Dog Meat Trade Banned in Indian State Where 30,000 Dogs are Slaughtered Each Year
Nagaland government makes the landmark decision as 125,000 people sign a petition following horrific footage of dog meat death pits.
Credit: Amy Jones/Moving Animals
The northeast Indian state of Nagaland, where over 30,000 dogs are slaughtered annually, has announced a ban on the consumption of dog meat.
The ruling comes after years of campaigning by animal welfare groups for the state to do more to stop the trade. Whilst eating dog meat has been outlawed in India since 2011, a lack of enforcement has allowed the trade to continue.
Humane Society International India’s (HSI/India) campaign against the hidden dog meat trade revealed horrific dog meat death pits in Nagaland back in 2016. But just this month, the brutal trade was propelled back into the public spotlight, after the Indian member of parliament, Smt. Maneka Sanjay Gandhi, shared photos of dogs in sacks en route to slaughter.
Gandhi’s public appeal urging the Nagaland government to ban the trade went viral, with more than 125,000 people signing the petition.
Welcoming the news, Alokparna Sengupta, HSI/India’s managing director, says, “the suffering of dogs in Nagaland has long cast a dark shadow over India, and so this news marks a major turning point in ending the cruelty of India’s hidden dog meat trade”.
“Our own investigation in Nagaland showed terrified dogs being subjected to horrific deaths in some of the worst inhumanity to animals HSI/India has ever witnessed. And the dogs we have rescued from this trade over the years have had to learn to trust humans again after the cruel treatment they endured.”
The consumption of dog meat has come under increased scrutiny around the world. In April this year, Shenzhen became the first city in China to ban the consumption and production of dog meat.
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