Before heading home from South Korea, Gus Kenworthy stopped by a dog farm to help rescue its 90 dogs. Photo: Instagram/@guskenworthy
Freestyle skier Gus Kenworthy may not have medaled at this year’s winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, but before heading home he did manage to help shut down a Korean dog farm, rescuing ninety dogs.
Working with the Humane Society International, Kenworthy is helping to bring the rescued pups to the US and Canada for adoption – all but one, that is. Kenworthy adopted one for himself, a Husky he named Beemo.
“This morning Matt and I had a heart-wrenching visit to one of the 17,000 dog farms here in South Korea,” wrote Kenworthy in a post on Instagram. “Across the country, there are 2.5 million dogs being raised for food in some of the most disturbing conditions imaginable. Yes, there is an argument to be made that eating dogs is a part of Korean culture. And, while don’t (sic) personally agree with it, I do agree that it’s not my place to impose western ideals on the people here. The way these animals are being treated, however, is completely inhumane and culture should never be a scapegoat for cruelty.”
Kenworthy goes on: “I was told that the dogs on this particular farm were kept in ‘good conditions’ by comparison to other farms. The dogs here are malnourished and physically abused, crammed into tiny wire-floored pens, and exposed to the freezing winter elements and scorching summer conditions. When it comes time to put one down it is done so in front of the other dogs by means of electrocution sometimes taking up to 20 agonizing minutes. Despite the beliefs of some, these dogs are no different from the ones we call pets back home. Some of them were even pets at one time and were stolen or found and sold into the dog meat trade. Luckily, this particular farm (thanks to the hard work of the Humane Society International and the cooperation of a farmer who’s seen the error of his ways) is being permanently shut down and all 90 of the dogs here will be brought to the US and Canada where they’ll find their fur-ever homes.”
This isn’t the first time Kenworthy’s rescued dogs during the Olympics. In 2014, while competing in Sochi, he reportedly rescued five stray dogs wandering the streets.
While the practice of eating dog meat, locally called Gaegogi, continues in Korea recent reports point to a declining demand among younger generations. According to a poll conducted by Gallup Korea in 2015, only 20 percent of men in their 20s consumed dog meat, compared to fifty percent in their 50s and 60s.
