“The dogs and cats were clearly afraid, especially the older dogs who looked very fearful”, he said. “It’s shocking to think that if we had not been there, all these animals would have been beaten to death and eaten”, said HSI’s China policy specialist Peter Li.
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Pictures of caged or slaughtered dogs posted online have outraged many people both within and outside China.
About 51.7 per cent of the respondents – who included Yulin residents too – wanted the dog meat trade banned completely, while 69 per cent said they have never eaten dog meat.
Yulin heeds the pleas of millions of animal lovers to end the public execution of dogs ahead of their controversial festival as dozens of animals were rescued prior to the event.
Some of them may be flown to the United Kingdom and the U.S. to start a new life, while others will go to loving homes in China.
The dogs were frightened, say rescuers.
“The place was full of blood, internal organs of the dogs and cats, blow torched carcasses, and freshly slaughtered dogs hanging on hooks”, he added.
Photos released by the group showed the animals being cared for at a shelter, where they are being examined by vets and prepared for adoption.
Dr Li said he wanted to stress that their campaign was not targeted at the people of Yulin, or even the dog meat traders there, but at the dog meat industry in general, and the dog theft, poisoning, and other activities he says that sustains it.
Each year hundreds of dogs are stolen, kept in tiny cages and then slaughtered for consumption for the festival, a tradition numerous celebrities have spoke out against.
The Yulin Dog Meat Festival was only started in 2010 as a way to boost the area’s dog meat trade.
Some 11 million people have signed an global petition demanding an end to the festival, which campaigners say will mean the slaughter of 10,000 dogs over the next 10 days.
Dogs rescued from a Yulin live dog warehouse, 29 dogs (8 puppies) and three kittens were brought out of Yulin on June 12, 2016.
As many as 15,000 dogs were killed during the festival six years ago and last year an estimated 2,000 to 3,000 were slaughtered.
Matt Damon appears in PSA in hopes of putting an end to a dog eating festival held every summer in China..
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“I don’t eat dog meat, not just because I love them but also because they really love me”, one user said.
