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| A Korean shorthair cat rests on a cushion at The Bom Center, a shelter for abandoned animals founded by domestic animal advocacy group KARA in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, Sept. 9, 2021. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul |
By Lee Hae-rin
Park Mun-su, a 33 year-old Seoul-based program developer, rescued two Korean shorthair kittens ― Marry and Milk ― from his neighborhood seven years ago. He had never planned on bringing animals into his household, but said he felt an undeniable bond with the kittens after rescuing them, a connection he simply couldn't ignore.
Park and his wife said they believe an animal's value and worth "cannot be determined by its breed." If they had to do it again, they would still choose to rescue and adopt pets in need of help instead of buying purebreds from pet shops. Park added that they are particularly proud of their Korean shorthairs Marry and Milk, since such breeds are less prone to genetic disorders and hereditary health conditions while also being naturally amiable.
Korean shorthairs are domestic mixed-breed cats of unidentified ancestry, stigmatized as strays or feral cats here. But in recent years, cat enthusiasts have rebranded them, mirroring the naming convention of other domestic shorthair breeds from abroad, such as the American shorthair, in an effort to dispel the longstanding bias and stigma attached to the felines.
There's an increasing trend favoring Korean shorthair cats as pets, while the practice of buying expensive pure breeds is on the decline. This shift is due to a heightened awareness of animal rights and welfare, a recent report shows.
According to KB Financial Institute of Management's Korea Pet Report 2023, released, Sunday, the Korean shorthair overwhelmingly topped the list of the country's favorite cat breeds ― 62.1 percent out of 2.39 million domestic cats across the country are Korean shorthairs, which is a whopping 16.9 percentage point jump from the 2021 edition of the report.
Following popularity were Persians and Russian Blue, accounting for only 15 and 11.9 percent of the feline population, respectively.
The report attributes such a dramatic increase to the growing awareness for animal welfare, as over half ― 57.7 percent ― of Korean shorthair owners said they adopted stray or abandoned cats instead of buying one from pet shops.
The report also highlights that adopting pets from animal shelters or rescuing stray animals has become the preferred way of adding an animal companion to the family, particularly among younger generations. Around 23 percent of the respondents in their 20s and 30s indicated their choice to adopt rather than buy, up significantly from 19 percent in 2021.
An affinity for mixed breed dogs, frequently found in puppy mills or animal shelters, has also increased. Mutts were the sixth most favored in 2018, accounting for 8.4 percent of choices for pets, but the figure gradually rose to fourth, at 10.7 percent, in 2021, and soared to the third most popular choice this year at 20.3 percent.
This trend is fueled by an increasing disapproval of puppy and kitten mills, where animals are bred en masse under unsanitary and inhumane conditions. According to a 2021 survey by the Gyeonggi Provincial Government, 77 percent of respondents said people should adopt pets from government-approved professional breeders or animal shelters, rather than buying from pet shops.
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