The Korean Way (5): hot dog, anyone?

Ask a Korean male if he likes dogs, and he is likely to smile and say yes. The problem being, of course, that you're not really sure if he likes to cuddle them or eat them. The dog in the photo is a Jindo puppy, originally from the Korean island with the same name. It is a native Korean breed, and is prohibited from export (though Koreans have been bringing them to the US for some time). It is generally not the kind of dog you eat in Korea, and on Jindo island they would probably starve before they ate their beautiful dogs.
However, a lot of Koreans eat dog. But before getting down to details, let me say that I don't find the European tradition of eating pig or cow morally superior. And you could argue that the living conditions of the Norwegian salmon, raised in net prisons and ruthlessly killed for the production of gravlax, is as bad as the often cruel breeding farms for Korean dogs.
No, if you eat meat, then what kind of animal it comes from is a matter of supply and taste, not "moral". In Guangzhou in China they are famous for eating anything that swims, crawls, walks or flies, but that is just a measure of how desperate history you have, the number of famines that swept your country.
Since I eat meat and have been spotted wearing leather shoes I'm no more innocent than anyone else. And cruelty to animals is despicable everywhere, but anyone who has seen the interior of a chicken production facility in Belgium, or a French trailer packed with scared cows on their way to the slaughterhouse understand that Europe have nothing to learn from Korea in that respect. Eating meat does not mean you have to resort to cruel treatment of animals before killing and eating them.
Now, what this boils down to is the obvious question: have I eaten dog, and would I eat dog, given the opportunity? Answer: no, I have not had dog so far, and yes, I would like to taste it some time. Would I kill, cook and eat my own dog? No. That said, some basic facts about Korean dog-eaters:

Dog is mostly eaten as a soup, and in special restaurants.
Dog is the main course at three annual "dog-days", July 15, July 25, August 17 (2005).
Dog is mainly eaten by men, to strengthen their sexual prowess.
Dogs to be eaten are bred at special farms, often in very bad conditions.
Korerans also have pet dogs, guard dogs and family dogs as in any other country.
There have been reports of dogs stolen, killed and sold to restaurants.
Many countries in Asia eat dog, among them China, Japan, the Philippines and Vietnam.

Koreans are a proud people, and don't take lightly to being insulted. Criticizing their culture, especially from a Western perspective, is considered insensitive and stupid (and I agree). Say something rude about kim-chi, and you are in for a long lecture of the benefit of fermented cabbage. So, when Birgitte Bardot voiced opposition to Korean dog-eaters in 2001, she was met with some hard facts. Not that it made her any less vocal.
Learn more about Jindo dogs here.
Not all Koreans like to eat dogs.
BBC about Korean dog cuisine.