Hundreds of dogs saved from slaughter in China
The 320 dogs who were rescued had been on this truck for 12 hours at least, enduring the summer heat, with no access to food and water. Photo by CAPP
China is at the center of the dog meat industry, with as many as 10 million dogs slaughtered each year for human consumption. We are committed to abolishing the whole cruel, unscrupulous practice and enterprise, and last weekend, we put yet another dent in that rickety façade. Members of China Animal Protection Power, a coalition of local groups organized by Humane Society International, rescued 320 dogs in a truck bound for Jilin, the second largest dog meat market in China.
The dogs had been on the truck for 12 hours at least, enduring the summer heat, with no access to food and water. All were friendly and social, says Peter Li, HSI’s China specialist, suggesting they could have been household pets who were very likely stolen. Activists found that four of the dogs had already delivered premature puppies on the truck.
The rescue operation was significant for many reasons: the truck was stopped very close to the dog meat market and – in an unusual development – the activists persuaded the trader to sign the dogs over to their care without paying him a penny. This is also CAPP’s first successful rescue operation so close to Jilin, a major hub of China’s dog meat industry where dog meat traders have a strong presence. The rescue was completed within 24 hours because it was efficiently and successfully coordinated by activists from several cities in China.
The dogs are now receiving medical care and will eventually be placed for adoption within China. Above, one of the dogs rescued from the truck. Photo by CAPP
The number of Chinese who actually eat dog meat is far from a majority of the people in the world’s biggest nation – an HSI poll showed that 70 percent of Chinese have never once eaten dog meat. China does not have dog farms and the industry is at best opportunistic and at worst criminal – with most of the dogs slaughtered for food consisting of stolen pets. But even while the percentages are small, the total amount of killing is too large to fathom. The much publicized Yulin dog meat festival is just a tiny piece of the country’s dog meat trade. To make a real difference, our fight against the dog meat trade goes on year round – a task undertaken by CAPP with HSI support – by confronting dog meat traders, meat markets, and trucks bound for slaughter. Last week, our partner groups in China succeeded in getting the mayor of Yulin barred from a high-profile forum in Beijing, in protest of his failure to end the mass dog slaughter in the city.
The rescue in Jilin comes on the heels of our work in June to end the Yulin festival where we rescued 171 dogs and five cats from slaughter in the meat markets. Elsewhere in Asia, our work to shut down dog meat farms in South Korea continues, with five meat farms closed and hundreds of dogs rescued so far and many adopted out to homes in the United States and Canada. HSI India recently launched a campaign to end the dog meat trade in Nagaland, a state in India where 30,000 stray and stolen pets are sold in live markets and beaten to death with wooden clubs.
The dogs rescued from the truck bound for slaughter in China are now being cared for at a facility where they are receiving medical care and will eventually be placed for adoption within China. The nightmare for these dogs is over, but we will not rest until we have made sure that no dog anywhere in the world dies a cruel death on the butcher’s block.
I am horrified that a country like South Korea, more westernized than other Asian countries, on the the cutting edge of technology in a variety of sectors would put up with such a backward and barbaric practice of raising dogs and cats for the meat trade. It appears that if the practice is not stopped, consumers will start having to make their feelings known with their wallets – stop buying Samsung and Kia, just to name a few. The practice has no place in any culture in the 21 Century. It is barbaric and patently wrong!
I agree. I cannot understand a country that would allow this and how people can stand by and watch these innocent animals being slaughtered. I can only believe that these people are sub-human. Our business will stop purchasing any and all products involved with So. Korea and I will be a very vocal supporter of stopping this practice. This practice need to be shown in all media outlets.
I agree with you on not eating dogs and cats, BUT SERIOUSLY we should not be slaughtering ANY animal to eat…we should all be vegans!!! Animals are sentient beings…they do not want you to take their life unless they give you permission to do so….Therefore karmically you will be punished if you steal the life of an animal. All creatures borne to a life have the divine right to live their life to the full…. Humans need to respect the sanctity of life, humans need to not be egotistical, arrogant and barbaric. Humans need to stop being lazy and they should find a totally new way of eating, vegan style….to cultivate a loving and nurturing outlook on life towards all living creatures. This is what God wants…(I am a psychic medium, God has specifically told me to fight the dog festivals and to encourage veganism…) We are in the new age of enlightenment and we are seeking a higher consciousness at this time…this cannot happen if we do not show compassion to animals on the earth and to each other….
Lets take out the words dogs and cats and put in the words pigs and cows.
I dont support korean products…i will boycott them all because they eat dogs!!! I hate any countries that eat dogs… dogs are family!!!! They are uncivilized and barbaric!!!
I’ve already started doing that! Disgusting country with no compassion whatsoever.
This is barbaric and shameful. Food is abundant in China and S. Korea. The wanton cruel acts committed against these wonderful animals show the true character of these “so called” modern nations.
Something needs to be done about these people–just read that in Yulin, China they have a dog eating week and bludgeoned to death 10,000 dogs. I will never buy another product if I know it is made in China. These “men” are truly the absolute bottom of the barrel. You need to do more to save these dogs–something major. Make sure the whole world knows what these WORTHLESS people do to dogs. It’s an outrage!
I to am horrified. The cruelty that these poor creatures have to endure is horrific. They are cooked, skinned, boiled, blow torched alive and more. Any human being that can commit such an act should not be allowed into society. This barbaric behaviour should not be allowed anywhere on this planet. The cruelty in these countries towards dog, cats and all other creatures must stop. They believe that if the animal is in distress when being cooked the meat will be more tender. We need more media coverage to shock the world into stopping these sick countries from committing such cruelty. Please google Marc Ching.
I heard that a van load of dogs from China, was seen going to Canada, a picture of dogs and van was posted on facebook!
Shame on China!!
Don’t kill innocent animals