Humane World for Animals Korea (formerly HSI Korea)

Humane World for Animals Korea is the South Korean branch of Humane World for Animals, the international animal protection charity that was called Humane Society International (HSI) until it changed its name in February 2025. The Korean team has campaigned in the country for around ten years, working on the dog meat trade, animal testing, farm animal welfare and wildlife.

Its best-known work is the Models for Change programme, launched in 2015. Dog meat farmers who want to leave the industry sign a legally binding agreement to close their farm permanently, hand their dogs over voluntarily, and receive help to switch to other work such as growing medicinal herbs, fruit or vegetables. Through the programme the charity has closed 18 dog meat farms (as of March 2026) and rescued almost 3,000 dogs since 2015, most recently more than 70 dogs from a farm in Gangjin in September 2026.

Rescued dogs are vaccinated, treated and flown to partner shelters for adoption, mainly in the United States and Canada, with others rehomed in the United Kingdom and the Netherlands and a small number adopted within South Korea. In January 2024 South Korea's National Assembly passed a law banning the breeding, slaughter and sale of dogs for meat from 2027, and the charity is advising the government on the welfare of the dogs still on farms during the phase-out. In 2026 the Korean team also took its Models for Change approach abroad for the first time, helping close a dog meat restaurant and slaughterhouse in Kupang, Indonesia, with Jakarta Animal Aid Network.

Humane World for Animals Korea does not run a public adoption shelter in Korea, so there are no visiting hours; to adopt a rescued Korean dog, contact the charity's partner shelters in North America and Europe. You can support the work by donating through the Humane World for Animals website or signing its petition for a dog and cat meat-free South Korea.