From Fighting Dogs to Racehorses... How Long Will Animal Abuse for Human Entertainment Continue? [Hello? Animal]

Animals Used for Entertainment, Including Illegal Dogfighting and Exploitation of Retired Racehorses, Continue to Suffer Abuse
Dogs Forced to Run on Treadmills...Muscle Injections, Syringes, and Hot Water Baths Found
Retired Racehorses Artificially Thrown During 'Taejong Yi Bang-won' Fall Scenes
Proportion of Retired Racehorses with Unknown Uses Increasing Annually...Concerns Over Future Exploitation
Experts: "Punishment Should Be Possible with Sufficient Evidence Even Without On-Site Detection"

Amid the discovery of animal abuse at a suspected illegal dog fighting training center, where dogs were tied to treadmills and forced to run, measures are being demanded to address the exploitation and abuse of animals for human entertainment.
Photo by Catchdog Team, an animal protection organization.

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Jung-wan] Amid ongoing controversy over the discovery of animal abuse at a dogfighting training center, where dogs tied with leashes were running on treadmills, calls are growing for measures against animal abuse for human amusement. It is reported that cruel abuse occurs during the breeding process for dogfighting competitions. In addition, there are calls to prevent exploitation of animals raised for human entertainment, such as racehorses, after their retirement.

On the 3rd, the animal protection group 'Catch Dog Team' announced that on the 1st, a passerby discovered about 20 fierce dogs running on a treadmill and a 4- to 5-month-old kitten trapped in a cage at a suspected illegal dogfighting training center in Maeho-dong, Suseong-gu, Daegu, and reported it to the local district office.

Upon visiting the site, Catch Dog Team found 21 fierce dogs, including Pitbull Terriers, exposed to an environment smelling of food waste. Nearby, they found one treadmill, muscle injection drugs and syringes used for cattle and pigs, a double boiler, and a saw.

The illegal dogfighting training center is believed to have been in place for 20 years. A witness to the training center told Catch Dog Team that the training center had existed for 20 years, and there are two elementary schools within 2 km nearby, so residents have continuously filed complaints with the district office, but nothing has changed.

The issue of dogfighting abuse has been ongoing for years. In May 2018, a dogfighting competition was held in Ganghwa-gun, Incheon, where a dogfighting ring and two kennels were discovered. Around the dogfighting ring, two kennels were found housing about 60 and 18 dogs respectively. The dogs in the kennels were cramped in wire cages, living by eating food waste, and there were no proper waste disposal facilities. The police arrested six people, including the dog owners and event organizers, at the scene and took them to the Ganghwa Police Station.

Animal protection organizations including the Korea Animal Protection Alliance held a press conference condemning animal abuse in the drama "Taejong Yi Bang-won" in front of the KBS main building in Yeouido on January 21. [Image source=Yonhap News]

Exploitation of animals for human amusement is not limited to this. In January, during the filming of the KBS drama 'Taejong Yi Bang-won,' controversy arose when a horse’s leg was tied with a wire to artificially make it fall during a riding scene. According to the animal rights group 'Kara' on the 24th of the same month, the horse 'Kami' used in the broadcast was a retired racehorse. Kami died four days after being forced to fall during filming.

Accordingly, on the 25th of last month, a partial amendment to the Animal Protection Act was proposed to establish welfare plans for animals retired from gambling industries such as racehorses and fighting bulls, and to prevent animal abuse during the production of videos featuring animals. Park Hong-geun, a Democratic Party lawmaker who sponsored the amendment, said, "More than 1,000 racehorses retire every year, but their post-retirement history is not properly managed. Retired horses are often slaughtered within 2-3 days if injured, or commercially exploited in amusement park riding centers, flower carriage services, or film and drama productions without protection."

The proportion of retired racehorses whose whereabouts are unknown has increased over the past five years. According to data from the Korea Racing Authority, the percentage of racehorses classified under 'other uses' after retirement was △5% (70 horses) in 2016 △6.4% (89 horses) in 2017 △7.1% (99 horses) in 2018 △7.4% (103 horses) in 2019 △22.5% (308 horses) in 2020.

Although a full revision of the Animal Protection Act was promulgated in April after 31 years, measures are still needed for illegally operated kennels like dogfighting training centers and for retired racehorses subjected to exploitation. On the 26th of this month, a fully revised Animal Protection Act containing expanded provisions and newly established systems was promulgated. The main points of the amendment introduced by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs include △defining acts leading to death by violating the owner’s duty of care and management as abuse △introducing a reporting system for private animal protection facilities △establishing a municipal acquisition system for abandoned animals △assigning full-time veterinarians to institutions conducting animal experiments to monitor the health of experimental animals △changing animal import, sales, and burial businesses from registration to licensing systems, among others.

Experts say that even if abuse is not detected on-site, laws should allow punishment if sufficient evidence is secured. Lee Won-bok, head of the Animal Protection Alliance, said, "According to the Animal Protection Act, causing injury to animals for gambling, advertising, entertainment, or amusement purposes is punishable by up to two years in prison or a fine of up to 20 million won. However, the problem is that punishment is only possible if the site of gambling or dogfighting is detected. Even if the site is not immediately detected, punishment should be possible if sufficient evidence or circumstances related to the owner or operator’s facilities are secured." He added, "There are loopholes in the current Animal Protection Act, so further amendments to complement these are necessary."