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I know there’s been a lot of discussion on this blog recently about dog meat. As with any battle for a more humane future, the campaigning and advocacy work to end the dog meat trade requires persistence and strength of heart, which can require years of work. At times, the fight for a more humane

Recently, I told you about promising developments in the fight against dog meat in China, where law enforcement, government and animal advocates worked together to shut down an illegal slaughterhouse and rescue the 126 dogs found alive inside. Now I want to take you to Gyeonggi-do, South Korea

Note: This blog is part of a series highlighting how we fight—and win—for animals . This post focuses on our direct care, rescue and sanctuary work. Previous posts have covered how we’re ending the worst forms of institutionalized animal suffering through our efforts with corporations and

Chinese activists who fight the dog and cat meat trade see some pretty horrible sights in their work, and this is no less true of a recent rescue of 150 cats who were lured and trapped by thieves using wild-caught sparrows as bait. According to police—who arrested members of a gang in the city of

Before Lucky was known as Lucky, he was a nameless dog chained outside a shop in Yulin, China, with a sign in front of him advertising dog meat. He couldn’t have known that death was mere moments away, nor anticipate how his fate might change. Chinese animal activists—who are ramping up their fight

Not so long ago, for a golden retriever now known as Chewbacca (nicknamed Chewy), the whole world was the small, dirty space inside the four wire sides of his pen. The first five years of Chewy’s life were spent on a dog meat farm in South Korea. But Chewy was lucky. The farmer favored him and so

When I joined the Humane Society of the United States back in 1992 as a legal investigator, I couldn’t have predicted that my career path would lead me to the role I serve now, as president and CEO of the HSUS and CEO of Humane Society International. In my three decades of service, I’ve had the

Earlier this month we told you about Lucky, a dog saved moments before slaughter in Yulin, as the city began preparing for its infamous lychee and dog meat “festival” later in June. Since Lucky’s rescue, local activists have been vigilant in their determination to end this event for good. In the

The fortunate 34 dogs who arrived in the United States earlier this month have come quite a long way since our animal rescue responders first encountered them as victims of the dog meat industry in South Korea. Back in July, I told you about 21 dogs, whose fate was uncertain after government

Something extraordinary happened just outside a dog slaughterhouse and dog meat restaurant in Viet Nam where thousands of dogs and cats had been killed over the past five years: The owner of the facility approached the sign that advertised dog meat and started to tear it down. The work that led up

Not long ago, our Humane Society International team in South Korea discovered yet another heartbreaking scene on a dog meat farm: Dozens and dozens of dogs were locked in feces-filled cages awaiting slaughter. Many were pregnant, days away from giving birth to puppies who would only know a life of

Dozens of dogs are now safe after police raided an illegal dog meat slaughterhouse in Indonesia just moments before the slaughter began. Just as a truck loaded with 53 terrified dogs arrived at the slaughterhouse, in the early hours of November 24, the sting operation took place. The dogs were

Thanks to a tip-off from concerned citizens, the quick response of our Chinese partners at animal group Vshine and decisive action by law enforcement officials, two illegal dog slaughterhouses in a northern province of China are getting permanently closed down and more than fifty dogs rescued from

In a promising move for animal welfare, South Korean Democratic Party Assembly Member Jeoung-ae Han has introduced a legislative bill—called a Special Act—that, if passed, would end South Korea’s dog meat industry. Han’s bill, which is cosponsored by 11 other legislators, would outlaw the breeding

After Hurricane Irma struck in 2017, we responded to the British Virgin Islands where the storm had caused terrible devastation. Many people were forced to evacuate the island, but it was difficult to find transport for their animals. So, after providing the dogs required veterinary care, we flew

For the past seven years, Mr. Hung has been in the dog meat business in Viet Nam. He estimates that in that time, he has bought, sold and slaughtered as many as 20,000 dogs. Every couple of months, dog meat traders delivered around 50 puppies to Hung’s facility, where they were kept in filthy raised

Dozens of dogs are settling in at our care and rehabilitation center in Maryland after arriving last week from an illegal dog meat farm in South Korea. Members of our staff accompanied them on their flight, greeted them at JFK International Airport, rode with them to our rehabilitation center in

We continue to advance high-level action and advocacy to end the dog and cat meat trades in Indonesia as part of the Dog Meat Free Indonesia coalition: Three legislative proposals have been submitted this week by DMFI’s lawyers to the country’s parliament that, if voted into law, would transform

Sixteen dogs are now safe and recovering well, after being saved by our team from a dog meat restaurant and slaughterhouse in Dong Nai, Viet Nam. Our rescuers found them cowering in the corners of their small wire cages. Two of them were still wearing collars, signs of their former lives as beloved

The dog and cat meat trade worldwide continues to be one of the most pressing companion animal issues of our time. An estimated 30 million dogs and millions of cats—including stolen pets, dogs and cats taken from the streets or farmed—are trafficked and slaughtered every year. These animals suffer