Gut-wrenching photos show the squalor and the cruelty of China’s barbaric Yulin dog meat festival
Majority of pups killed and cooked during the June festival are stolen domestic pets
These are the cats and dogs that will be brutally butchered to be eaten during the sick Yulin dog meat festival in China.
Horrific images have been released showing the adorable animals stuffed into tiny cages, waiting to be sold off.
Many of the dogs still wear collars, a sign that domestic pets have been stolen from their homes to be eaten.
Every year at the controversial festival, up to 10,000 dogs and cats are cooked and eaten.
The horrific celebration is set to start on Tuesday, to mark the summer solstice.
The animals are crammed into the wire cages, which are strapped onto the back of motorbikes, ready to transport the animals to the slaughterhouse.
The upsetting pictures have been released as more charities have taken a stand against the inhumane festival.
Animals Asia has joined the growing ranks of animal rights groups campaigning against the summer solstice celebration.
CEO Jill Robinson told Daily Mail Australia: “The festival is horrific, but the issue goes far beyond this event alone. Ending the Yulin Dog Meat Festival is a significant first step to ending dog and cat meat eating across China.”
The group has found that most of the animals slaughtered at the festival are domestic pets who are stolen from their homes.
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Robinson said: “Stealing dogs is quicker, easier and more profitable than farming them. Many of the dogs are wearing collars and are visibly confused, which is evidence supported by our research showing the majority are stolen. This makes the festival a social welfare issue as well as one of cruelty.”
The animals are usually beaten to death or have their throat slit.
The dogs are then chucked into a vat of boiling water before having their internal organs removed.
The festival has been condemned across the international community.
The group have also expressed fears that
Animals Asia Cat and Dog Welfare Director Irene Feng said in a statement: “Thanks to our awareness raising it is widely understood now that these dogs are stolen. On top of that, repeated reports of dogs being poisoned means that they are not safe to eat.”
Research found that the brutal killing of cats and dogs doesn’t just happen in Yulin during the festival.
On average, 300 of the animals are butchered for meat in the town every day.
Earlier this month, celebrities joined together to campaign against the barbaric event.
A , which was promoted by the likes of Ricky Gervais and Carrie Fisher, has gathered over 4.5 million signatures.
Animals Asia has also released a condemning the brutal festival.
So far, over 230,000 people have signed it.
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