Smuggled Dogs Rescued From Slaughter By Thai Authorities (DISTURBING VIDEO)

Over one thousand dogs intended for consumption were rescued by Thai authorities on Thursday evening, reports AFP.

Four trucks were stopped in the Nakhon Phanom province of northeastern Thailand. According to the Daily Mail, police swooped in with two raids near the Laos border. The trucks were stacked high with dogs stuffed into tiny cages, and 119 dogs were already dead.

According to a Nakhon Phanom livestock development official, the dogs died either from suffocation, or from being thrown from the trucks when the alleged traffickers tried to flee the scene.

The dogs were being sent across a Laos river and into Vietnam. Police case officer Captain Prawat Pholsuwan told AFP that two Thai men and a Vietnamese man have been charged with trafficking and illegally transporting animals. The men face a maximum punishment of one year in jail and a fine of up to $670.

According to police, traffickers are known to round up stray dogs in rural Thai villages, and sell them for up to $33 per dog in Vietnam.

The Daily Mail reports that these dogs were “destined to be cooked and eaten.”

According to the news source, there are 13 countries that still consume dog meat. In Indonesia, the Batak Toba culture is reportedly known to cook a dog meat dish named “saksang."

In April, hundreds of dogs were rescued from slaughter in Beijing, China thanks to a group of animal activists. According to the Associated Press, the activists blocked a truck transporting the dogs, and negotiated for their release in exchange for $17,000.

While most reactions to these incidents are ones of horror, and many cultures are disturbed by the thought of eating a dog, some have asked -- what is the real difference between eating dog meat and cow meat? Or eating any other animal for that matter?

While the condition that these dogs were found in is considered atrocious, many other animals face similar mistreatment in the United States.

Earlier this summer, Mercy for Animals, a Chicago-based animal welfare group, unveiled to the public undercover videos of livestock mistreatment.

The Associated Press reported that in the video, “sows are shown in small cages, known as gestation crates, that limit their ability to move, and workers are shown castrating piglets and removing their tails without anesthetics…There are repeated shots of workers tossing piglets across a room.”

To learn about helping dogs, visit ASPCA's website.

Watch the disturbing dog smuggling video provided by Reuters. Does one year in jail fit this crime?:

Comments

[Erin Annis]

01:49 PM on 08/26/2011

I hear a lot of people arguing over the way these dogs are treated and the way our livestock is treated and i hear people arguing over the ethics f letting people starve but i havent read one comment to the fact that cows, sheep, pigs, chickens are all animals that are meant by the design of nature to be eaten by predators. Although i do not support the treatment of food animals, what i am stating is that animals like dogs and cats ARE PREDATORS by natures design and are not meant to be eaten. And also, humans arent even designed to eat meat. We can not chase down and kill our own food. Instead of using these dogs as food, they could easily train them to chase and catch things that they should eat. Or they can live off fruits veggies and grains, but this is the reason that dogs and cats shouldnt be eaten. It goes against nature. When predators kill each other, they dont consume...Thats how against nature it is, so what place do we as humans have to kill ad eat dogs and cats?

[jbSch]

02:27 PM on 08/25/2011

As somebody who has traveled North Vietnam and been given insight into the horrifying torture inflicted on dogs before and during the kill, I am extremely pleased to have come across this article. I would certainty never argue that people should starve rather than eat food sources available (as I have seen pointed out in some comments), however, the fact that these dogs were illegally and inhumanely transported cannot be argued. I also wouldn't doubt that a portion of the collected dogs were regarded as pets- it is an all too common occurrence in SE Asia for family animals to "disappear". Ugh.

[catlover68]

09:29 PM on 08/19/2011

Another reason I'm vegan & I like animals more than most people....

[deminmo]

04:17 PM on 08/18/2011

grimcity, I won't eat my dog, period. I don't have to feed a family so that
makes the decision easier. I have lots of tomatoes so you are welcome
to those!

[Mike Nunya]

09:09 AM on 08/17/2011

I dont think 1 year in jail is enough,but still thankful that something is done.I really wish people would respect ALL life,no matter what.

[Doeidgrl]

06:58 AM on 08/17/2011

In China they will eat anything with four legs other than the table it is served on. Dogs are companion animals and have served man unconditionally for thousands of years. They are eyes for the blind, save us in search and rescue, the list goes on. I feel it is appalling and if we can't treat our companion animals (Dogs, cats, horses) with the respect they deserve what chance do any of the endangered "wild" animals have? I'm thankful for the people who are waking up to the cruelty in this practice.

[Doeidgrl]

06:50 AM on 08/17/2011

Dogs are companion animals and even in China are used for rescue, eyes for the blind, protection, unconditional companionship. In the name of culture or their belief system to not only kill but to torture dogs/cats is so wrong and I admire those who are standing up for the voiceless. They sell the dog/cat fur under the name Raccoon dog. Dogs and other animals are actually skinned alive. To me the lack of empathy/compassion is more than disturbing.

[iluvmantids]

02:28 PM on 08/16/2011

I bet the Vietnamese believe Westerners are despicable, too, with the way we euthanize thousands upon thousands of our strays every year and WASTEFULLY dispose of their bodies in landfills when the carcasses could be put to better use.

[Doeidgrl]

07:29 AM on 08/17/2011

Well in the Chinese culture they eat literally tons of shark fin soup (The "fin" the shark then dump it still alive into the ocean to die a slow death) That's pretty wasteful in my opinion..

[iluvmantids]

12:29 PM on 08/17/2011

Shark fin soup is a delicacy consumed by mostly the WEALTHY Chinese. I was simply referring to the poor population of VIETNAM and the way they make use of their stray dogs, so your reply is beside point. It's hairsplitting that you stereotypically lump two different cultures together in the first place.

I'm tired of all the racist comments that this thread produces as a result of such a biased article. How is eating STRAY DOGS in Vietnam more barbaric than stuffing a bunch in a big box and gassing them in the United States? (true fact, many "Humane" societies in the poorer districts do this even today to save cost on euthanasia)

Btw, I love dogs. I'm just sick of all the fingers being pointed at the asians as result of articles like these. I'm simply pointing fingers back. Our ways of culling our strays are wasteful and no way less barbaric than in Vietnam.

[deminmo]

01:15 PM on 08/16/2011

The countries that eat dogs and cats seem to be third world countries
with high populations and starvation. If they were offered other sources
of protein would they give up eating dogs and cats? The US is always
extending aid why not in this case? Why don't they eat fish or birds or
turtles?

[Max Shaw]

12:21 PM on 08/16/2011

"The men face a maximum punishment of one year in jail and a fine of up to $670..."

Anyone else have a SERIOUS problem with this? Why is that exotic animals harbor a much longer sentence while thousands of dogs gets practically no punishment by comparison?

[stonewalker]

12:11 PM on 08/16/2011

I don't see a problem with hungry people eating dogs. Dogs are only a little smarter (sometimes) and only have a little more personality than goats, and nobody gawks at the fact that goat meat is one of the most-consumed meats in the world.

[Natalie Longurl]

10:07 AM on 08/16/2011

The world is barbaric - these dogs are better eaten than rabidly running amok. To these unfortunate animals, death is the most compassionate thing that could happen to them. No one can change the world - too many savages still running centuries behind modern time of civility and respect for all life.

[deminmo]

01:18 PM on 08/16/2011

What about the idea of eating people? Surely horrific living conditions and
poverty is reason enough. It would be more compassionate than letting
children starve. And there are so many people in the world.

[grimcity]

04:52 PM on 08/16/2011

Why eat a person when you can feed them?

I love dogs and cats, but I also appreciate that part of that is because of the culture I was raised in. If I'm truly starving, hide your animals and don't let me know where your garden is, either.

[Hugatreetoday]

08:31 AM on 08/16/2011

*sigh* Stop HUMAN breeding and starvation will soon become a thing of the past.

[grimcity]

04:53 PM on 08/16/2011

Awesome, you just solved the problem!

[kanamartin]

02:36 AM on 08/16/2011

While I feel for the dogs, what are they now gonna do with them? Find them all a happy home? Or will they just be put down, or maybe sent back on the streets where they become feral and start attacking people...Fact is, this countries do not spay or neuter their pets, making far more dangerous environments with feral cats and dogs attacking and spreading disease.(Little girl in Cali got bubonic plague a couple years back from a stray feral kitten, google it) Truth is, all they did was stop a family from going hungry and dieing of starvation...but you got to love those animal activist, don't we?

[Hugatreetoday]

11:34 AM on 08/16/2011

Right, it makes MORE sense to feed them to people and spread the disease that way.

[kanamartin]

12:21 AM on 08/17/2011

What disease? There isn't anything in this article that informs us that the puupies were diseased. Besides the ones that died, the rest was some good looking finger licking good puppies, to those that eat them. It's not like they are being killed for sport.

[Iris Wills]

11:27 PM on 08/15/2011

Some people feel that humans are meant to eat meat, which is nothing I can argue against, but I wish people who used the "we've eaten meat since the beginning of time" argument would consider the fact that we had to hunt, prepare, and use up all of the animal products we consumed. Yes, times have changed and maybe we have a right to let others do the dirty work for us, but when I think of the concept of humane treatment toward animals, I expect that includes responsible consumption (eat local, eat in moderation, eat quality product etc.). If people eat dogs, fine- as long as they uphold the safety standards and conditions that any reputable farmer/producer would strive toward. Dog meat or not, poor or not, have standards. It's not that hard.