Animal lovers try to save 10,000 dogs in China meat festival

A controversial 10-day dog slaughtering festival has commenced in Yuling, China, despite truckloads of protesting animal-rights activists both from China and abroad, who are exerting efforts to rescue an estimated 10,000 canines destined to be killed for their meat.

One of the activists, 37-year-old Hawaiian native Marc Ching, flew to the city located in Guanxi province together with his companion Valarie Ianniello to liberate 1,000 dogs from six slaughterhouses on Tuesday.

He shared snippets of the life-changing mission on his Facebook page.

Yulin Update: . This is eve before the killing. The smell of death – right there bleeding through the floor. . Fact: the Yulin Dog Meat Festival is happening. All reports about it ending, from the ground we see nothing. . This year, there seems to be some government pressure. A small step forward. But still, a step not large enough. . We are being followed by over 15 undercover agents. Their main goal, to make sure we do not reach the slaughterhouses. They are worried that we will expose the slaughterhouse conditions, and the treatment of the dogs. . The Yulin police, they are the reason why we are having a difficult time working to shut the festival down. Everyone we are coming into contact with, they are threatening. The three slaughterhouse deals I went to close down just now, the situation became tense and violent. . I almost got into an altercation with police. And there was a heated exchange between myself and the people running the slaughterhouse. Presently we are in the process of trying to shake the three cars, and four motorbikes tailing us. . NOTE: These are pictures of some of the undercover police. . #TheCompassionProject #ShutDownYulin #animalhopeandwellness #MarcChing #SpeakTheTruth

A photo posted by Animal Hope and Wellness (@animalhopeandwellness) on Jun 19, 2016 at 9:43pm PDT

There is an article circulating about the dog meat festival in Yulin that people are incorrectly interpreting, thinking that the festival is over. . IT IS NOT! . Do not help their government circulate what they want you to circulate. Be pro life! Stand on the side of those that cannot speak for themselves. . Stand with the animals! . The festival is NOT over. Do not let the article written push you to believe that it is. China says the same thing every year. And clearly, the massacre continues (public or behind closed doors). . I have confirmed that there are thousands of dogs already in Yulin. . Please do not stop your efforts to raise awareness and to continue to put pressure on the Chinese government. Do not let yourself be fooled by Chinese propaganda, or statements claiming it is over. . If we go there and it is over, you celebrate then. Until then, you share. You pressure the government. And you raise awareness. . DO NOT ABANDON THE CAUSE. . #TheCompassionProject #StopYulin #animalhopeandwellness #MarcChing #BeTheirVoice A photo posted by Animal Hope and Wellness (@animalhopeandwellness) on Jun 16, 2016 at 5:19pm PDT

“A thousand breaths that would die here in the dark. A thousand lives that would bleed like blood left there upon [the] ground. These dogs, they are brothers. They are sisters. They are fathers and mothers. They are children. They deserve a chance,” Ching pleaded in the video’s caption.

The Independent and the Los Angeles Weekly reported that Ching’s recent visit to Yulin was his seventh rescue trip to Asia in the past year. He previously shut down merciless slaughterhouses in Cambodia, South Korea and Vietnam, and tried to do the same in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Due to his perilous missions, he experienced being tortured and questioned by authorities.

“There’s this moment where you come into the slaughterhouse and the dogs are screaming, and when you rescue them they know who you are,” Ching told LA Weekly. Most of the time, Ching disguises as an undercover meat buyer and has recorded clips of savage slaughters. He said he had witnessed dogs being burned alive with blow torches, beaten with bats and scalded with boiling water.

The Yulin Dog Meat Festival signals the start of summer solstice, during which Chinese people believe that consuming dog meat will help them cope with the scorching summer heat.  Gianna Francesca Catolico