Animal rights activists call for closure of legal loophole allowing abusers to reclaim custody of abused pets

Animal abusers in Korea can quite easily reclaim custody of the pets they abused simply by asserting ownership rights. And although 20 bills have been introduced by lawmakers over the last decade to address the problem, meaningful change may be impossible in the near term.

Under Korea’s Animal Protection Act, local governments can temporarily separate abused animals from their owners. However, unless ownership of the animals is voluntarily surrendered, authorities are generally required to return them, even in the face of allegations of abuse or criminal charges against the owners.

Earlier this year, a man living in the Seoul metropolitan area broke his pet dog’s leg at home. The abuse came to light only after his girlfriend discovered the injured dog and secretly took it to a veterinary clinic for treatment. Although the woman later reported the abuse to local authorities and Korea Animal Rights Advocates (KARA), the dog was ultimately returned to the owner.

“The local government had no choice but to return the dog, because he claimed ownership,” a representative from an animal protection organization assisting the woman said. “He even filed a civil lawsuit against her during the process to pressure her.”

In another case, a man threw a barking dog from the ninth-floor balcony of an apartment building in Nowon District, northern Seoul, during an argument with his live-in partner three years ago. The dog died.

After the incident, district officials placed another dog that the partner was raising and living with in the apartment under emergency protective custody. But the dog was later returned after the woman asserted ownership rights.

“The man received a suspended sentence, meaning that he can still return home at any time,” an animal rights group representative said. “Even if the dog is abused again, there would be no practical way to protect it.”

Animal rights advocates argue that the system that allows animal abusers to assert their rights over animals effectively enables repeat abuse.

Out of 45 first-trial animal abuse rulings handed down last year, 30 involved abuse committed against the perpetrator’s own pet, according to KARA.

Four of the 45 cases involved defendants with previous convictions under the Animal Protection Act, showing a repeat-offense rate of about 8 percent. 

"Repeat offenders accounted for roughly 7 to 10 percent of suspects arrested for Animal Protection Act violations between 2020 and 2024," said Kim Kwang-hyeon, a legislative researcher at the National Assembly, in a February report.

Due to the current system, private organizations dedicated to animal protection often end up directly persuading abusers to surrender ownership rights voluntarily because authorities cannot permanently restrict ownership under current law.

For instance, last month, two pet cats in Seongnam, Gyeonggi, were discovered with one cat suffering from a fractured skull and another cat with damaged eardrums. KARA suspected the injuries resulted from abuse by the cats' owners and reported the case to the Bundang Police Precinct. Seongnam City officials placed the animals under emergency protection.

KARA activists then personally visited the couple and persuaded them to sign an agreement relinquishing ownership of the cats and transferring custody to KARA, because, under current law, the cats would have to be returned if the couple later claimed ownership, even if evidence of abuse were uncovered afterward.

“Cases that are resolved this way are actually rare,” said Yoon Seong-mo, an activist with KARA’s policy change team. “Most persuasion attempts fail.”

Experts say Korea should introduce a formal system to ban animal ownership similar to those used overseas.

“Many countries have detailed protection procedures in place from the moment an abuse case is identified until a court ruling is issued, including seizure and confiscation of abused animals and other animals owned by the abuser,” said Han Ju-hyeon, a lawyer specializing in animal law. " The United States and Britain also prohibit convicted animal abusers from working in animal-related industries."

The National Assembly has proposed roughly 20 revisions to the Animal Protection Act over the past decade aimed at restricting animal ownership by convicted abusers.

In the current Assembly session, lawmakers such as Lee Goang-hee of the Democratic Party and Cho Eun-hee of the People Power Party have introduced related bills, which are currently pending before the Agriculture, Food, Rural Affairs, Oceans and Fisheries Committee.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs is also preparing a detailed plan to introduce an animal ownership ban system by 2027.

A proposal currently under review would ban individuals convicted of animal abuse involving killing or injuring animals from owning, caring for or managing animals for one to five years.

“Some concerns have been raised about excessive restrictions on basic rights,” an official from the Agriculture Ministry said. “But awareness of animal protection has improved, and public interest has grown significantly, so discussions with related agencies are ongoing.”

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.

BY KIM JEONG-JAE [[email protected]]