You know we’re lovers of animals here at Your Tea, and I’m sure most of you have seen the horrendous images from Yulin Dog Festival (really don’t like typing ‘festival’ when referencing this abhorrent exercise).

For those that aren’t aware, thousands of dogs (many stolen pets), are captured, transported, tortured and killed for meat in Yulin, a city of more than 5 million in China’s Guangxi Autonomous Region, which borders Vietnam.

In a slaughterhouse, hundreds of pet dogs await their own death, while they watch as their companions are slaughtered in front of them.

Humane Society International (HSI) works with local organisations in Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines and China to raise awareness of this horrid meat trade, aiming to shut down the dog meat trade entirely. Working closely with government officials to enforce the laws in place, as well as participating in raids on trucks filled with dogs headed for slaughter. In recent weeks, some 500 dogs have been rescued from trucks; with the help of China Animal Protection Power and HSI.

HSI have told us:

‘Just this week, 34 dogs, puppies, and kittens were rescued by Chinese activists, led by Humane Society International, from a slaughterhouse in Yulin, China, just days ahead of the annual dog meat festival due to take place on June 21st.  All of these animals have been transferred to a shelter where they are being evaluated and treated by veterinarians before being prepared for adoption in loving homes in China, UK, and the US.’

Dogs hung up for sale for meat in Dong Kou market, as a dog looks on.

It’s important to note, this festival was created in 2010 to boost profits, it is not a traditional practice. With nearly 8 million Chinese citizens voting against this practice, the highest number of votes for any proposal, we can see the country’s citizens stand with HSI and want this stopped.

*Taken from HSI website

On June 7th, 2016; HSI delivered a petition to the Chinese embassy in London, with 11 million signatures, including those of celebrities and MPs. Authorities then claimed the festival would not go ahead, though dog meat traders will continue without endorsement.

June 10th, 2016; HSI takes the 11 million signature petition to Beijing, to then hand into the Yulin government.

Ricky Gervais, you may have noticed, has been campaigning since 2015, to see the end of this ‘festival,’ with regular updates on his twitter account reaching his millions of followers (11.2M as of today). It is the support of these celebrities and MPs that make known, the details of such events, but the support of everyone on social media will ensure the reach. We need to work together to stop Yulin.

HSI are working hard to shut down the ‘festival’, and they need as much help as possible.

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