Here is a fun but unusual story about a unit mascot deployed to South Korea:
Maj. Shane Andrews operates on Pfc. Tank Chester, the 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division mascot, at Camp Humphreys, South Korea, Wednesday, Oct. 31, 2018.
A Texas-based unit’s youngest and furriest soldier is breathing easier, literally, thanks to a Halloween-night surgery in South Korea.
Pfc. Tank Chester, a 7-month-old Victorian bulldog who serves as mascot for the 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division “Bulldogs,” had his soft palate trimmed and nostrils widened at Camp Humphreys’ veterinary clinic to ease the airways for the member of the notoriously hard-breathing breed.
“He’s the face and symbol of who we are,” Cpl. Mitchell Duncan, Chester’s handler, said at the clinic Wednesday.
Chester, along with the rest of the Bulldog brigade, arrived in South Korea last month taking the reigns as the 2nd Infantry Division’s sole brigade combat team on the peninsula.
While technically an elective surgery, it’s a nearly necessary one for the active mascot, who like his predecessors is expected to ride shotgun with the unit’s command team in everything from helicopters to tanks as they inspect and boost morale to the brigade’s troops.
“With these English bulldogs… we’ve bred in the smoosh face, which looks really cool, however it comes with its own complications,” said Camp Humphreys veterinarian surgeon Capt. Sean Curry. “It’s really a struggle for them to breathe.”
Chester is the ninth of his name since the first was donated in 1940 by the British as a “token of appreciation,” Duncan said. He comes with a full complement of soldiering gear, including identification cards, a passport and a rank he’s still living up to.
“He’s a Pfc. for a reason — he’s got an attitude, he’s a little stubborn, and he still does things his way,” the 24-year-old from Redfield N.Y., said jokingly. “He’s your typical bulldog. He loves people; loves attention. His idea of fun is sitting on the couch and watching TV with you.” [Stars & Stripes]
President Moon Jae-in introduces his Pungsan dogs to BBC Seoul correspondent Laura Bicker during an interview at the presidential office in Seoul on Oct. 12, 2018, in this photo released by the office. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un gifted the dogs to Moon to mark their talks in Pyongyang from Sept. 18-20. The dogs were both born in 2017 in the North Korean county of Pungsan. (Yonhap)
The two-year-old Welsh Corgi was found killed and eaten by neighbor. / Yonhap
A missing dog has been found killed and eaten by a neighbor.
According to the Pyeongtaek Police Station, Tuesday, a woman in her 30s reported to the police that her lost dog might have been eaten by someone.
She lost her two-year-old Welsh Corgi in Cheongbuk-eup, Pyeongtaek City, Gyeonggi Province, March 4.
The woman offered 1 million won ($936) as a reward to find the dog and put up signs in the streets.
While she was searching for the dog, she got a tip from a friend who said, “Someone has eaten the dog.”
The suspect was a 63-year-old neighbor.
He told the police that the dog was barking too much in the yard so he threw a rock at it. Then the dog was knocked out so he strangled him with electric wires. [Korea Times]
I guess we will see how strictly this new law is enforced:
South Korea’s agriculture ministry said Wednesday it will implement a revised animal safety law to require dogs to wear a leash in public places, but it withheld a controversial plan to give cash rewards to those who report violators amid a backlash from animal lovers.
Starting from Thursday, dogs will be required to have a leash no longer than 2 meters in public places, and potentially dangerous breeds — pit bulls, Rottweilers, American pit bull terriers, American Staffordshire terriers and Staffordshire bull terriers — will have to wear muzzles as well.
Dog owners who fail to abide by the rules will be subject to penalties up to 500,000 won (US$466.40), which has been raised from the current 100,000 won. [Yonhap]
People are too quick to use the racism word, inappropriate is a more accurate description of this:
Patrick Roest, Jan Blokhuijsen and Sven Kramer of the Netherlands / Reuters
Dutch skater Jan Blokhuijsen has sparked a dog meat controversy at the PyeongChang Winter Olympics.
At Wednesday’s press conference for the men’s team pursuit speed skating event, in which his team won a bronze medal, Blokhuijsen said, “Please treat dogs better in this country.”
The comment came out of nowhere. When reporters did not have questions, his teammate Sven Kramer asked, “All Japanese (reporters)?” And then Blokhuijsen made the remark before they left the conference.
After the news went viral, many Koreans expressed fury, claiming that it was racist and ignorant of a different culture. Some claimed the case should officially be reported to the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
“The IOC should punish him for making that racist statement,” a netizen said.
Another said, “The Korean government should file an official complaint. I think most young people do not eat dog meat anyway. But some still do, because that’s what we used to eat when we were poor and it became a custom.” [Korea Times]
"I don't eat dogs, but I am disgusted by those who preach that only animals deemed cuddly enough or friendly enough by Westerners deserve to live." My story on South Korea's dog-eating tradition & debates over 'Western hypocrisy" @AFPhttps://t.co/w1uAOOMhMZ
Members of a South Korean animal rights group perform in Insadong, central Seoul, on Dec. 24, 2017, to oppose the butchery of dogs and other animals. (Yonhap)
A U.S. soldier receives a bite from a military dog during a competition at the customs office in Incheon, west of Seoul, on Nov. 1, 2017, in which dogs trained for drug detection demonstrate their skills. (Yonhap)
A member of Save Korean Dogs, an activist group opposing the dog meat trade, stages a solo rally in Seoul on July 11, 2017, to express the group’s objection to eating dog meat and call for the government to enact a law prohibiting dog-meat consumption. (Yonhap)
