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Olympic skier rescues 90 dogs from South Korean meat farms and helps shut one down

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As Olympic-medal winning freestyle skier Gus Kenworthy gets ready for the 2022 Olympics he must be reminded of the last time he competed and brought home something quite different to a medal.

In 2014 the two-time Olympian brought home the silver medal for the U.S. when he competed in Russia. But in 2018 when he competed in the PyeongChang Winter Olympics in South Korea he brought something home that left animal lovers rejoicing around the world.

The talented sportsman, who will compete for Great Britain in the 2022 Winter Olympics, announced on his Instagram page that he and his boyfriend had helped shut down one of South Korea’s many dog farms.




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This morning Matt and I had a heart-wrenching visit to one of the 17,000 dog farms here in South Korea. Across the country there are 2.5 million dogs being raised for food in some of the most disturbing conditions imaginable. Yes, there is an argument to be made that eating dogs is a part of Korean culture. And, while don't personally agree with it, I do agree that it's not my place to impose western ideals on the people here. The way these animals are being treated, however, is completely inhumane and culture should never be a scapegoat for cruelty. I was told that the dogs on this particular farm were kept in "good conditions" by comparison to other farms. The dogs here are malnourished and physically abused, crammed into tiny wire-floored pens, and exposed to the freezing winter elements and scorching summer conditions. When it comes time to put one down it is done so in front of the other dogs by means of electrocution sometimes taking up to 20 agonizing minutes. Despite the beliefs of some, these dogs are no different from the ones we call pets back home. Some of them were even pets at one time and were stolen or found and sold into the dog meat trade. Luckily, this particular farm (thanks to the hard work of the Humane Society International and the cooperation of a farmer who's seen the error of his ways) is being permanently shut down and all 90 of the dogs here will be brought to the US and Canada where they'll find their fur-ever homes. I adopted the sweet baby in the first pic (we named her Beemo) and she'll be coming to the US to live with me as soon as she's through with her vaccinations in a short couple of weeks. I cannot wait to give her the best life possible! There are still millions of dogs here in need of help though (like the Great Pyrenees in the 2nd pic who was truly the sweetest dog ever). I'm hoping to use this visit as an opportunity to raise awareness to the inhumanity of the dog meat trade and the plight of dogs everywhere, including back home in the US where millions of dogs are in need of loving homes! Go to @hsiglobal's page to see how you can help. #dogsarefriendsnotfood #adoptdontshop ❤️?

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Gus and his boyfriend Matt Wilkas toured a dog meat farm and were horrified by what they saw.

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“The dogs here are malnourished and physically abused, crammed into tiny wire-floored pens, and exposed to the freezing winter elements and scorching summer conditions,” Gus wrote on his Instagram page.

“When it comes time to put one down it is done so in front of the other dogs by means of electrocution sometimes taking up to 20 agonizing minutes.”




This particular farm is being permanently shut down with the help of Humane Society International and the “cooperation of a farmer who’s seen the error of his ways,” Gus added.

The animal heroes announced the 90 emaciated and abused dogs would travel back to the United States and Canada to try to find “fur-ever homes.”

Gus adopted one of the dogs pictured on his Instagram page and planned to take her home, after her vaccinations, to “give her the best life possible.”




Despite pressure from animal rights groups around the world, around one million dogs are slaughtered for their meat in South Korea every year, often tortured to death.

While some dogs are bread for their meat, others that are killed for their meat are stolen pets.

Gus hoped his visit would raise awareness of all the dogs that need a loving home.




What a Gus and Matt did makes them animal heroes, but we need more high-profile people to joint the fight.

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