Korean Job Discussion Forums

[shawner88]

When I was posting the topic: what makes you the angriest? I became very angry. Many times I see dogs that are supposedly "pets" but are kept in a small cage all day long or fastened endlessly to a short pole.

The people that own the store near my house have a doberman-pincher. He is in a cage day and night. I have never once seen that dog outside. He barked too much so now they've boarded the cage with woodpanel so the dog can't even see outside. I can't imagine the hell in that poor creature's mind. A few nights after too much soju I've been half tempted to let him free, but seeing as he's probably full of rage, I thought better of it.

Worse yet is when I went to the Pusan Zoo. I usually refuse to go to any zoo unless it's a really good one that provides ample space and care, or takess care of crippled animals and/or serves to protect their species, etc. Mostly I find zoos the most outrageous places on earth. Imagine keeping wild spirited animals in cages all day long just so some people can walk by and "ooh" and "ahh" for five minutes.


Anyway, the Pusan Zoo. What a sorry place that is and I'm sorry I have that memory of going. I thought it might be a really nice place, but it certainly wasn't. What I remember the most is the bears and monkeys. The monkeys looked insane in their inadequately sized, old, rusty cages. Same with the bears. They are kept in cages not much bigger than themselves. I felt horrible watching one of them walking around in a tight circle over and over and over and over...

Worse yet is the attitude of some people. My girlfriend at the time couldn't understand at all why I was upset and wanted to leave. "They're just animals" she said.

People that keep birds (especially only one bird) in small cages that seems more like a decoration than anything they care about are another thing that make me angry. And I remember walking in a "nature" park in Geo-je do and there was a huge cage in the middle of the woods with hundreds of pigeons in it. Imagine keeping birds in a cage outside in the forests. How cruel!

ARGH! I'm angry again! From now on, if you see any poor creature stuck in a cage 23 hours/ day as you walk the streets in Seoul, set them free, I say, but try not to get in a fight or arrested.



OK, time to drink another bottle of soju and drone it out again...

[Marathe]

thanks for writing that for me.

after 11 months here its still the one thing that makes me see red about koreans - why do you have a pet if you're going to chain it to a 3 foot length of rope in your front yard and then forget about it?

i think its the whole orient though - not just korea: they all seem to have this cruel streak running through them when it comes to animals and their not feeling pain:

-the delicacy in japan (up until recently) of live monkey brains
-the caged bears in china that are milked for their gallbladder bile on a twice daily basis
-the practice of eating st bernards in China (they break their legs and skin them alive to cause adrenaline to rush into their bloodstreams to render the meat more tasty)
-and just the general attitude towards animals (treatment as in korea)

its not just there - there's a HUGE chinese population in my city in the world - one of their supermarkets got busted a while back for sellling live sea turtles piece by piece.

As far as the zoo in busan - haven't been yet because i know i'd walk out of there in cuffs for unleashing on the ignorant scum within (the 'people' - not the animals)

and no to all who ask - i'm not a vegan (anymore); i just don't see the need to be cruel to animals in general (there are humane kill policies in slaughterhouses in civilized countries - not the best but they do exist).

[posco's trumpet]

[har]

you know Shawner, any time we pay money for an animal to be a companion it is a pet. And no, I'm very much with you about any animal living out it's days in a cage. The fact is, the human view of other animals is very twisted. I don't care if it's a spider, or fish or snakes. They are not meant to live in glass boxes for our pleasure. Dogs and cats have been domesticated for a very long time and would be helpless without us. This means that when people decide to take these animals into their homes, they had better do it with some commitment to that animal's enjoyment of life. It's whole life.

I hate seeing this stuff too. And unfortunately I do see it more here than at home (but lots of really bad pet owners at home as well). I've just kind of turned off. I don't see the point in trying to espouse my beliefs/feelings to people who basically laugh at me for caring.

One last word. Freeing the animals will actually put them in a worse predicatment. Maybe not. Maybe starvation, or being run over would be more humane?

Hang in there

[shawner88]

You are right, setting them free could put them in a worse predicament (remembering seeing a puppy run over in Suwon). I'm just speaking my mind that it makes me angry when people take a pet and don't care at all about it. I do know that stray animals have no shortage of food, just look at all the food waste outside any restaurant. I'm not sure which is better, really. The dog living on a short chain all day long, or being free and risking getting runover and being cold, etc...

[gypsyfish]

My guinea pig was a pet. He lived in a cage, but I let him out for good behavior sometimes.

[canuckistan]

Wasn't it Ghandi who said you can measure the civility of a society by its treatment of animals?

[Seoultrader]

Bla bla bla bla...the poor animals, bla bla bla bla...

Find a stray dog, use it for entertainment for a while, then beat it for 10 minutes with a bat and burn it a bit with a flame thrower so the meat's all tender and nice (which is actually true from experience), then chow down.

If eating human meat (or the slaughter of tree huggers) was legal, I'd be first in line. Preferably with the beating.

(except Noodle of course, can't eat no doggy named Noddle)

[Gord]

Free the goldfish! CRY FREEDOM!

[The Man known as The Man]

[crazylemongirl]

[Son Deureo!]

What gets my blood boiling is the hamsters, mice, and baby birds that they sell to little kids for pocket change, which they carry around in paper cups or their pockets. Surprise, surprise! The kids never seem to have these things for long than a week. I guess it's one way for the kids to learn about death.

[jvalmer]

Aren't we just a little too sensitive here. I have to agree with somebodies girlfriend, they are just animals. If a dog bit me, I'd give it a good kick.

[canuckistan]

The most horrifying is people who take their psycho-baggage out on animals by beating/torturing them. A very, very sick mind. Remember Jeffrey Dahmer? Most totally bent-in-the-head serial killer types started out with animals. Says alot about someone doesn't it?

[justaskdan]

I don't think dogs that are kept in small apartments for their entire lives with the occasional trip out doors to get their ears dyed pink is any better.