On 24 September, the Reference News Network reported that, according to media sources, in the south-west Chinese city of Jade Forest, locals are required to skin their dogs alive every year and then make cooking, and then taste dog meat with gills and rice. In the next three years, more than 1,100 miles north-east of the jade forest, world-class dog breeders will gather in Shanghai to show a group of admired viewers their tasting dogs, Dadan dogs and Koka dogs.
According to the United States Los Angeles Times website, on 20 September, dog-loving people have for many years been protesting against the annual Chinese tasting dog and dog festival — the summer-time season — for all kinds of dog food. Every year, dog and meat festival kills about 10,000 dogs, but now they're looking at another thing: The World Dog Alliance, a coalition of dog clubs based in Belgium, plans to hold a dog exhibition in Shanghai in 2019.
It was reported that dog-loving people claimed that unless the Chinese Government ordered the observance of the Yulin Dog Festival to be suspended, the World Dog Alliance should hold a dog show elsewhere. The resulting controversy has also focused on the embarrassing relationship between the treatment of dogs in China: some view them as pets and others as food.
The online petition, which has been signed by nearly 60,000 people, states: “It is unacceptable that the world's largest dog agency supports and organizes a huge annual dog contest in such a country.”
Since 1971, the World Dog Alliance has held dog exhibitions in different cities every year. In the face of controversy, the Alliance has not shown any sign of concessions.
It was reported that for about four centuries, people in the southern and north-eastern regions of China had treated dog meat as a good meal and that eating dog meat was a pleasure for people in cold winters. In recent decades, however, attitudes towards dogs have changed, and dogs have become a common pet of China’s growing elite, as a result of growing wealth and exposure to foreign ideas.
In cities such as Beijing and Shanghai, gold hounds, VIP dogs and Samoyers are often seen running around in parks. In some villages and small cities, the entire dog that had been removed from the hotel window was hanging. However, the two worlds coexist closely.
The 28-year-old Shanghai animal rights defender Hu Sook-sook worked full-time in an American company, but she used weekends to rescue stray dogs. She said that 80 per cent of the people she knew treated dogs as pets and the remaining 20 per cent ate dog meat. There are clear and predictable lines between the two camps: dog lovers tend to be younger and live in large cities; and dog eaters tend to be older and live in villages.
She said, "Some people eat dog meat, I tell them not to eat. I try to make them understand, but you can't change people. Sometimes, when we talk together, we don't talk about dogs."
The World Dog Fair, the world's most authoritative dog exhibit, attracts some 20,000 exhibitors each year, and the winning dog is considered the “world champion”. Last year, at the Italian dog show in Milan, the champion was a long-sought sheepdog.
It is reported that dog-loving people disagree on the value of dog shows. While some lament dog raising, exhibition and dog selling for competition, others believe that canine shows provide a platform for drawing attention to animal rights.
Jason Baker, Vice-President of the Asia Animals Organization for International Competition, said: “There is one thing in common between dogs, dogs and dogs: They are all profit-driven and seriously harm animal interests. They are usually kept in small cages. The crisis in the number of cats and dogs is caused by the breeders and pet stores.”
It was reported, however, that some agencies, including those in China, considered the forthcoming dog fair to be encouraging.
Caroline Kisco, a dog club officer based in the United Kingdom, said: “China's interest in the dog show has greatly increased, which will prompt more people to consider it a pet in the first place.”
Mary Luna Durán, marketing and public relations manager of the World Dog Alliance, said that despite the fact that the Alliance's general assembly was aware of the Yulin Dog Festival, a vote was taken last year to authorize Shanghai to host the Dog Fair in 2019, “without comment or discussion”. In an e-mail statement, she said: “The World Dog Alliance is a canine federation whose members are the dog agencies of countries. The World Dog Alliance applies the principle of non-intervention to its member States, and the protection of its rights and interests is the responsibility of its governing bodies.”
She added that the coalition included Chinese members, and that the abolition of the dog show “is tantamount to abandoning the dog-love fellow ... is precisely those who are likely to give China a new understanding of the dog”.