Ho Chi Minh City, June 3, 2024 – The global animal welfare organization FOUR PAWS has recently launched its Road to Compassion nationwide tour in Vietnam to spread the message advocating for the end of the dog and cat meat trade in the country. The program has garnered significant attention and interest from the community.
FOUR PAWS has been active in Vietnam since 2019, working alongside authorities to address the risks associated with the dog and cat meat trade. To date, FOUR PAWS has received support from over two million people worldwide, including more than 250,000 Vietnamese citizens, who oppose this cruel trade and call for it to end in Vietnam. This cross-country journey is one of many activities by FOUR PAWS to convey the support and desire of the people to end this trade.
FOUR PAWS’ tour across Vietnam involves a truck equipped with LED screens stopping in three major cities: Ho Chi Minh City on May 31 and June 1, Da Nang on June 2, and Hanoi on June 7 and 8. At each stop, through messages and images displayed on the LED screens, FOUR PAWS aims to raise public awareness about the issues caused by the dog and cat meat trade and to rally community support to end this trade in Vietnam. Throughout the journey so far, FOUR PAWS has received substantial interest and support from local residents.
Mr. Bùi Lăng Phong, a 33-year-old resident of Ho Chi Minh City, shared: “I am here at FOUR PAWS event today to help spread awareness, because eating dog and cat meat is a very serious issue in Vietnam at the moment. Dogs and cats are loyal animals, attached to us for their entire lives, and eating dog and cat meat is inhumane. It is much more civilized nowadays; I hope this issue will soon be eradicated. In addition, eating dog and cat meat can also cause dangerous diseases like rabies. I really hope the government will listen to organizations like FOUR PAWS for once, to understand the feelings of those who love dogs and cats like the people who are here at this event, and also join hands in calling on people to stop the act of eating and slaughtering dogs and cats.”
Ms. Nguyễn Thị Bích Phụng, a 30-year-old resident of Ho Chi Minh City, also shared: “Developed countries already have policies and measures to protect pets like dogs and cats. Vietnam still witnesses a huge amount of catching and slaughtering dogs and cats for meat in many brutal ways, such as poisonous baits, which can carry unforeseen diseases. Eating dog and cat meat is therefore not good for human health. I think that to go along with the development of world, our government needs to pay more attention to the trafficking and eating of dog and cat meat. For many people, dogs and cats are like family. I support the government taking action soon with specific measures and policies, so that our ‘loved ones’ can be protected and live in peace.”
Ms. Phan Thanh Dung, Southeast Asia Companion Animals Campaigner of FOUR PAWS shared: “This is our first journey across Vietnam to raise public awareness about the consequences of the dog and cat meat trade, such as disease, animal welfare issues, and social tensions. Throughout the journey, we have received widespread interest and support from the public, most of whom expressed outrage over losing their pets to thieves and desire specific laws to ban this trade entirely. We believe this is the time to take immediate action, especially as rabies cases are increasing in Vietnam. Since the beginning of 2024, there have been 27 rabies deaths, an increase of 16 cases compared to the same period in 2023. The ban on dog meat trade and consumption passed by South Korea earlier this year, along with Hoi An closing one of its oldest dog meat restaurants, are also motivators for making the elimination of the dog and cat meat trade a reality in Vietnam soon.”
A FOUR PAWS survey conducted in early 2021 across Vietnam found that 91% of Vietnamese citizens oppose the dog and cat meat trade.In addition, 95% indicated that the consumption of dog and cat meat was not part of Vietnamese culture.
Previously, the “This is Not Vietnam” campaign by FOUR PAWS collected more than 33,000 messages from the public sent to the Deputy Prime Minister, 24,000 international tourists sent letters to the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, and 13,500 people worldwide sent digital postcards to the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism to petition for an end to this trade.
This interactive roadshow across Vietnam will showcase the overwhelming global and national support for an end to the dog and cat meat trade, culminating in over two million petition signatures worldwide. FOUR PAWS will present the public’s call for change through a stakeholder event at the end of the year.
About FOUR PAWS
FOUR PAWS has been working in Vietnam since 2019 to address the risks of the dog and cat meat trade. Every year, more than six million dogs and cats are captured, transported, and slaughtered for their meat in Vietnam. The majority of these animals are stolen pets or community and stray animals taken from the streets to supply the trade. The sheer scale of the trade and the involved suffering makes it one of the most severe companion animal welfare issues in Asia, if not the world. In addition, there are severe health implications – with links between the dog and cat meat trade and rabies, as well as conditions ripe for disease emergence. More details are available in a FOUR PAWS report available here.
A FOUR PAWS survey conducted in early 2021 across Vietnam found that the majority of Vietnamese want their government to take action, with a total of 91% saying the trade should be banned or discouraged. When asked if they would support a ban on the dog and cat meat trade, 88% of respondents said that they would be in favour of such a measure. In addition, respondents were asked if they felt consumption of dog and cat meat was part of Vietnamese culture, with the resounding answer being no, with 95% indicating that this was not part of their culture.
Furthermore, FOUR PAWS supports local animal welfare organisations and communities with humane and sustainable stray animal care programmes. FOUR PAWS is also a member of several animal welfare coalitions: Dog Meat Free Indonesia (DMFI), the Asia Canine Protection Alliance (ACPA) and the Cats Matter Too coalition, which lobby against the dog and cat meat trade in Southeast Asia, as well as the Asia for Animals Coalition, which works to improve the welfare of all animals across Asia.
For more information, please visit:
https://dogcatmeat.four-paws.org.vn/ https://www.facebook.com/fourpawsviet.org
