She does her all to save stray dogs

One month ago, 18 dogs arrived at John F. Kennedy airport after having travelled all the way from South Korea.

Ms. Jung, a golden-hearted woman

Some dogs were saved from meat farms in South Korea, others from puppy mills or even the streets. But whatever happened to these puppies in the past, they now all have something in common - the chance to start a new life in the USA.

Although many people helped these dogs in South Korea, one woman in particular played a special role and her name is Ms. Jung.

Ms. Jung a hero according to the founders of the Free Korean Dogs association. "She has saved dogs all her life."

Ms. Jung manages a private shelter called Chungdo Shelter for rescued dogs, which is fact her home. And Chungdo Shelter is not like others: instead of cages or enclosures, Ms. Jung lets the dogs run around outside or in the house.

"There are always between 150 and 200 dogs living in the house," explained Park, the founder of Free Korean Dogs.

Ms. Jung is a little over 60 years old and has a number of  health problems, but instead of looking after herself, she spends all her time and money looking after the dogs. She has opened her house to all kinds of dogs: young or old, healthy or ill.

"There are many old and unwell dogs," explains Park. "She simply doesn't have the time to play withthe younger ones because she is simply too busy taking care of the older ones."

The sad economy of dogs

In addition to problems with time, Ms. Jung also has issues with paying for the dogs' care, particularly when it comes to veterinarian bills.

The biggest problem without doubt is that of adoption. There are hundreds of dogs that need help in South Korea and Ms. Jung cannot look after all of them. She tries to find families for all over them in order to be able to take in more dogs...

In South Korea, dogs are taken to meat farms. There are no less than 17,000 dogs in these farms and over 2 million are slaughtered each year for human consumption.

Puppy mills are also an enormous problem in South Korea, particularly since the government has announced that there would be financial rewards for those who managed them.

Another major issue is that when people no longer wish to take care of their pet, they take them to a shelter, but the shelters euthanize these pets, often immediately after their arrival.

There are also many people who simply abandon their pets in the street.

Solutions that give hope

One of these solutions is to transfer the dogs to another country. Park, who founded Free Korean Dogs has transported many dogs to homes in the United States and Canada.

Since last year, Park and Ms. Jung has succeeded in getting 200 dogs adopted in North America.

In order to support Ms Jung in her fight, you can make a donation here.

Source : The dodo