More than 1,000 dogs are saved from slaughter at Yulin dog meat festival

Chinese animal rights activists rescued more than 1,000 dogs packed into cages – and destined for slaughter at the Yulin dog meat festival.

Activists from Humane Society International (HSI) found dogs packed in cages in a truck being shipped to a slaughterhouse.

The activists claim that the animals came from Gansu province – an area associated with dog theft – and the driver was unable to provide proof of purchase.

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The activists reported the shipment to Chinese authorities, who are now investigating.

An estimated 10 to 20 million dogs are killed for meat each year in China – but the Yulin festival has come to symbolise the cruelty of China’s dog meat habit.

Earlier this year, American animal rights groups claim that the 10-day Lychee and Dog Meat Festival has been banned from selling dog meat – but many local vendors claimed not to have heard of the ban.

As many as 10,000 dogs, many of them stolen pets still wearing their collars, are slaughtered for the festival held deep inside the poor, largely rural Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.

But one owner of a dog meat restaurant was sceptical, telling the BBC, ‘Banning the sales of dog meat? I’ve not heard of it. Why is dog meat any different from other meat anyway?’