In early January, South Korea made history by passing a long-awaited ban on the dog meat trade. While this is a monumental win for dogs in the country on paper, there’s still much to do before it goes into effect and we’ll be working as hard as ever with our rescue partner Jindo Love Rescue to save as many lives as we can.

On January 9, South Korea’s National Assembly passed a bill that makes the breeding, slaughter, and sale of dogs and dog meat for human consumption illegal as of 2027. During the phaseout period, those currently involved will be eligible for government support to help them transition into other livelihoods or close their businesses.

The change won’t be felt overnight, and there’s still a lot of work to do to change perceptions about big dogs, like Tosa Inus, and others who are seen as meat dogs, not companions. We also anticipate dog meat lobbyists to challenge the ban and try to find loopholes, and enforcement will be critical.

However, the bill finally eliminates the legal gray area this industry has been allowed to operate in and opens the door to criminal penalties — those found guilty of involvement will face hefty fines and potential jail time.

It also creates leverage for rescuers to save dogs who are being raised for meat, but we expect more resistance until the bill is enacted and the government makes it known that people will be prosecuted.

In the meantime, there are so many dogs in need of help who may still become victims of the meat trade and we’re doing our best with our partner Jindo Love Rescue to save them and place them in forever homes in North America — but we can’t do it without your support.

How You Can Help

Donations are vital to support dogs at our foster center in Gimhae. There are currently more than 40 there who are waiting to be adopted or to fly out, along with a dozen special dogs who are being boarded at a training school. They’re also critical to ensuring we’re ready to step in and help close down dog meat farms we’re made aware of, and provide immediate veterinary care for rescued dogs who are often in need of expensive treatments because of the neglect and mistreatment they’ve suffered.

You can help by making a donation, spreading the word about our ongoing need for flight volunteers to courier dogs to new homes, and by adopting  — you can find many available dogs on Jindo Love Rescue’s Facebook page.