A dog locked in a cage at a dog meat farm in Ansan City, South Korea, on Wednesday, July 6, 2022.Photo: Jean Chung/For HSI
Animals welfare groups rescued 21 dogs from an illegal dog meat farm in Gyeonggi-do, South Korea, days before Bok Nal, a tradition marking the country’s hottest days of summer.
“Korean K9 Rescue is happy to work in partnership with HSI in dismantling and rescuing animals from the Ansan dog meat farm. As the animals are suffering in the sweltering summer heat, we have moved quickly to remove them from an unbearable situation that no living being should endure. It’s important we keep pushing for reform and change to the agriculture laws within South Korea and effectively promote change from within,” Gina Boehler, the executive director of Korean K9 Rescue, said in a statement.
HSI added in its release that as part of the farm’s closure, the former owner signed a legally binding agreement that they would never farm dogs again.
The statement continued, “Thankfully, we are able to bring a happy ending for these young dogs who will receive all the medical care and attention they need before flying to North America later in the year to seek adoptive homes.”
A dog sits inside a crate after its rescue from a dog meat farm in Ansan City, South Korea, on Wednesday, July 13, 2022.Jean Chung/For HSI
According to HSI, President Yoon Suk-yeol and First Lady Kim Keon-hee of South Korea — who own four dogs together — have voiced their support for banning dog meat consumption in the country.
In 2021, theBBCreported that an estimated one million dogs are slaughtered yearly, even though most Koreans have never consumed dog meat.
HSI shared in its release that despite the lack of popularity in dog meat consumption, some people, especially older generations, believe that dog meat soup can “build stamina” and help cool the consumer down amid hot temperatures.
Dog meat consumption is banned in Hong Kong, Taiwan, the Philippines, India, Thailand, and Singapore, the cities of Shenzhen and Zhuhai in mainland China, the Siem Reap province in Cambodia, and 17 cities and regencies across Indonesia, HSI said, though the degrees of enforcement varies.
source: people.com
