Find more ways to help: https://koreandogs.org/a-plea-for-compassion-gyeonggi-maryland/

A Plea for Compassion: Protect Chained Dogs from Burning Alive in South Korean Wildfires (Friendship Province: Gyeonggi Province & Maryland)

Despite the revised Animal Protection Act of 2023, South Korea continues to allow the cruel practice of lifelong tethering, often with chains far shorter than the supposed two-meter minimum. Weak enforcement leaves countless “rural dogs” to suffer in filth, neglect, and isolation, treated as mere property.

Tragically, this systemic neglect results in horrific deaths during disasters like the recent wildfires. Helpless dogs, chained and caged, are left to burn alive as their owners evacuate, abandoning their loyal companions to unimaginable agony. This is not mere indifference but a callous betrayal that stains South Korea’s conscience.

With its inadequate leash length and poor enforcement, the revised law fails to protect these animals. Lifelong tethering must be banned outright.

We demand immediate action:
• Enact and strictly enforce a complete ban on lifelong tethering.
• Drastically strengthen enforcement of animal welfare laws with severe penalties for neglect.
• Mandatory disaster evacuation protocols must unequivocally require the evacuation of all dogs alongside their human guardians, forbidding any dog from being left tethered or confined during evacuations.

We urge the Sister and Friendship Cities of South Korea to take a stand against this cruelty. Their partnerships cannot ignore the horrific reality of dogs chained and left to burn alive. We ask them to contact their counterparts in South Korea and demand meaningful laws to protect dogs, including a ban on tethering and mandatory pet evacuation during emergencies.

The world is watching. South Korea must move beyond ineffective minimum standards and implement real change to end this unimaginable suffering. Demand action now.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Video: Bbibbi, a young puppy barely a year old, was found clinging to life—scorched by flames, her mouth burned shut, and her eyes lost—after being left chained to a piece of metal farm equipment as a wildfire tore through her village in South Korea. Her owner had days to intervene but abandoned her to burn alive. Bbibbi’s suffering is more than a personal tragedy—it reveals a profound crisis of empathy, where far too many still view dogs not as sentient beings but as property, tools, or disposable burdens. This callous mindset is sustained by weak animal protection laws that allow lifelong tethering and fail to recognize animals as lives worth defending. https://koreandogs.org/bbibbi/ https://youtu.be/7vZE_P_wGho

 

PETITION:

 

URGENT GLOBAL OUTCRY: END CRUEL LIFELONG TETHERING AND THE HORRIFIC, REPEATED DEATHS OF DOGS IN YOUR FRIENDSHIP PROVINCE OF GYEONGGI DURING WILDFIRES

Dear Governor Wes Moore and Esteemed Representatives of Maryland,

I am writing with urgency and outrage regarding the unspeakable cruelty of lifelong tethering of dogs in your Friendship Province, Gyeonggi, South Korea, and the catastrophic consequences this practice has during wildfires. We value the Friendship Province relationship and urge your immediate, principled action in response to this international animal welfare crisis.

The barbaric practice of lifelong tethering—often using chains shorter than three feet—results in chronic neglect and suffering, leaving countless sentient beings defenseless during natural disasters. Tragically, repeated wildfires in South Korea have led to horrific, preventable deaths of tethered dogs who were unable to escape. This reflects a deeply disturbing lack of compassion in some segments of Korean society toward the agony of these loyal animals.

Witness this brutal reality (Warning: Graphic content in the following videos):

https://www.youtube.com/@TheFromcare/streams
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/m0FWFjIfbC8
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/7vZE_P_wGho
https://koreandogs.org/700-dogs-burned-alive/
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/sbUi7K9mPTU
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/sStj0hH6MyM
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/A8OskdtJvjg
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/BfEbt6s79sE
https://youtu.be/MunZMwl6BmQ
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/hRocjMfllqM
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/hotkDKh8Ii8
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/SJ-bYNdeS6I
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/CeTa4VRG6pk
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/9Bway6u5sb4
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/cDWUTYsVQHQ
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/_LjaYeZkrQU
https://koreandogs.org/two-brothers-rescued/
https://koreandogs.org/uljin-fire/
https://koreandogs.org/gangwondo-fire/
https://koreandogs.org/danbi/
https://koreandogs.org/chungju-fire/

These loyal creatures are deliberately left chained during evacuations and condemned to be burned alive. This recurring horror, fueled by inadequate laws, insufficient emergency preparedness, and a shocking disregard for their suffering, demands immediate and forceful international condemnation.

As leaders of a Friendship State to Gyeonggi Province, you have a powerful platform for ethical advocacy. We implore you to recognize the moral imperative of ending this cruelty and preventing further suffering. Decisive action on the international level is crucial.

Therefore, we respectfully urge you to:

1. STRONGLY CONDEMN the practice of lifelong tethering and the repeated, devastating immolation of dogs in Gyeonggi Province during wildfires. Publicly denounce the lack of compassion that allows this to persist.

2. IMMEDIATELY REACH OUT to your counterparts in Gyeonggi Province to express profound global outrage. Emphasize that the continued failure to ban tethering and protect animals during wildfires threatens South Korea’s international reputation.

3. URGE THE LEADERSHIP OF GYEONGGI PROVINCE to enact critical animal protection reforms by working with the national government to:

- Implement an immediate and strictly enforced ban on lifelong tethering.
- Establish and enforce mandatory evacuation protocols that include all companion animals.
- Launch public awareness campaigns promoting responsible pet guardianship.
- Introduce stronger penalties for neglect and abandonment, particularly during disasters.

4. OFFER YOUR STATE’S EXPERTISE AND RESOURCES to help Gyeonggi Province develop robust animal welfare standards (including a tethering ban) and comprehensive emergency preparedness measures.

The continued cruelty of lifelong tethering and the repeated, horrific deaths of dogs in South Korean wildfires represent a profound moral failing. As a Friendship State, Maryland has a unique and urgent opportunity—and responsibility—to act. These sentient beings deserve to live free from chains and the terror of preventable, horrific death. We call on you to take decisive, compassionate action on the global stage.

An online petition urging your support is underway: https://chng.it/jGSzy9htG8 We implore you to treat this issue with the urgency and seriousness it demands, showing true leadership in the cause of animal welfare.

 

 

 

 

 

Photo: Heartlessly abandoned by their owners, one dog was burned alive, tethered and helpless, while another one suffered severe burns witnessing the horrific death. https://koreandogs.org/danbi/