A Beijing animal protection group that took on hundreds of dogs rescued from the butcher's block is struggling to cope due to a shortage in funds and volunteers.

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Some 400 hounds were diverted to China Small Animal Protection Association (CSAPA) bases on

April 15 after pet lovers blocked a truck on the Jingha Expressway heading for hotpot restaurants in Jilin province.

Since then, the group has spent more than 400,000 yuan on medical treatments and daily food supplies. Yet, despite several large donations, the money coming in is far from enough.

CSAPA has already received 200,000 yuan from communications giant Tencent and a combined 115,000 yuan from Lee Pet Vet and Shangshan Animal Fund, as well as 30,950 yuan collected from campaigners at the blockade.

However, director and founder Lu Di said vaccinations alone are set to cost 75,000 yuan, while the bill for sterilizing the animals could run as high as 140,000 yuan.

As few people have so far stepped forward to adopt the animals, shelters and pet hospitals also urgently need more hands to help out. "We need more volunteers to help with everything, from caring for traumatized dogs, to feeding them food and medicine, to dealing with online donations and updating blogs," said Liu Cheng, volunteer leader for Jitai Animal Hospital in Changping district on Monday.

As of April 30, more than 30 clinics have treated the sick dogs, with most going to Jitai, Jinquan Tewei Police Dog Base and Kangmeihua Animal Hospital in Xicheng district.

Qian Zhong, a veterinarian at Jinquan, said it has 15 dogs with canine distemper and 14 suffering pneumonia. Treatments so far have cost more than 90,000 yuan, although the hospital has received just 10,000 yuan.

"Our clinic has halted operations since April 17 to cure 39 rescued dogs. However, without more funds, I'm afraid we can't afford to do this any more," he said.

Chen Xiaoyan, a volunteer at Jitai Animal Hospital, said that despite the problems campaigners face in caring for the animals, she still feels the action on April 15 was necessary to raise the public awareness and "will hopefully speed up legislation on small animal protection in China".

Relying on volunteers and donations will not solve the problem in the long run, she said, adding that it is a must to prevent the trading of pet animals.

Law professor Wang Xiaoye at the China Academy of Social Sciences agreed. She told METRO the campaigners' actions reflect an improvement in Chinese people's awareness of animal welfare.

"Draft laws were proposed by experts many years ago, but it has never been taken seriously. We're far behind Western countries, as well as Hong Kong and Macao, in this respect. It really is high time for us to catch up," said Wang.