Suffering Animals Still Dying in Cages at Chatuchak Market One Year After Fire; PETA Urges Bangkok Governor to Shut It Down

Suffering Animals Still Dying in Cages at Chatuchak Market One Year After Fire; PETA Urges Bangkok Governor to Shut It Down

Nearly one year after a destructive blaze tore through Bangkok’s notorious Chatuchak Market and resulted in more than 1,000 animals being burned to death in their cages, shocking new PETA footage reveals that the market is back to business as usual—packing scores of suffering wild animals into cramped and even dangerous enclosures, denying ailing animals treatment, and leaving them to die slowly and in pain. In response, PETA sent a letter today to Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt, urging him to ban the sale of animals at the market.  (Broadcast-quality footage is available here)

PETA’s investigator documented animals confined at the market suffering from severe, untreated illnesses—and found one bearded dragon dead in their enclosure. Several animals showed signs of psychological distress, including a meerkat who clawed frantically at the bars of their cage. were found packed into crowded enclosures strewn with debris, while a languished on the wire floor of a barren cage that was caked with grime.

In the letter, PETA points out that the market has become infamous around the world for its cruelty to animals and reported ties to illegal wildlife trafficking—highlighted by the interception of a smuggled baby gorilla en route to Thailand earlier this year, which authorities said was traced to a shop at the market. PETA adds that the market also poses a grave public health threat, as confining stressed animals amid their own waste creates breeding grounds for deadly influenza viruses and other zoonotic diseases that can spread to humans.

“The Chatuchak Market’s ‘pet zone’ is the shame of Bangkok and hell on Earth for the thousands of animals who are caged in filth and sold off like trinkets to anyone with cash to burn,” says PETA Senior Vice President Jason Baker. “PETA is calling on Governor Sittipunt to shut this cesspool of cruelty and criminal activity down and urges everyone to never buy any animal from a market or pet store.”

PETA’s letter to Governor Sittipunt is available upon request.

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to abuse in any way”—points out that Every Animal is Someone.  For more information, please visit PETAAsia.com or follow the group on X, Facebook, or Instagram.