Shanghai - Duo Zirong is a saviour to thousands of stray cats in Shanghai who might have ended up on Chinese dinner tables.

The 39-year-old doctor of Chinese traditional medicine is somewhat of a legend in China's financial capital, taking in diseased and homeless felines and saving them from being skinned and cooked up.

But she's also an anomaly in a country where dogs are generally prized pets and regarded as status symbols, while cats are seen as a nuisance and strays are often poisoned.

"I started taking in the cats in 1996 when I saw them suffering and being tortured," said Duo.

"When I started paying attention to their lives, I saw how miserable their fate was. I could not leave them to this fate."

Duo lives with hundreds of cats in her home in Shanghai's suburbs.

'Determined to save them'

Some are kept in cages, while others snuggle together on wooden shelves, inside cardboard boxes or on top of the air-conditioning unit sticking out of the wall. Some cats are blind, others paralysed and there is a litter of mewling kittens living in a corner.

Recently, newspapers said Duo and about 30 animal lovers saved more than 800 cats from being trucked to southern Guangdong province, where some residents pride themselves on eating anything that flies, crawls or swims.

Duo admits that it is very difficult to take care of so many cats, and that some have died in her care. But she is determined to continue saving them, in the hope that it will highlight the need for laws to protect animals in China.

"I think maybe through this, we can push forth the agenda for animal protection. Things are improving year after year. In the beginning nobody was willing to help us," she said.

Cats are the most pitiful

Now, Duo has more than a dozen volunteers to help. They keep the place as clean as possible, vaccinate the animals and treat any diseases. Many of these helpers bemoan the plight of cats in modern-day China.

"China should have laws to protect animals, such as cats and dogs. Cats are the most pitiful. There are few people who rear cats at home, and there are a lot of stray cats. Also, in some of these apartment buildings, they do not allow cats to live there," said 49-year-old Liu Wanping.

But Duo remains undeterred. She regularly appeals to Shanghai's residents for funds or to give the cats a home. Duo and the other activists follow up each adoption with a visit to make sure the animal has not been harmed or sold off.

"I hope to give some help to them. These cats are so pitiful. It is impossible for so few people to take care of them," said 24-yer-old cat lover Chen Sukan. "Animals are also our responsibility."