Since 2009, the Yulin Dog Meat Festival has been held annually in Yulin, a city located in southwest China. The festival celebrates the summer solstice by slaughtering and cooking more than 10,000 dogs, who are transported from all over the country in inhumane conditions. Many dogs arrive to the festival malnourished, dehydrated, poisoned, and already dead. Many of these dogs are stolen from loving households or shot with poison then snagged. The living dogs are then killed brutally in the middle of crowds, in front of children, in violent displays that show a lack of compassion.
As a result of education about dog meat and animal cruelty, things are already improving, with 2015 seeing a decrease in the number of dogs murdered at the festival. Additionally, while keeping a dog as a pet was once illegal in China, this law has been overturned and the number of dog slaughters is decreasing as a result.
However, the Yulin Dog Meat Festival continues to occur each year. To learn more about what you can do to stop this festival, visit www.stopyulinforever.org. Please be advised that some images are graphic and and may be disturbing to some.