In many neighborhoods, epidemic prevention and control volunteers are also walking residents' dogs and feeding stray animals.

Residents of Shanghai Shimao Riviera Garden organized a WeChat group, inviting suppliers and vets in the area to join. The group now has more than 200 members who share information every day.

Companies in the pet industry are also offering to help, including Pet Four Seasons.

Located in Jinshan district, the company runs an amusement park covering 30,000 square meters. The company's founder Wang Gongyu said the park, which started to receive "pet fosters" in the middle of last month, now accommodates 20 to 30 animals.

The park fosters pets whose owners have COVID-19, but has to seek permission to remove animals from their community.

"We recently received more than 100 calls for help every day. The callers seek foster care for their pets, ask for dog food and medical treatment for their animals, while making other demands," Wang said.

He also hopes the park can become a centralized care facility for pets.

"We have more than 5,000 square meters of indoor space, half of which can be used as a shelter for pets that need looking after," he said. "We also have the support of vets and suppliers. Our only difficulty is how to transfer the animals."