What happened to the hundreds of thousands of dogs that disappeared in South Korea?

The law banning dog meat in South Korea only comes into effect next year, but the industry has almost disappeared — and almost no one knows what happened to the animals removed from the farms.

Electric prods lean against the wall, next to rusty cages filled with dog skulls, in an abandoned dog slaughterhouse in a South Korean city.

The deserted site, in Pyeongtaek, south of Seoul, gives a glimpse of a fast-disappearing industry as the historic dog meat ban in South Korea is preparing to come into force next year.

And it also raises a question: what happened to the hundreds of thousands of dogs that were raised for human consumption?

Historically considered an “energy booster”, especially among older people and in rural areas, dog meat has been losing popularityas younger South Koreans come to see dogs as companion animals and public attitudes change.

In January 2024, the country approved a law that prohibits the creation, slaughter and sale of dogs for food. When it comes into effect in February, violators risk prison sentences of up to three years. As the ban approaches, the industry is disappear much faster than many expected.

Government data shows that, in 2024, between 400,000 and 450,000 dogs were being bred for meat. Today, the Ministry of Agriculture estimates that there are only 20,000 left on farms.

There are no statistics on the evolution of dog meat consumption, but there is a consensus that it is popular. only among a small minority of South Korea’s 51 million inhabitants.

To help breeders with the transition, the government offered up to 600,000 won, about 340 euros for each dog removed.

However, the State only verified that the dogs were no longer on farms or slaughterhouses before paying compensation, but did not track whether they had been adopted, sent to shelters or killed.

“Our role is to verify that dogs are no longer present on farms or slaughter facilities before we grant compensation,” a ministry inspector told AFP on condition of anonymity.

“We are not involved in what was done with the dogs”, he added.

“They have already been eaten”

Data obtained by a deputy of the South Korean National Assembly shows that, until February, only 623 dogs had been adopted and just under 500 had been sent to shelters.

Most of the remaining was probably killedbelieve animal protection groups and former breeders.

“If a large number of rescued dogs had entered adoption programs, animal protection groups like ours would know,” he said. Kim Young-hwanrepresentative of the NGO . “We didn’t see any adoption campaigns for dogs rescued from meat farms,” he told AFP.

In more than two decades, CARE says it has rescued and found new families for around 2,500 breeding dogs, most sent abroad. Just about two dozen were adopted in the countrypartly due to South Koreans’ preference for small breeds, better suited to apartment life.

Os dogs bred for consumption were often large breedssuch as the Nureongi, also known as the Korean yellow spitz.

“In South Korea, a distinction has long been made between dogs that are raised for food and dogs kept as companion animals,” he told AFP Ju Yeong-bongformer dog breeder.

Asked about the fate of the thousands of unaccounted dogs, he acknowledged that probably “already been eaten”.

This possibility is “revolting”said Kim of CARE. But the reality is that the country’s animal protection groups don’t have the resources to rescue more dogs, he added.

A betrayal

According to the Ministry of Agriculture, 1,265 dog farms, around 82% of the total, had requested to close by May.

Ju, who is also a Christian pastor, began his exploration of dogs in 1994, after realizing that could not survive solely from religious ministry.

“I feel that the dog meat ban is a betrayal“, he told AFP. “It was imposed for political reasons, without meaningful dialogue or adequate measures to protect our livelihoods.”

Many other former dog breeders are trying move to other businesses livestock, but the government’s lengthy licensing process has made the transition difficult, Ju added.

For activists, the change in the law will not only end the consumption of dogs, but also close an “old gap” around the treatment of these animals, said Park Joo-yeonlawyer and head of the animal rights organization PNR.

Unlike what happens with cattle or pigs, in South Korea dogs have never been legally classified as livestock animalswhich allowed the industry to operate for decades without rules about humane breeding and slaughter.

The dogs were often killed by electrocutionhanging or beating, say animal rights activists. At the Pyeongtaek facility, AFP journalists saw abandoned tools allegedly used to electrocute dogs.

“Often, remained conscious while their internal organs burned“, he told AFP Shin Joo-woonKARA activist. “The other dogs watched the process.”

KARA of Pyeongtaek Farm last month and filed a complaint against the owner for cruelty to animals, a practice prohibited by law.