Story By: John Feng, Sub Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Asia Wire Report

WARNING: DISTRESSING CONTENT

Video Credit: AsiaWire

This is the viral moment a heartless teenage thug hurls a brick at a sleeping cat leaving the helpless stray twitching in pain before fleeing the scene on a hoverboard.

The horrific images doing the rounds on social media were filmed outside the Jinsha Haitang residential community in Chengdu, capital city of China’s south-western Sichuan Province.

In the distressing clip from 14th April, the uniformed schoolboy, who is reportedly aged 13, rides his hoverboard near the sleeping white cat and bends over to pick up the brick off the ground.

Pictures Credit: AsiaWire

He then raises his right arm and throws the brick at the cat’s body, causing the injured animal to twitch on the pavement.

The teenager then promptly leaves on his hoverboard as the video ends.

According to reports, the cat was taken to a local vet by the witness and the animal is in a stable condition and recovering well from its injuries, which were fortunately not life-threatening.

However, it is still unclear why exactly the boy, who lives in the community, attacked it.

His parents have been spoken to by local police and have written a formal apology to the public following the incident.

No further punishment is expected.

Xu Jingjing, one of the volunteers currently caring for the cat in turns, said the animal is a stray.

She said: “The cat is recovering faster than we expected. The vet says X-rays showed no broken bones or organ damage. It was hit from the side on the trachea.”

She added: “The boy’s parents have been commendable after the incident. They offered to cover the cat’s medical costs, but we declined because they’d already done the right thing in educating the child.”

Xu said: “I’m certain he’s learned his lesson.”

In a statement to Asia Wire, PETA Asia Vice President said: “We hope the boy and the cat get the help they need.

“Teaching compassion to children is as important for people as it is for animals, as children who are violent to animals often become adults who are violent to people.

“The streets are cruel places for animals and PETA hears many cases of abuse like this. We support mandatory spay and neuter programmes around the world.

“Keeping animals off the streets is the best way to keep them safe from abuse.”