By Karen Branagh | Director of Partnerships and Outreach
How do we stop cruelty before it begins?
On 28 June, a stray mother dog in China, known locally as Wang Wang, and her puppies were subjected to horrific cruelty by four children. The abuse was filmed and shared online.
Wang Wang’s story caused widespread heartbreak and anger across China. For ACTAsia, it also raised an urgent question: how do we prevent another animal from suffering like this?
Laws can punish cruelty after it happens. But as ACTAsia Founder and CEO Pei Su said following Wang Wang’s death:
“A legal system cannot create empathy or teach compassion.”
This is why our Caring for Life education programme is so important.
Teaching compassion before harmful behaviours take root
Caring for Life works with children from an early age, helping them develop empathy, responsibility and respect for people, animals and the environment.
Through a structured six-year curriculum, children learn to understand the needs and feelings of other living beings, consider the consequences of their choices and recognise their responsibility towards the world around them.
Since 2012, Caring for Life has reached more than 576,000 children and trained over 12,600 teachers and educators.
And we know that this approach can make a difference. Teachers see positive changes in children's behaviour that extend beyond the classroom, influencing how they interact with their families, communities and animals. Your previous update describes this as a “lasting ripple effect”, with children carrying what they learn into everyday life.
Taking Caring for Life further
In 2027, ACTAsia will take an important next step.
Working with the Institute of Child and Adolescent Health at Peking University, we will bring together educators, researchers, school leaders and policymakers to launch our complete six-year Caring for Life curriculum and share the evidence behind it.
Our aim is to enable compassionate education to reach many more schools, teachers and children across China.
Nothing can undo what happened to Wang Wang and her puppies. But their story is a painful reminder that preventing cruelty must begin long before an animal is harmed.
By helping children develop empathy and compassion while their attitudes and behaviours are still forming, we can help create a generation that sees animals not as objects to hurt, but as living beings deserving of care and respect.
Thank you for helping us build that kinder future.
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