Legislators and political advisers are calling for law against animal abuse - of both pets and animals slaughtered for food - a mounting public concern nationwide.
The most recent outrage was triggered by news about online photos and DVDs of a woman in spike-heeled shoes stomping cats to death.
More affluent Chinese are enjoying the company of pets, some treating them as family members. But animal abuse cases have upset animal lovers and tainted China's image of civilization and caring, said Du Yi, a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.
"We should impose a law to curb animal abuse and brutal slaughter as soon as possible," said Du, a businesswoman with a Hong Kong company.
She said outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease, Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome and bird flu are punishing humans for cruelty to animals.
Du once adopted more than 30 abused or injured cats. She called for a crackdown on stealing, butchering and processing pet animals for commercial purposes.
She encouraged efforts to reduce the pain of dying fowl and livestock.
Animal slaughter should be banned at public places such as supermarkets or booths in residential areas - this can hurt youngsters' mental health, said Zhou Ping, a deputy to the National People's Congress.
Surveys show that torturing and killing animals as children is part of the profile of many serial killers.
(Xinhua)