For Companion Animals to Live a “Life Worth Living”

In recent years, as the number of people raising companion animals has increased, so has the interest in animals. According to a “Survey of the Public's Awareness of Animal Protection” in 2021, conducted annually by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, more than 25% of the population raises companion animals. The media is overflowing with animal content, and the size of related industries is increasing, but it is questionable whether the treatment of animals has improved that much. The number of lost and abandoned animals exceeded 118,000 as of 2021, and half of them died or were euthanized at animal shelters. With the revision of the Animal Protection Act, the punishment standard for animal abuse has been strengthened since last year, with up to three years in prison or 30 million won in fines. Nevertheless, abuse cases are constantly occurring. Behind online anonymity, someone has shared videos of himself abusing stray cats, and a new pet shop that pretends to be an “animal shelter” has emerged, misusing people’s interest in abandoned animals. This phenomenon shows that the number of people interested in animals has increased, but the systems and social perceptions of protecting animals have not grown proportionally.

Like other social problems, animal abandonment or abuse arises for complex reasons. In the case of animal abandonment, the main problem may be the recognition of the animal owner's responsibility. According to the “2022 Survey of Public Awareness on Animal Welfare” conducted by AWARE, Animal Welfare Research Institute, in November last year on 2,000 people, 76.8 percent of them cited “the lack of awareness of the responsibility of those who raise companion animals” as the reason for the occurrence of abandoned animals. Raising animals without acquiring the necessary information, such as the characteristics of the animals, how to raise them, and the cost and effort to raise them, can lead to the abandonment of caring for them. Owners' responsibility must be strengthened by introducing a pre-education completion system that requires them to complete basic education before raising companion animals.

Regarding animal abuse, the main problem of the current system is that prevention is difficult. The current Animal Protection Act lists some types of acts as animal abuse, such as acts that lead to an animal’s death in cruel ways or injury using physical or chemical methods like tools and drugs. The range of acts is limited, and animal abuse is recognized only when physical abuse, such as death or injury, occurs. Therefore, it is difficult to take action even though it is clear that animals are suffering.

Another blind spot is that animal abusers have no problem raising animals. The current law does not restrict people who were punished for animal abuse from raising animals. Even if the owner abuses the animal, it must be returned to the owner if he pays the protection fee and requires a return.

The regulations on animal-related industries are also insufficient. The standards for operating pet manufacturing companies require hiring one worker for every 75 dogs and cats, which virtually allows a breeding factory. The structure, in which dogs and cats born in puppy and kitten mills are distributed to pet shops through auction houses, not only damages animal welfare in the process but also causes a trend of buying, selling, and discarding animals as easily as goods. Recently, in Yangpyeong, more than 1,200 dogs were left to starve to death by a man, and it was found that he had been paid for and collected animals whose product value had fallen at auction houses.

Whenever animal abandonment or abuse cases occur, there are many voices calling for strict punishment, but it is difficult to solve the problem only by raising the punishment standard. Animal welfare is not just for animals to avoid abuse but to live a “life worth living” to maintain good physical and mental conditions and to behave normally. The most important thing for this is the “duty of care.” Animal abandonment and abuse can be prevented by establishing mandatory welfare standards that animals under human control, such as farm animals, laboratory animals and companion animals, should be provided and ensuring that those responsible for animals fulfill their care obligations.

CEO of AWARE, Animal Welfare Research Institute Lee Hyung-Joo

Translated by Kwon Eun-Ji