At least 5,000 pets were found dead last week in cardboard shipping boxes at a logistics facility in Central China, probably victims of miscommunication in the supply chain of China's thriving mass breeding industry.

Only a few hundred animals were rescued and the authorities have started an investigation into the grim discovery in the province of Henan, told a local animal rescue group Wednesday to CBS News.

Among the animals were rabbits, guinea pigs, cats and dogs, all held in plastic or metal cages wrapped in cardboard boxes with breathing holes. They sat in boxes without food or water for about a week before they were discovered at the Dongxing Logistics station in the city of Luohe in Henan.

4 October World Animal Day, not in China