Dr. Peter Li attended the festival at Yulin under the cover of night, hoping he wouldn’t be detected. As he walked among the caged dogs and cats, contemplating their fate, Peter looked for the pup he would save. That’s when he met Ricky.
The policy specialist for Humane Society International – China, Peter considers saving pups his business. But between his two hands and the thousands of dogs on display, he knew he would only be able to help a few of the animals he encountered that night. Ricky was one of the lucky ones.
Ricky’s dingy collar made him stand out. Peter thought it was “proof that he
used to have a loving home or had been a stray cared for by neighborhood cat lovers.”
Affectionately nudging Peter’s fingers through his cage, Ricky seemed to plead. “It was heart-breaking,” Peter said. “It was obvious how much he had been craving attention and affection.”
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Another pup shadowed Ricky, following him around as a companion might. Peter decided that these were the two he would take, knowing how unlikely it would be to take more.
“I just told the slaughterhouse worker that I wanted to take these two dogs out of this place… and he accepted.”
Then another tiny face presented itself to Peter. This time a cat who desperately climbed the cage wall, making eye contact with the undercover activist.
So with two dogs and a cat in tow, Peter left the festival happy to have made a difference, no matter how small.
Ricky was held for quarantine in Nanning before embarking on a journey to the U.S. where he will be placed in a very loving home.
