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South Korea Shuts Down Its Largest Dog Meat Slaughterhouse

South Korea Shuts Down Its Largest Dog Meat Slaughterhouse

Dogs there would be electrocuted before being butchered for meat, according to US campaign group Humane Society International

Jess Hardiman

Jess Hardiman

South Korea's largest dog meat slaughterhouse has been shut down, the Daily Mail reports.

WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT


Seongnam city officials have said it will be cleared over two days, before being transformed into a public park.

The Taepyeong-dong complex in Seongnam city - which is south of Seoul - was home to at least six slaughterhouses, which could have held at least several hundred animals at any given time.

Dogs would be electrocuted before being butchered for meat, according to US campaign group Humane Society International.

When they visited the slaughterhouse - which was a major provider for dog meat restaurants across South Korea - activists had found electroctuion equipment, along with the bodies of dead dogs, blood-stained knives and a 'de-hairing machine'.

The 'de-hairing machines' at the slaughterhouse in South Korea.
Humane Society International

The closure of the site has been hailed as a 'landmark' and 'historic' moment by animal lovers, with hopes that other slaughterhouses in the country might soon follow suit.

HSI campaigner Nara Kim said: "Both as a Korean citizen and an animal campaigner, it was incredibly moving for me to a part of the historic closure of this notorious dog slaughterhouse.

"I shudder to think how many millions of beautiful dogs will have met their horrific fate at this place over the years. It was a stain on the city of Seongnam and we are so pleased to see it bulldozed.

"This really feels like a landmark moment in the demise of the dog meat industry in South Korea, and sends the clear message that the dog meat industry is increasingly unwelcome in Korean society."

Cages at the Taepyeong-dong dog meat slaughterhouse in Seongnam city.
Humane Society International

Korean Animal Rights Advocates (KARA) also said in a blog post that it was a 'historic moment'.

The post added: "It will open the door for more closures of dog meat slaughterhouses across the country, expediting the decline of the overall dog meat industry."

Currently, there are no laws regarding how dogs for meat should be treated or slaughtered in South Korea, where around one million canines are eaten each yeah - often as a summertime delicacy, believed to increase energy.

According to the Daily Mail, a survey last year found that 70 percent of South Koreans do not eat dogs - but only 40 percent actually believe dog meat should be banned.

65 percent, meanwhile, supported raising and slaughtering dogs in more humane conditions.

Featured Image Credit: Humane Society International

Topics: South Korea, News, Animals