“To all my fans in China. I’d be so grateful if you could vote and push for this. This has to stop,” wrote the Formula One champion.

Lewis Hamilton leaves no opportunity to throw his weight behind animal welfare and was back on Instagram urging his Chinese fans to help their country declare that dogs are not meant for human consumption.

Last Friday, Hamilton sharing an image from ‘Little China Dog Rescue’ on his Instagram story wrote: “To all my fans in China. I’d be so grateful if you could vote and push for this. This has to stop.”

‘Special companion animal’

His plea follows a draft policy released by China’s Ministry of Agricultural and Rural Affairs that states that dogs are a “special companion animal” and are not to be raised as livestock.

The announcement is open to public consultation until May 8.

“With the progress of human civilization and the public’s concern and preference for animal protection, dogs have changed from traditional domestic animals to companion animals,” said the ministry in a statement.

“Dogs are generally not regarded as livestock and poultry around the world. China should also not manage them as livestock and poultry.”

Recently Shenzhen, became the first ever city in Mainland China to announce a ban on consuming dog and cat meat. The ban will likely be implemented from the beginning of May.

Wet market and coronavirus

The draft rules that seek to exclude cats and dogs have ‘white listed’ several wildlife species such as deer, game birds, minks, and two kinds of foxes, among others to be farmed under animal husbandry laws raising concerns from animal activists.

Recent reports have also claimed that China has allowed wet markets selling wild animals to resume their businesses even as the world is still reeling from the aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic.

The coronavirus which is thought to have originated from one such wet market in Wuhan, China continues to claim lives across the world. It has killed more than 114,272 at the time of writing.

• Read: White House expert Dr. Anthony Fauci calls for all wet markets to be shut down right away

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