The following is the translation from: http://blog.daum.net/julia607/15863144

A dog farm has been accused of serious animal cruelty, environmental pollution and the corpses of little puppies.

Most of Korea's dog farms are illegal. They are places of cruelty to animals and cause serious environmental pollution. Korea is a self proclaimed industrialized nation that is a member of the OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development). However when it comes to animal welfare their ignorance is beyond imagination. Could the world where animals suffer be a good place for people to live?

Below is a civil petition filed by someone to the Chungchungbukdo-provincial government about an illegal dog farm located near his house:

I am a resident at Dongyang-Myun, Jodong-Li. There is a illegal dog farm right next to our house. Due to the dog farm, the local residents are experiencing a lot of suffering and the natural environment is being damaged. I have filed civil petitions many times but there is only formal response without any action. In order to end the suffering of the citizens, I am filing this complaint.

First, we can't open our window 365 days of the year because of the terrible odor and the smell of decomposing excrement.

Second, due to the constant barking, we are extremely stressed out with anxiety.

Third, there are corpses of dead dogs in the excrement pit in front of the cages, causing severe fear and terrible odor.

Fourth, what's more serious is the sewage's pollution caused by the decomposing excrement and filth. And due to these pollutants, existing river is being seriously polluted and the most important reason why this can't be ignored is because this water flows down to the Chungju Dam which is a water supply protection zone.

Fifth, due to the excrements and filth, risks of diseases from flies, mosquitoes and parasites is very serious.

What is interesting is that some of these complaints are similar to those made by people around the world living near factory farms.

A recent article on the Wall Street Journal provides an overview of the conflict in Asian countries between changing attitudes and dog meat industries. The article can be read here: "Mercy in a Man-Eat-Dog World"

The main countries mentioned that still have thriving dog meat industries are China, Vietnam and, unfortunately, Korea. But the article's focus is on Thailand because while Thais are not dog eaters, the smuggling of dogs from Thailand to Vietnam is big business.

Of interest with regard to Korea in the article is the following statement:

Wealthy South Korea has an active dog-eating lobby, whose members point out that the dogs raised for meat on dog farms are a different breed than those raised to be household pets.

"People rely on this trade for their livelihood," says Sawong De-chalert, a retired English teacher in Sakon Nakhon who represents local traders who are lobbying the government to legalize the dog-meat trade.

Then there is the issue of what anthropologists call cultural relativism. Humans in one part of the world often consume things, from grubs to pigs, that others find taboo or simply inedible. Just try explaining the Scottish art of deep-frying pizzas to an Italian.

Here we see the same old silly arguments. First, the so-called special breed of dogs on dog farms are still just dogs like any other dog. It is irrelevant and misleading to say they are somehow different to household pets. In addition, some abandoned or sold household pets also end up as dog meat. In Korea's dog meat industry, all kinds of dogs can be found on dog farms and all kinds of dogs are killed for dog meat.

As for livelihood, dog farmers need to get into another business. What people don't realize is that gangsters sometimes invest in dog farms, so let's not start feeling sorry for the poor humble farmer. Many dog farms are just side-line operations, set up cheaply and run by people who don't care about animal welfare and who want to fatten their wallets.

Invariably, dog meat supporters will bring out the "cultural relativism" argument. Here is yet another irrelevant argument, because cruelty is wrong regardless of why or where it occurs. No tradition can justify cruelty. The "cultural relativism" argument doesn't hold up once you beginning looking behind the scenes. Then it's not so black and white, as dog meat proponents try to assert.

It's time for "wealthy South Korea" to abandon an old tradition that is unnecessary and that Koreans increasingly don't want to see in their society.

This is what a traditional-style toilet looks like. You can find them all over Asia. But this one has dogs living on and under it.

According to the SBS TV program that revealed this, the owner goes to the toilet here in order to feed his dogs. Yes, they have to eat human shit.

This practice goes way back, and in fact is probably where the name "shit dog" comes from, a traditional slang name often given to dogs in Korea. Needless to say, viewers were appalled.

Feeding human feces to pigs was a traditional practice on Korea's island of Jeju. The pigs were similarly called "dung pigs."

But there comes a time when backward and ignorant peasant practices and traditions have to be abandoned. They are nothing to be proud of and just make Korea look bad.

We can only hope the idiot in the SBS program will change his ways and give this mother and her pups decent food.

Update

We've been informed that another animal protection group has rescued these dogs. Possibly they had to buy them, which is sometimes how dogs are rescued in cases like this.

Some Aussies in Melbourne have gotten together and organized this fantastic fundraising event for In Defense of Animals' 7th International Day for Dogs and Cats in Korea.

Forks Off! have release the following statement about the event:

Forks Off! will inform, engage, inspire and motivate to work towards change, and support IDA with it's vital campaign. IDA works with two groups in South Korea, CARE and KARA who are at the coalface in championing change against these brutal industries.

We will also be raising funds to support CARE and KARA with their important work. As there is no South Korean embassy or consulate in Melbourne, this event will be filmed and sent to the South Korean embassy in Canberra. As well as informing of the terrible reality for millions of cats and dogs of South Korea via informed speakers, the event seeks to honor the significant relationships we have with our companion animals here in Melbourne.

Update: Sept. 2011

The Forks Off! event was a success and the group has kindly donated a million won to KARA's continuing anti-dog meat campaign. Thanks guys!