Seeking an end to dog meat in South Korea

A South Korean dog farm, 2008: the highly unnatural and unsanitary conditions that cause so much distress to the dogs.
© Korean Animal Welfare Association (KAWA)

Since 2005, WSPA has been working with local member society the Korean Animal Welfare Association (KAWA) to end the cruelty and suffering involved in all stages of the dog meat trade.

The campaign, which also aims to raise the status of companion animals in the country, has a dual approach. It is:

• raising public awareness by informing South Korean people about the cruelty within the trade and explaining the welfare needs of dogs and other animals

• investigating cruelty and lobbying the government in order to expose animal welfare abuses within the trade and highlight inconsistencies in the existing legislation, which only protects ‘pet’ animals from abuse.

Both approaches involve battling the misinformed belief that there are two distinct types of dog: ‘pet’ dogs – of which there are approximately 5 million in South Korea – and ‘meat’ (or ‘yellow’) dogs. KAWA’s campaign aims to destroy this myth.

An end in sight?

WSPA and KAWA are working to destroy the myth that ‘yellow’ dogs like this, farmed for their meat, are a species apart from Korea’s much-loved pet dogs.
© AFK supporter

While we have a long way to go, the good news is that opinion polls in South Korea – where animal welfare is a relatively new concept – suggest that the consumption of dogs and cats is reducing in popularity, especially within the younger generation.

KAWA’s work, funded by WSPA supporters, is harnessing this trend in order to promote respect for dogs, cats (who are also cruelly killed for meat), and by extension, all animals.

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Read more about our work to end the dog meat trade >>