He flew to Japan to meet the sculptor on March 4 and brought back the sculpted cat with a note written in Chinese by Meetissai which reads "Wuhan, stay strong".

It took around 10 days before the first 6-centimeter-long figurines rolled off the production line.

So far, more than 12,000 maskprotected pussycats have been ordered, which are expected to yield a profit of over 400,000 yuan ($56,452).

Shen has already donated over 220,000 yuan to the Wuhan Charity Federation and the rest of the profit will be given to the Han Hong Love Charity Foundation in May, he says.

Meetissai has since opened his own account on Sina Weibo, which has already garnered over 110,000 followers.

Pet owners in China now send him their own funny photos in the hope that he will be suitably inspired to immortalize their own beloved animals' embarrassing moments in vivid 3D.