A dog meat seller who was working for a smuggling operation in China accidentally poisoned and killed himself with a poison-tip dart after shooting himself with a crossbow.
The South China Morning Post reported Thursday that the man was demonstrating using the dart several months ago in Hunan Province, but the dart hit him in the leg, killing him. He died as he was being rushed to the hospital.
The man, whose surname is Liu, was demonstrating using the dart to his gang of smugglers.
The members of the gang were later arrested after they admitted to killing 1,000 dogs for meat.
In China, people have eaten dog for generations, as it was believed that eating the animal could help deal with disease or dispel ghosts. Dog meat is also used in traditional Chinese medicine to combat impotence.
This week, authorities in Zhejiang Province broke up a massive dog-poisoning ring, nabbing more than 11 tons of dog meat in the process.
Several members of an underground ring would go around luring dogs to their death with poison-tainted duck, chicken, or other meat before taking the animals back to a workshop to be butchered.
The meat was sold to local restaurants.
And two months ago, Guangxi Province held its annual, controversial dog meat festival amid criticism from animal rights activists. Activists said that the dogs are electrocuted, held in tight spaces, skinned alive, and their bodies are then dumped on the side of the road.
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