Prince's Journey

Janurary 24th 2017 --- April 27th 2017

Dog Meat Trade Survivor-- South Korea

We took in four doggies that were rescued from SaveKoreanDogs.org, an amazing small rescue run by Nami Kim and her volunteer Jenny.

We were aware of the dog meat trade in Asia but there are so many more details we have only come to learn about recently. For example, puppy mills are as horrific as they are here in the states, the only difference is when the breeder dogs are no longer useful they are then sold to the dog meat farms. We don't want to upset anyone here with the cruel details of what their death is like once they arrive at the dog meat farms (you can google it, but only if you are feeling really brave).

It is important to mention that people like Nami and Jenny who are dedicating their life to trying to save dogs from the dog meat trade, are also working hard to lobby to get the laws changed. The idea of dog meat as a delicacy is something that is popular with mostly an older male generation. Like anything that requires a progressive approach, it's younger people that are brave enough to go up against a very old culture and try to change minds with compassion towards animals.

We were introduced to SaveKoreanDogs.org by Elaine F., also a Camp Cocker supporter. Elaine lives in Illinois and heard that Nami & Jenny were looking for a rescue to take two cocker spaniels. It was with Elaine's help that the transport was co-ordinated. Once we saw the other dogs they were looking for rescue groups for, we said "send us a couple more small doggies to make the flight worthwhile".

What we know about Prince so far:

• He is around 2-3 years old (he has a LOT of puppy-ness!)
• He received his dental cleaning.
• Very loving, sweet, playful.
• Needs a lot of exercise and training.
• SO GENTLE when taking treats!
• The PERFECT dog!

We had never gone through the process before of receiving international dogs at the airport and what a long day it was. Thank you to Winnie from the Maltese Rescue for helping walk us through all of the steps. The plane landed at 8:38am, and we had to wait at the cargo building until 12:30pm. (the CDC was there with a veterinarian doing vet checks of other dogs on the same flight, it turns out there were micro bred preemie looking puppies there that were far too young to travel, and the breeder that shipped them to the states, broke laws by shipping them out so prematurely young)

Then once cargo said our four dogs passed the vet check, we had to drive to another building where customs is, then take a number and wait for our turn to be interviewed. This is just so customs knows what our intention is in bringing in four dogs from South Korea. Then once customs stamped the approval, we drove back to the cargo building and waited for the dogs to be brought out to us. This video clip begins the first moments we met the four doggies and it must have been around 2:45pm. Those poor doggies! They had to be checked in three hours in advance of their departure in South Korea, then the flight was a little more than ten hours, then sitting at the airport another six hours. Nineteen hours in the crates, can you imagine?

But then we considered what the alternative was for them and we realized, one long awful day of being in a crate and traveling so far, in exchange for the chance for a new life, it put it all in perspective for us.

The really emotional part was when we took them out of their crates and let them go potty, fed them, gave them water, and then they began to wag their tails and some were even giving out kisses right away. We simply weren't expecting the dogs to be so trusting of humans. We hit the jack pot with four really nice doggies.

The cost of their flight, vetting, grooming and food is going to be costly and we are not taking from the general Camp Cocker funds, due to the nature of this rescue. If you would like to donate towards these 4 dogs only, please do so by clicking the donate button below. We only ask for small donations, perhaps if everyone who reads their story donates $5 we can pay off their medical debt quickly and save more dogs sooner!

Prince goes to the Beach

April 27th 2017 --- adopted!  whoo hoo!!

Thank you to all of our fans, supporters, and donors! Without you Prince would still be in South Korea!

We know each dog takes a village and what a village we have! We appreciate every share, like, and comment on our social media! Thank you everyone!! 

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-Camp Cocker Rescue Team