The Yulin Dog Festival of China: What’s Actually Happening Today

You've probably seen the photos. Every June, social media feeds explode with gruesome images of the Yulin dog festival of China, sparking international outrage and calls for boycotts. It’s a mess. Honestly, the way it’s portrayed in Western media versus what’s happening on the ground in Guangxi province is often worlds apart. This isn’t just a "cultural tradition" or a "barbaric act"—it’s a deeply complex intersection of rural economics, changing social values, and a massive clash between China’s older generations and its surging pet-loving youth.

Let's be clear. The Lychee and Dog Meat Festival isn’t some ancient, thousand-year-old ritual. It was actually started around 2009 or 2010 by local traders to boost sagging sales. They marketed the combination of dog meat and lychees as a way to stay healthy during the sweltering summer solstice. It worked. For a few years, it was a massive commercial success, drawing thousands of people to the city of Yulin. But the world was watching, and the backlash was almost immediate.

How the Yulin Dog Festival of China Changed Under Pressure

If you went to Yulin tomorrow, you wouldn’t see a massive, city-sanctioned parade. You wouldn't see banners welcoming tourists to eat dogs. In fact, the local government has spent the last decade trying to distance itself from the event. They’ve banned the public slaughter of animals in the streets. They’ve told restaurants to cover the word "dog" on their signs with tape or yellow stickers.

It’s hidden now.

Peter Li, a China Policy Specialist for Humane Society International (HSI), has been documenting this for years. He’s noted that while the festival officially starts on June 21, the actual "event" has been fractured. Because of the intense pressure from both international activists and Chinese animal rights groups, the trade has moved to the outskirts of the city or into private slaughterhouses.

The numbers are dropping, too. At its peak, estimates suggested 10,000 to 15,000 dogs were killed during the ten-day period. Now, investigators suggest that number is closer to 2,000 or 3,000. That’s still a lot of animals, but the trend is undeniably downward. Why? Because young Chinese people think it’s gross. Or cruel. Or both.

The Myth of the "Meat Dog"

One of the biggest misconceptions about the dog meat trade in China is where the dogs come from. Proponents of the trade often claim these are "farmed" dogs, raised specifically for meat like cattle or pigs.

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That is basically a lie.

Raising dogs for meat is economically impossible. Dogs are carnivores; they are expensive to feed, they fight when caged together, and they are prone to diseases like rabies. It costs way more to raise a dog to maturity than you can sell its meat for in a market. So, where do the dogs come from? Most are stolen pets or strays snatched off the streets.

Activists often find dogs in Yulin still wearing collars. Groups like VShine and the Capital Animal Welfare Association have documented trucks filled with Golden Retrievers and Samoyeds—clearly not "meat dogs." This is a huge point of contention within China. It’s not just about animal rights; it’s about property theft and public health. These animals are transported in horrific conditions, often diseased, and then sold into the food chain with zero veterinary oversight.

A Massive Generational Divide

China is currently going through a seismic shift in how it views companion animals. According to the 2023-2024 China Pet Industry White Paper, there are now over 120 million dogs and cats kept as pets in urban areas. This is a massive demographic.

To a 25-year-old in Shanghai or Beijing, the idea of a dog festival of China is deeply embarrassing. They see it as something that makes their country look "backward" on the global stage. You’ll see Chinese influencers on platforms like Weibo and Douyin (the Chinese TikTok) calling for a total ban. They aren't doing this because Westerners told them to; they're doing it because they love their own poodles and labs.

On the other side, you have the older, rural population in places like Guangxi. To some of them, eating dog meat is just... normal. Like eating goat or chicken. They resent being told what to do by wealthy city dwellers or foreigners. This creates a weird tension where the government is caught in the middle. They don't want the bad PR, but they also don't want to spark social unrest by banning a practice that a segment of the population considers a right.

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The Legal Gray Area

Is it illegal? Sort of, but not really.

In 2020, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, China’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs made a significant move. They reclassified dogs from "livestock" to "companion animals." Legally, this was supposed to mean that dogs could no longer be traded for food.

But there’s a catch.

There is no specific law that penalizes someone for eating dog meat. The laws mostly focus on transport and food safety. To move dogs across provincial lines, you need a quarantine certificate for every single animal. Since the traders are usually transporting hundreds of stolen dogs, they never have these papers. This is how activists stop the trucks. They don't call the police because of "animal cruelty" (China has very few animal cruelty laws); they call the police because the traders are violating transport and health regulations.

What’s the Current Status of the Yulin Event?

It still happens every year, but it’s a shadow of what it was in 2012. You'll find a few busy streets in Yulin—like Jiangjun Road—where restaurants serve dog meat hotpot. It's crowded, it's loud, and there are lots of undercover police making sure no one takes photos or videos.

The "festival" has become a flashpoint for a much larger cultural war. You have activists from all over China descending on the city to buy dogs off trucks to save them. Then you have the local traders who, seeing an opportunity, jack up the prices because they know the activists will pay to save the lives of the animals. It’s a bizarre, tragic economy.

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Some experts, like Dr. Peter Li, argue that the international outcry actually backfired in the beginning. It made the locals feel defensive and "patriotic" about eating dog meat. However, the long-term pressure has undoubtedly forced the government to tighten regulations.

Why You Shouldn't Just Boycott Everything

There’s a common knee-jerk reaction to boycott all Chinese products because of Yulin. Honestly, that doesn't help the dogs. The people fighting hardest against the dog festival of China are the Chinese people themselves.

Local shelters in China are overwhelmed. Groups like the No Dogs Left Behind or local grassroots rescues in cities like Guangzhou are the ones doing the heavy lifting. They are the ones patrolling the highways, stopping the trucks, and providing long-term care for the survivors. Supporting these internal movements is generally seen as more effective than shouting from the sidelines.

Reality Check: It’s Not Just China

While Yulin gets all the headlines, dog meat is consumed in other parts of Asia too, including Vietnam and parts of South Korea. Interestingly, South Korea recently passed a landmark bill to ban the production and sale of dog meat by 2027. This has put even more pressure on China to follow suit.

The difference is that in South Korea, there was a legitimate (though shrinking) farming industry. In China, it’s a black market run by pet thieves. That makes the Chinese situation arguably more volatile and dangerous for the average pet owner.

Critical Insights and Next Steps

If you're looking to understand or impact the situation regarding the dog meat trade, here is the most effective way to approach it.

• Focus on Food Safety Laws: The most successful legal challenges in China haven't been about "rights" but about "risks." Highlighting the lack of quarantine and the risk of rabies is the primary way the trade is being dismantled legally.
• Support Local Chinese NGOs: Organizations like VShine are on the front lines. They understand the local legal system and can navigate the cultural nuances far better than international groups.
• Acknowledge the Progress: It is easy to get angry, but acknowledging that dog meat consumption is rapidly declining in China helps empower the majority of Chinese citizens who want the practice to end.
• Pet Ownership is the Key: The rise of pet culture in China is the single biggest threat to the Yulin festival. As more people view dogs as "family" rather than "food" or "tools," the market for dog meat naturally evaporates.

The Yulin festival is a dying event. It is kept alive by a small group of traders and a dwindling number of consumers, fueled by a defensive reaction to outside criticism. The real story isn't just the cruelty—it's the massive, internal shift within China that is slowly but surely bringing an end to the trade.

To stay informed on the most recent legal shifts, monitor the announcements from the Chinese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (MARA). They are the body that dictates the livestock list. Following the work of the World Dog Alliance can also provide updates on legislative pushes within the Chinese government to enact a formal, nationwide ban on the consumption of companion animals.