The annual dog meat festival begins today in Yulin, China, where thousands of dogs will be killed for their meat. The shocking tradition is a 10-day event and sees over 10,000 dogs killed, skinned and cooked.
The festival attracts huge negative reactions worldwide due to the inhumane treatment of the domesticated animals. Activists who have attended the festival in protest witnessed the brutal slaughtering of the dogs which included clubbing and boiling.
This year marks the tenth anniversary of the event which only began in 2009 to mark the summer solstice. According to Chinese folklore, eating dog meat during the summer months brings luck, good health, wards off disease and heightens male sexual performance.
While it is seen as barbaric and shocking in most Western cultures, killing dogs for meat is not illegal in China. Even though the festival is relatively new, the tradition dates back 400 years.
However, in recent years the Chinese pet industry has grown significantly, meaning the nation’s tolerance for the festival is quickly diminishing. It was recorded that there are now 62 million registered pets in the country now that the ban for domesticating dogs has been lifted.
As the festival is constantly under huge international scrutiny, there is a possibility that it will have the same fate of a similar festival that was run in the Chinese province of Zhejiang which was banned in 2011 by authorities.
However, the Yulin Municipal Government has stressed on a number of occasions that they are powerless when it comes to the festival as it is not registered as an official event, but rather run by the locals.
Animal activist group, Humane Society International (HSI) have been fighting against the tradition for years and recently rescued 135 dogs from the slaughterhouse earlier this week. The group shared a photo of 65 dogs that were now being taken care of in a northern Chinese veterinary shelter.
Earlier this week, HSI submitted a letter with 235,000 signatures that was endorsed by 87 Chinese animal protection groups to call for an end to the festival. HSI’s Adam Parascandola published a statement about the horror he has witness first hand.
“The annual Yulin festival has come to symbolise the cruelty of this abhorrent trade, and in a few days’ time thousands of dogs and cats, mostly stolen pets, will take their last terrified breaths in a Yulin slaughterhouse. I have witnessed the horror of that scene first hand, and it’s something I will never forget. This year is the Year of the Dog, and there’s no better opportunity to end the suffering,” he said.
The dogs are said to be packed into cramped cages to be transported from varying cities across China. Witness have seen dogs with collars still around their necks meaning they are most likely pets who were stolen from local homes.
The festival is not traditional nor official, but rather created by dog traders to turn over a higher profit in their industry.