- [Narrator] Across Asia an estimated
30 million dogs are slaughtered each year
as meat and sold for human consumption.
According to the Animal Protection Organization
Humane Society International approximately
10 million cats are also killed for meat.
Across China there are numerous dog
slaughterhouses and meat markets.
Humane society international estimates
that China is responsible for killing 10 million dogs
and four million cats for human consumption each year.
According to HSI the vast majority of the dogs and cats
in China's meat trade are obtained illegally.
The animals are either pets who have been stolen out
of backyards or strays that are picked up off the street.
- There are gangs of men who maraud the streets
in places like Beijing and Shanghai
and will steal dogs off the street
because they know they can get 40, $50
if they ship them down to Yulin for a dog meat festival.
- [Narrator] The organization says the animals often
spend hours crammed into tiny wire cages
as they are transported to slaughterhouses.
- This is the conditions they live in?
- [Reporter] The activists also found farms
outside the city where dogs are raised for slaughter.
- These are dogs being raised for slaughter?
- For slaughter, for food, yeah.
- [Narrator] For the last decade,
the country hosts a controversial festival
that promotes the slaughter and consumption
of thousands of dogs and cats.
It began as an effort to boost lagging sales.
The 10-day event known as the Lychee and Dog Meat Festival
or Yulin Dog Meat Festival is held in June
during the summer solstice in the city of Yulin.
- It is unimaginable to see that one
of the most despicable of human practices is still
allowed in China and even celebrated
under the guise of a festival.
- [Narrator] Despite the millions of dogs
and cats killed every year,
most people in China do not eat this meat.
- [Reporter] Animal rights activists
and pet owners are protesting an annual
dog meat festival in southwest China.
The festival was created between 2009 and 2010.
- [Narrator] HSI reports dog meat is eaten infrequently
by less than 20% of the Chinese population.
A 2016 survey revealed 64% of Chinese citizens
want the Yulin Dog Meat Festival to end.
(speaking in foreign language)
More than 50% of the population wanted the dog meat
trade banned altogether.
(speaking in foreign language)
A 2017 survey conducted by Chinese state
registered charities including Beijing's Capital Animal
Welfare Association and Vshine Animal Protection Association
revealed dog meat consumption also isn't popular
in Yulin despite the annual dog meat festival.
According to the study, 72% of Yulin residents
do not regularly consume dog meat.
Only 28% of the residents consume dog meat
on a regular basis.
The consumption of dog meat is most prevalent
in the southern Chinese provinces of Guangdong and Guangxi
as well as in the northern provinces
of Heilongjiang and Liaoning.
Although eating dog meat was once considered a delicacy,
attitudes towards dogs and cats have changed over the years.
Now more than 91 million dogs and
cats are considered as pets in the country.
Wendy Higgins HSI's director of international media
says the consumption and trade of dogs and cats
for their meat is already banned or severely restricted
in a number of states and countries.
These include Hong Kong, Taiwan,
Singapore, the Philippines, and Thailand.
Shenzhen became the first city in mainland China
to ban the consumption of dog and cat meat.
The law says dog and cat meat can no longer be sold
at restaurants or live markets.
- [Reporter] The coastal city located next
to the Hong Kong border has banned people
from eating dogs and cats, wow,
as part of their wider clampdown over the wildlife trade
since the coronavirus epidemic began in China.
Dogs in particular are eaten in several parts of Asia.
Wow.
- [Narrator] The new legislation also permanently
bans the consumption, breeding, and sale of wildlife
including snakes, lizards, and other wild animals
for human consumption.
Announcing the ban, a spokesperson
for the Shenzhen government said dogs
and cats have a much closer bond
with humans than other animals.
Government officials said, "This ban responds
"to the demand and spirit of human civilization."
Dr. Peter Lee, China policy specialist
for HSI welcomed the news saying
with Shenzhen taking the historic decision
to become mainland China's first city
to ban dog and cat meat consumption,
"This really could be a watershed moment
"in efforts to end this brutal trade
"that kills an estimated 10 million dogs
"and four million cats in China every year."
Dr. Lee said Shenzhen's ban could create a domino effect
causing other cities to follow suit.
Although the World Health Organization said dogs
and cats do not pose a risk of transmitting the coronavirus,
Dr. Lee said they still carried other diseases.
It's no surprise that attention is turning
to this trade at this time because
it undoubtedly poses a huge human health risk
for other diseases such as rabies
as well as causing immense animal suffering.
The World Health Organization did warn
that the trade, slaughter, and consumption
of dogs pose other risks for human health.
These include trichinosis, cholera, and rabies.
- The disease progresses very rapidly
so they can be fine in the morning
and be very, very ill by the end of the day.
- [Narrator] Following on the heels of Shenzhen,
Zhuhai became the second city in China
to ban the consumption of dog, cat, and wildlife meat.
Other cities in China are now considering bans.
Countless celebrities have spoken out
against China's dog and cat meat trade
over the years and are working
to bring the Yulin Dog Meat Festival to an end.
- We are here asking you to stop the cruelty.
- Stop the beatings.
- Stop the burning.
- [Narrator] Music mogul's Simon Cowell has spoken out
against the consumption of dogs and cats to his fans.
Cowell took to Twitter while the 2015
Yulin Dog Meat Festival was taking place.
"I can barely bring myself to talk
"about the horrific Yulin Dog and Cat Meat Festival
"because it makes me so sick.
"But unless we all do something about this, it won't stop.
"We have to act now to stop these barbaric
"and disgusting events forever."
Last year, Dame Judi Dench added a letter of support
to a Care2 and HSI petition created
to stop the Yulin Dog Meat Festival.
Dench said in a statement, "It fills me with sadness
"to think that the Yulin Dog Meat Festival is just
"around the corner again.
"So I wanted to send this message as a symbol
"of my solidarity with all the thousands
"of people in China against the dog meat trade
"who love their dogs and cats just as much as we do.
"But who go through the awful heartache
"of having them stolen by dog thieves.
"I cannot imagine the suffering of those poor dogs.
"And I hope very much that one day soon
"this cruel trade will end."
Comedian and animal advocate Ricky Gervais has also
supported HSI's efforts to end China's dog
and cat meat trade.
In a press release for the organization, Gervais said,
"My friends at Humane Society International are working
"tirelessly to end this cruel trade all over Asia.
"and they desperately need your help.
"I've seen the footage that HSI has captured on video
"and it breaks my heart.
"I will never forget the look of bewilderment
"and fear on the faces of these poor animals.
"The dogs and cats await a horrible fate.
"No animal deserves to be treated like this."
Actor Peter Egan who became a UK ambassador
for Animals Asia in 2012 has also lent his support
for ending the country's annual festival.
In a PSA for animals Asia Egan said.
- In the past, over 10,000 dogs have been killed
in two days at the Yulin Dog Meat Festival.
Thanks to pressure from east and west
that is reduced to less than a thousand.
But we must keep fighting.
- [Narrator] Nonprofit organizations are working
to get dogs and cats out of China's slaughterhouses
and meat markets and into loving forever homes.
- It's been a long journey getting the dogs here
and for a while didn't think we were gonna make it
and just seeing them go off, it means everything to me.
- [Narrator] In April 2020,
the Chinese government declared dogs and cats
should not be slaughtered for their meat.
The Chinese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs
recently published a draft document
of the National Catalogue of Livestock
and Poultry Genetic Resources providing a list
of animals considered livestock.
The list includes pigs, ducks, and chickens.
Dogs and cats are not on the list.
In the past, the animals have not appeared
on the list as livestock but the ministry has never
before provided an explanation as to why they were excluded.
- [Woman] Dogs have been specialized
to become companion animals
and internationally are not considered to be livestock
and they will not be regulated as livestock in China.
- [Narrator] Although the draft policy does not officially
ban the consumption of dog and cat meat in the country,
Higgins told "The Guardian" it will be a game-changer
moment for animal welfare in China.
Higgins said the draft policy signals a major shift
in China's perception of dogs and cats.
She said most people in China want an end
to the theft of their companion animals for meat trade
that only a small percentage of the population indulge in.
(speaking in foreign language)
The draft policy hasn't been welcomed by everyone.
Dog meat businesses, especially those in Guangxi
the province where Yulin Dog meat Festival is held,
have greatly opposed the ministry's declaration.
Although it may still be prevalent in other parts
of the world it appears China is at least making great
strides toward banning the consumption of dog meat
and protecting mankind's best friend
from a controversial trade.
That's it for today.
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