Welcome, Animal Lovers and Activists all around the World!

This is a temporary website for CARE(Coexistence of Animal Rights on Earth, South Korea) to serve English speaking viewer.

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July 14-International Day of Action for Dogs & Cats in Korea

The International Day of Action for Dogs and Cats in Korea is July 14. In Defense of Animals (IDA) will again be co-sponsoring this worldwide event to stop the terrible suffering these animals endure. IDA is working with the South Korean animal protection organizations Coexistence for Animal Rights on Earth (CARE) and Korean Animal Rights Advocates (KARA) to end the brutal slaughter of dogs and cats for human consumption. Forced to live in tiny, filthy cages and killed in unimaginably cruel ways, they deserve a voice.
On July 14, IDA intends to have activists posted at the Korean Embassy in Washington D.C. and as many Korean Consulates and Embassies around the world as possible. Won’t you join us? To host a demonstration in your area, please contact hope@idausa.org.

Scheduled Events

Korean Embassy in San Francisco
3500 Clay St.
San Francisco, CA
11 a.m. – 1 p.m.
Contact: Hope
(415) 448-0043 ex.211
hope@idausa.org

Korean Embassy in New York
460 Park Ave. (at 57th St.)
New York, NY
4 p.m. – 6:30 p.m
Contact: Garo-Compaion Animals Network
(718) 544-7387
garo@companionanimalnetworktv.org

Korean Embassy in Los Angeles
3243 Wilshire Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA
11 a.m. – 12 noon
Contact: Bill
(310) 301-7730
bill@idausa.org

Korean Embassy in Washington D.C.
2320 Massachusetts Ave.
Washington, DC
11 a.m. – 12 noon
Contact: Annie
(757) 374-8112
annie@idausa.org

Korean Embassy in Seattle, W.A.
2033 Sixth Ave. #1125
Seattle, WA 98121
11 a.m. – 12 noon
Contact: Sandy Clinton
(206) 618-4930
numptyland@yahoo.com

Korean Embassy in Newton, MA.
One Gateway Center
Newton, MA 02458
TBA -
Contact: Laura Ray
(617) 512-3468
laurasunray@hotmail.com

Korean Embassy in Honolulu, HI.
2756 Pali Hwy.
Honolulu, HI
12 – 2 p.m.
Contact: Lauren Luis
lauren_luis@yahoo.com

Pack Park
Pack Park (corner of Patton & Bilymore Ave.)
Asheville, NC
11:30 a. – 1:00 p.m
Contact: Justine Mayela
(352) 317-2080
justinemayela@gmail.com

Embassy to The Republic of Korea in Dublin
15 Clyde Rd.
Ballsbridge, Dublin 4, Ireland
12:30 p. – 2:30 p.m
Contact: Laura Broxson, Campaign Organizer / Press Officer, National Animal Rights Association
086-8729-444
naracampaigns@gmail.com

Seoul, South Korea
location: TBA
Seoul, South Korea
time: TB -
Contact: Yuni, Korean Animal Rights Advocates
010-3459-7797
yunismart@hanmail.net

Cochabamba, Bolivia
Plaza Publica (in front of the Mayor’s Office and the Prefect’s Office)
Cochabamba, Bolivia
9:30 a.m – 12 noon
Contact: Liliana Tellez Flor- Association for Defense of Animal Rights
00-591-4-4725388
carlosfcgcunha@gmail.com

Lima, Peru
location: TBA
Lima, Peru
time: TB -
Contact: Viviana
(511) 436-1487
apdaperu@gmail.com

Santa Rosa, CA.
Courthouse Square (corner of 4th and D St.)
Santa Rosa, CA
4:00 p.m – 6:00 p.m
Contact: Pinky
(707) 542-4510
pinkyscout@yahoo.com

South Korean Embassy in Ontario, Canada
150 Boteler St.
Ottawa, Canada
3:00 p.m – 4:00 p.m Contact: Susan Manns
613-828-3782
desimanns@yahoo.com

Long Beach, CA.
5200 E. 2nd St.
Long Beach, CA 90803 USA
6 p.m. – 8 p.m. Contact: Robyn Hicks
562-213-8530
robynisrosy@yahoo.com

Nova Scotia, Canada
Location: TBA
Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada
time: TB – Contact:
veryamanda29@yahoo.com

Korean Embassy in Houston, TX.
1990 Post Oak Blvd. #1250
Houston, TX 77056 USA
time: TB – Contact: Elaine Hutzelman
281-556-5913
emhutzelman@sbcglobal.net

Korean Embassy in Atlanta, GA.
229 Peachtree Street Suite 500, International Tower
Atlanta, GA 30303 USA
10:30 a. – 12 noon Contact: Amy Ryan
ajillryan@yahoo.com

Seoul, South Korea
Insadong, Seoul In Korea
Seoul, Korea
time: TB – Contact: Han Min-Seoup, Coexistence of Animal Rights on Earth, CARE
82-10-46612-9605 or 82-2-313-8886
grimnara1969@yahoo.com

39 dogs out of the hell – Neglection is another kind of cruety!

One tiny old shabby house in Seoul… There were dogs that had never seen a bright sun. Dogs all looked the same as they were born of 2-3 same sire and dam. The lady-who claimed to be their owner- drank everyday and beat them with a metal club.
A number of dogs was growing as none of dogs were spayed or neutered. They were all white and Maltese mix. Due to the overpopulation, puppies were bitten to death.

Dogs were stressed out in a tiny space and filthy condition made them hard to breath. Dogs were covered with feces. Their hair was tangled and it looked like they were carrying dangled rocks all over their body.

A space of less than 50sq is all they could live in. 39 dogs were barely surviving in this filthy condition and from the cruety by the owner.
There were only 39 dogs… They survived. But there had been more dogs that died before CARE went there to rescue them…

In early June, 2009, one lady called in and asked if CARE could take her dogs. The lady said that she had been receiving so many complaints from her neighbors so that she could not keep her dogs. She asked us to take a half of her dogs and would have them back when she moves to a new place. CARE went to her place to check the condition. We all were shocked by the terrible condition; Feces were piled everywhere in her house and dogs apparently looked in pain. One could not stay in there even in 5 minite due to foul smell. The lady is an achoholic and she habitually bit her dogs. The dogs seemed to be scared by people as they’d never had a chance to meet and socialized with human, except the lady. It seemed like that dogs picked and attacked the weakiest one in the pack as means of stressing out.

She is an animal collector… so called animal hoarder.
 The lady told us that oneday she found out that 18 puppies(from several female dogs) were all dead when she came back after having ran some errands.

After visiting the site, CARE tried to find the best way to solve the issue but was not able to come up with one since the lady seemed to have no intention to improve at all. We would never let her take her dogs back. She was so obsessive about her dogs so it was unlikely to take over the ownership of the dogs.
But time is running… We could wait no longer. We had to isolate the dogs from the lady and take them in a shelter where they could at least breath in fresh air.

CARE persuaded the lady to send her dogs to a shelter. She finally agreed on- all of them.

On rescue day…

An offensive ammonia smell in the dusky damp house assailed the nostrils of rescue workers.
Dogs were terrified when rescurers arrived.  It took about 2 hours to have all 39 dogs loaded onto the truck.
Every one of them were taken out from the lady’s house.

They were all moved to the CARE shelter. In next two days, volunteer workers rushed in and they washed dogs. Most of the dogs needed to be shaved. Now we can see their eyes. Now we can see how beautiful they are.

 We are currently doing medical examination on the dogs and evaluation.
The next thing? They need new homes. CARE shelter already has reached its capacity. These 39 dogs-out of the hell- are now looking for a new home and loving family. We will try our best to find them a new home.
Thank you all who had helped us to save these dogs.

Controversy… Against Dog-Meat Fanciers’ Claim

(contribution by So-Yeon Park, Kyong-Ok Jeon, & Jihyun Jun)

   Use of dogs for meat and the methods of slaughter used have generated friction between animal right activists (including dog lovers), both Western and Korean, and people who eat dogs; the conflict occasionally breaks out as headline news. During the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, Korea’s capital city, the South Korean government asked its citizens not to consume dog meat to avoid bad publicity during the games. The controversy surfaced again in 2001 during the 2002 FIFA World Cup. The organizer of the games, under pressure from animal rights groups such as PETA, demanded that the Korean government re-address the issue. However, today in Korea, a segment of the population still enjoy bosintang (literally “invigorating soup”) made of dog-meat, believing it to have medicinal properties, particularly as relates to virility. Dog meat is also believed to keep one cool during the intense Korean summer. Unlike beef, pork, or poultry, dog meat has no legal status as food in South Korea. Some in South Korea and abroad believe that dog meat should be expressly legalized so that only authorized preparers can deal with the meat in more humane and sanitary ways, while others think that the practice should be banned by law.

    Some Koreans argue for legalizing dog-meat trade only because it is currently being consumed. Dog meat fanciers’ illogic obstinacy can be summarized in the six points as below. They are saying that ;
Those who argue for legal dog meat are saying that;

  1. “There are many people who consume dog meat currently.”
  2. “I don’t eat dogs but I don’t care if others eat dogs.”
 3. “For food safety, dog meat trade should become legal since it is already being consumed.”
  4. “Legal dog meat trade will stop the abuse and cruelty on dogs.”
 5. “It can even restrict distribution of pet dogs.”
 6. “Dog meat is Korean traditional cuisine and its own food culture.”

   

    Animal right activists in Korea fight against dog-meat fancier’s such speculative claims. The argument by dog-meat fancier is unrealistic and unjustifiable. Activists-we- ought to have a pretty good reason why dog-eating- as opposed to the eating of other animals, which they tolerate – is unjustifiable to legalize. Alleged reasons like ‘Dogs are smarter than pigs’, ‘Dogs are men’s best friends’, or ‘Dogs are pets and companion animals’ are not enough to justify dog-meat ban. Rational behind the ban on dog-meat should be viewed and explained by looking at the problems associated with modern society’s institutionalized animal farming system.

Why Should We Ban Dog-Meat?

 (1) Aggrevation of problems in livestock industry system – Farm animal abuse in still in place or increasing 

If dog-meat becomes legal, this means that dogs will be treated like other farm animal under the control of livestock system. Today’s farming industry lies in factory style, or enterprise style. Livestock industry in Korea has grown in size to large scale farming. For example, less than one percent of chicken farm were large scale farm with over 3,500 chickens in 1990. It grows to 48.9 percent in 2007. Each farm’s size has grown over the decades.

poor condition of some farm animals in Korea

Those who argue in favor of legal dog-meat say that the cruel treatment is due to the lack of regulation, thus it needs to be regulated just like pigs and chickens. But current livestock in Korea – cattle, pigs, and chickens – for them, the condition is far from humane. A farming system that aims to produce affordable livestock products at low cost is bound to totally disregard the ecology of animals. It is an outright abuse to cut tails and teeth of pigs without anesthesia upon birth. It is an abuse to cram them in confining pigsty to keep them from moving around. Farmers frequently use electric batons to waste no time in butchering pigs that can not walk without faltering due to lack of exercise. Farmers drain blood out of pigs that are still awake. They do so because some people believe the myth that knocking pigs out completely tend to spoil meat quality. Enlisting dogs as livestock would be nothing but adding one more species into the bracket of animal kinds that are to be abused. 

(2) Overuse of antibiotics
With the rise in stress level under the poor raising conditions, farm animals are more susceptible to diseases. And this calls for excessive use of antibiotics. Livestock and fishery industry account for 50 percent of total antibiotics consumption in Korea. This marks the highest level in the world.

use of antibiotics by country

Korea uses antibiotics sixteen times more than Denmark that produces 1.2 times more livestock products. Even the US that produces 24 times more uses just 3.8 times more of antibiotics than Korea. It is said that antibiotics is being overused in dog-meat. Would ‘legal dog-meat’ reduce the use of antibiotic? No.

(3) Government budget burden on livestock management and disease control
Legal dog-meat would also increase the budget burden for the government. Livestock product administration requires significant amount of costs and resources in relation to refrigeration, freezing, quarantine and health inspection, etc.
38 million dollars is allocated to the National Veterinary Research & Quarantine Service that is responsible for providing quarantine service over the entire lifecycle of livestock products from raising to butchering and consumption(year?). It is questionable whether the ministry of agriculture can afford to take on increased workload resulting from incorporation of dog in livestock category when the Ministry is already outstretched with responsibilities for controlling BSE, AI and brucellosis. Budget burden on the government will in turn become a tax burden to taxpayers. And as a matter of fact, there was a media report that the Seoul city government did not welcome the idea of legalizing dog meat with the BSE issues escalated into a social scandal.
(4) Environmental Issues – another budget burden
Also, the government will have to allocate more budgets and address more of environmental pollution in the wake of the proliferation of factory-like farming system. According to the ministry of agriculture, the amount of farm animal waste is increasing by one percent each year since 2001. The farm animal produces 45 million tons of waste. Among them, one pig produces five kilograms of waste a day. It is said that a dog also produces a half of the pig’s waste. And 83 percent of animal waste is re-used as compost. The cost for the animal-waste reuse process is 169 million dollars, as expected by the ministry of agriculture.
The revised Livestock Night Soil Disposal Act(가축분뇨처리법) requires dog farmers with facilities of 60 square meters to have proper waste disposal facilities and report them to local authorities. According to the ministry of environment, there are about 75 thousand dog-meat farms nationwide, raising some 2.3 million dogs as of 2005. The ministry estimated one third of them must follow the new regulations. And the ministry also expects the cost to furnish livestock waste processing systems would be 17 million US dollars. Another tax burden!