A big beagly day: The story of Beagle Rescue Network Korea

A big beagly day: The story of Beagle Rescue Network Korea

A Beagle Rescue Network volunteer guides the blogger to a beagle shelter in the central part of South Korea. Many of the dogs come from laboratories. It was beaglemania at the Beagle Rescue Network’s shelter in Nonsan, South Chungcheong Province, when I visited in July 2019 with longtime animal volunteer Jeong Buyun. A magical place…

The cats of Yongsan, part 2: Doing the most good
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The cats of Yongsan, part 2: Doing the most good

A Korean charity collaborated with Korean vets and US military personnel to neuter about 200 feral cats at the soon-to-be-former Yongsan Garrison in Seoul. What will happen when the base closes? (Continued from part 1.) Despite its increasing popularity as a humane, effective way of controlling feral cat populations, trap-neuter-release has its detractors. Cats get in…

The cats of Yongsan, part 1: How one military wife took on TNR
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The cats of Yongsan, part 1: How one military wife took on TNR

In Korea and much of the world, trap-neuter-return programs are a widely accepted way of controlling feral populations and reducing conflicts between cats and humans. Why is the US military so slow to catch up? Kerri Burrows used to go hiking on Namsan every week. On one hike, she saw a poster about stray cats. She…

Violence, not food: Animal activist Heeji Yi
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Violence, not food: Animal activist Heeji Yi

A new generation of Korean animal rights activists is determined to stand up for the defenseless, even if it means leaving their comfort zones. Heeji Yi has become an unstoppable force in the local animal rights scene. She’s attended protests, done vegan education at Cube of Truth events, and organized Save vigils for animals on…

Cube of Truth: Vegan activism in Seoul
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Cube of Truth: Vegan activism in Seoul

Vegan activists with display monitors gather every week in Myeong-dong, downtown Seoul, and show graphic footage of animal slaughter. Are passers-by making the connection? The first time I observed a Cube of Truth event in Myeong-dong, the busy shopping area in downtown Seoul, I’d followed the group’s activities on social media for some time. The…