US Olympians rescue dogs from being slaughtered in South Korea

Many Olympians did more than just compete for medals at the Winter Games in PyeongChang this year, and U.S. skier Gus Kenworthy and snowboarder Maddie Mastro are traveling home with new pets after they took a stand against animal cruelty.

Over the weekend, Kenworthy and his boyfriend Matthew Wilkas took a trip to a South Korean dog farm where dogs are raised to be slaughtered and sold for meat. In a lengthy Instagram post, Kentworthy wrote about how the dogs are living in “some of the most deplorable conditions imaginable.”

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 ❤️????

A post shared by gus kenworthy (@guskenworthy) on Feb 23, 2018 at 8:10am PST

“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,” Kenworthy wrote. “The way these animals are being treated, however, is completely inhumane and culture should never be a scapegoat for cruelty. … 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.”

As you can see from the photo, Kenworthy and Wilkas ended up adopting one of the dogs. They also helped to get the farm shut down with help from the Humane Society International, and all 90 of the dogs that were living at the farm are being sent to the U.S. and Canada. Mastro is also returning home with a new friend, though she told TMZ she already has three rescue dogs and will need to find a home for the dog she saved.

I got me a flight buddy! ✈️ I’m flying home with this doggo so she can get a better chance at having a loving/caring family ???? I’m happy to have the opportunity to be apart of helping these dogs, even if it’s just one. I also encourage others to get involved to help save these doggos lives. Just look at that face, how can you say no! #savekoreandogs

A post shared by Maddie Mastro (@maddie_mastro) on Feb 23, 2018 at 8:15pm PST

Kenworthy, who showed off his great sense of humor during the Olympics this month, is obviously passionate about animals. Neither he nor Mastro won a medal in PyeongChang, but they have to be feeling pretty good about what they accomplished.