Home away from home for lost pets

[Guest guest]

http://www.koreaherald.co.kr/SITE/data/html_dir/2004/03/16/200403160028.asp

 

 

 

Mini was just past puppyhood when he was found

wandering the streets of Seoul in August. The deaf

white Pekingese was unneutered and had no tags or

other identification. Where he came from was a

mystery.

 

Hwang Mi-kyong of Bundang, a teacher and longtime

animal activist, already had two dogs but agreed to

foster Mini. She ended up keeping him. " There are many

Minis here, " said Hwang, 38, during a recent visit to

the Korea Animal Rescue and Management Center (Karma)

in Yangju, Gyeonggi Province, where three happy

Pekingese jumped up to greet the visitors. They were

among 400 animals awaiting adoption at this remote

site two hours from Seoul.

 

Hwang joined Karma's board of directors a little more

than a year ago. She also volunteers for Voice for

Animals. In December she was one of the activists who

picketed the Ministry of Agriculture building in

Gwacheon to protest the live burial of millions of

birds suspected of having avian influenza. She feels

personally responsible for the animals she helps.

 

But who is responsible for the stray animals trucked

away to Karma's shelter, far from the people who might

reclaim or adopt them? The organization has separate

contracts with 23 of Seoul's district or " gu " offices,

requiring it to pick up lost and abandoned companion

animals throughout most of the city. About 600 dogs

and cats are admitted to the facility every month and

held for 30 days. Only 10 to 15 percent are adopted.

 

Internationally, the animal welfare world is divided

about whether rescue organizations should sign

contracts to pick up strays, thereby agreeing to kill

those who can't be adopted.

 

Animal advocates in Costa Rica have deliberately

chosen not to build shelters, instead focusing their

efforts on spaying and neutering, according to the

November 2003 editorial in Animal People, a U.S.

newspaper that covers animal rescue efforts throughout

the world.

 

The newspaper's editors praise the Costa Rican

program, ·······saying shelters in any community

inevitably fill up unless enough people have their

animals spayed and neutered. " Poor areas, rural areas

and developing nations ... cannot afford to repeat the

mistakes of the rich, " Animal People writes, citing

the Costa Rican veterinarian who co-founded what it

calls the " no-kill, no shelter " program.

 

The Korea Animal Protection Society, which operates a

shelter in Daegu and opposes the use of dogs and cats

for meat, told The Korea Herald that stray animal

" control " was a government responsibility. So while

the organization does pick up strays, it can't accept

every animal due to limited space.

 

" Animals that we cannot take into our shelter we do

euthanize, " said spokeswoman Kum Kye-nan, " otherwise

they will certainly end up in the markets, where they

will suffer greatly before being killed for the profit

of greedy butchers. "

 

Hwang argued that a painless death was better than

hunger, illness and traffic accidents and said half

the animals at Karma came in with diseases. And the

land in Yangju belongs to the government, which chose

not to provide a more expensive location closer to the

city, she explained.

 

An additional reason for Karma's low adoption rate is

the number of feral cats picked up primarily because

people can't stand the sight of them. Often they prove

difficult to tame, Hwang said. " Most cats are

euthanized, " she said. " I'm very sorry (for) that but

the district offices must do their job. If they don't,

some people protest to the government. "

 

Both Karma and KAPS spay and neuter animals prior to

adoption and encourage the public to follow their

example. Eventually KAPS plans to offer low-cost

spaying and neutering for the companion animals of

people who can't afford the surgery. Ground has been

broken for a new shelter in the Chungcheong area and

the envisioned spay/neuter clinic will be part of it.

The organization can't provide the service yet due to

lack of funds but refers needy people to a

veterinarian with lower rates, Kum said.

 

Korea's 1991 Animal Protection Law is widely seen as

toothless and has resulted in only two convictions.

Animal advocates say penalties are weak and there is

no clear means of enforcement, as The Korea Herald

reported in 2002 when the government was considering

changes amid some well-publicized protests ahead of

the soccer World Cup. Despite those efforts, the

situation hasn't changed much, activists say. Recently

the Ministry of Agriculture reintroduced the same

amendments.

 

KAPS has urged its supporters to reject the changes,

taking issue with the ministry's definition of " pet

animals " as dogs and cats raised for companionship.

The organization warns that such a definition could

legitimize the dog meat trade and allow it to grow.

 

Hwang would like any future law to reduce the number

of homeless animals by regulating the pet industry and

requiring people to identify their companion animals

with a tag or microchip implant. Animal advocates

should also have the power to seize animals from

abusive guardians, she said.

 

People who want companion animals have many choices:

They can support breeding by purchasing from pet

stores or street vendors or they can make the trip to

Yangju or Daegu. Karma has dogs of all breeds and

sizes - cocker spaniels, golden retrievers, beagles,

bassett hounds, teacup poodles, many kinds of mixed

breeds and a friendly Jindo dog who " guards " the

premises, just to name a few. Many cats need homes

too. There are also smaller, volunteer-based groups

like Arumpoom that build networks of foster homes and

post pictures of adoptable animals on the Internet.

 

Kum implores people to stay away from pet stores.

 

" We desperately need people to adopt dogs and cats

from our shelter and not purchase purebreds from pet

shops. Deciding the worthiness of an animal's life

based on its purity is morally wrong. Please contact

Kum Sun-nan at our KAPS shelter in Daegu if you want

to adopt any of our lovable dogs and cats. We have

hundreds of them to choose from, all of them very

adoptable. "

 

()

By Cahill

 

2004.03.16

 

 

 

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Friends of dogs

http://www.friendsofdogs.net

Dogs brighten our life with their gift of love. It is our turn to help our dogs.

Please help organisations who are fighting to get dogs out of the food chain.

 

http://www.koreananimals.org/

http://www.animalsasia.org/

http://www.linisgobyerno.org/special_projects.htm

 

 

 

 

 

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