200 dogs rescued from slaughter in win-win program with farm owners

Activists from Humane Society International (HSI), an international animal advocacy group, rescue dogs from a dog meat farm in Asan, South Chungcheong Province, Tuesday. The farm was the 18th dog meat farm to be closed down through the Models for Change program, which offers financial support to proprietors in return for closing down the facilities and giving up the dogs for adoption. Korea Times photo by Kim Kang-min

By Lee Hyo-jin

ASAN, South Chungcheong Province ― Just after the break of dawn on Tuesday, three vans drove down a narrow gravel road leading to a dog farm in Asan, South Chungcheong Province, some 100 kilometers from Seoul.

The dogs began barking as more than a dozen activists from Humane Society International (HSI) got out from the vehicles and approached the farm.

The maze-like compound was home to nearly 200 dogs that were locked up in filthy barren cages. Many of the canines barked and wagged their tails at the visitors, while others cowered with their ears flattened and tails tucked between their hind legs. Rusted farm equipment and food waste were found everywhere on the muddy ground. The smell of feces filled the air.

A dog farm in Asan that was closed down on Tuesday / Korea Times photo by Kim Kang-min

How long these dogs have been confined there without proper food or care ― watching helplessly as others got slaughtered ― was unknown.

But one thing was clear: Today would be their last day on the farm.

The dog farm was the 18th such facility to be closed down by HSI, an international animal advocacy group that campaigns to end the dog meat trade in several countries including South Korea, India, China and Vietnam.

The large-scale rescue operation in Asan was joined by staff members from the United States, United Kingdom, India, Mexico and Costa Rica. In the past few months, the activists had conducted health checkups and vaccinations on the dogs, getting them ready to fly to North America in search of a forever family.

Like the dog on the left in this photo, some of the canines at the farm were wearing collars, which indicates that they may have been pets at some point, according to HSI activists. Korea Times photo by Lee Hyo-jin

"Most of the canines here are Tosa dogs, one of the most commonly traded breeds in the dog meat market because they grow very quickly into a large size," said Seo Borami, director of government affairs at HSI Korea, as she showed this reporter around the farm.

"Some of these dogs are wearing collars, which indicates that they may have been pets at some point. You can see the looks on their faces as if they're wondering, 'how did I end up here?'" she said.

Eight nearly identical puppies and their mother, Canary, are locked up in a roofed cage with only a little amount of sunlight. Korea Times photo by Kim Kang-min

Among the dogs looking for attention were eight nearly identical puppies and their mother, Canary, who supposedly spent all their lives on the farm. The five-month-old puppies were locked up in a roofed cage with only a little amount of sunlight. The puppies squeezed their noses through the metal cage to sniff the visitors.

The activists carefully took the dogs out from their cages one by one and moved them into crates that had their new names scribbled on the top with a marker. The dogs were then loaded onto a truck headed to Incheon International Airport, to board a flight to the U.S. for overseas adoption.

At the end of the day, the dogs began a long voyage for a new life, leaving Korea's dog meat industry behind them.

HSI activists carry crates with dogs out of a farm in Asan. The dogs were then loaded onto a truck headed to Incheon International Airport, to board a flight to the U.S. for overseas adoption. Korea Times photo by Kim Kang-min

New career for farm owners, new life for dogs

Many would imagine that shutting down a dog farm would inevitably involve conflicts with farm owners who fiercely oppose taking away their livelihood. But that is not the case for the Models for Change Program launched by HSI in 2015.

Through individual contracts with farm owners, the NGO offers financial support in return for closing down the facilities and giving up the dogs for adoption, to help the proprietors transition into a new profession unrelated to animals.

In other words, the organization works with the dog meat industry and not against it. The win-win program has so far freed and sent abroad 2,700 dogs and helped nearly 20 farmers transition to a new career.

The owner of the farm in Asan, surnamed Yang, said he is relieved to leave the dog meat industry and wished happiness for the dogs flying to America in search of forever families. Korea Times photo by Kim Kang-min

In fact, the owner of the farm in Asan, surnamed Yang, first reached out to HSI last year, seeking help in closing down his not-so-profitable business.

"I started this business about thirty years ago, and before that, I used to work as a cargo truck driver. I began with only a few puppies, but the number grew to hundreds throughout the years," the 73-year-old said.

Declining demand amid growing support for a dog meat ban was the major reason why he decided to give up the farm, he said. "I can't tell you the exact figure (how much a dog costs in the black market), but I earned just enough to make a living."

"I'm relieved to leave the industry and I'm happy to hear that the dogs are flying to America to find new families where they will be treated like humans."

Yang said he will now farm cabbage for the rest of his life.

The farmer's cooperative attitude means a lot for HSI President Jeffrey Flocken, who himself adopted Chewbacca, a golden retriever rescued from a slaughterhouse in Yeoju, Gyeonggi Province a few years ago.

"I was just so thankful that Yang was working with us to help make these dogs move on to a new life. The dogs are incredible, they're beautiful," he said, adding that it was his first time visiting a dog farm in Korea.

A dog is locked up in a cage on a farm in Asan. Korea Times photo by Kim Kang-min

"They are in a highly stressed environment right now, so they're going to need a lot of care and attention. But they're moving to the right place and we are really excited to be able to help them."

HSI believes that now is the opportune moment to spur discussions about phasing out the dog meat trade in Korea.

President Yoon Suk Yeol and his wife Kim Keon Hee are known to be animal lovers who are raising four dogs and three cats. In June last year, Kim openly called for a ban on the dog meat trade.

Seen in this photo is a line of roofed cages, providing little or no amount of sunlight for the dogs locked inside. Korea Times photo by Kim Kang-min

In December 2021, the government formed a task force to bring forward recommendations concerning the issue, but after repeated delays, the NGO is now urging the government to begin a phase-out program mirroring its Models for Change program.

"We've been able to peacefully close down one to two farms a year. So we're really trying to show the Korean government that this model is actually working," said Wendy Higgins, director of international media at HSI.

Rep. Nam In-soon, a lawmaker of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea, who visited the dog farm on the day of the rescue, promised more legislative efforts for the dog meat ban.

"Seeing the conditions the dogs were in, it really made me realize that the discussions at the assembly have been too slow to help them," she said. "I will put more effort to come up with legislation based on HSI's rescue programs."

A dog is locked up in a cage in a farm in Asan. Korea Times photo by Kim Kang-min