Bobby was rescued from a market, this is his story

Added on Wednesday, 11 April 2018

Bobby was rescued from a market during our investigations in North Sulawesi. It had been a long day and the market was getting ready to close for the day. As we were about to leave, we saw a dog sitting in a cage surrounded by blood in the slaughtering area of the market.

As we talked to the traders, we made a decision that we couldn’t leave him behind. We had to restore justice for at least one. We didn’t try to negotiate on price, it was what it was. We paid what they asked for, for his life to be spared. As he was taken from the cage, the trader told us that he had been dropped off with the traders that morning by his owner who no longer wanted him. He had experienced the ultimate betrayal.

We named him Bobby, and now he is living a life of joy at our partner group’s shelter “Animal Friends Manado”. Now, his days are spent playing with the other rescued dogs, showered with love.

For Bobby, and all the others we have been able to save, justice has been restored; and, despite all that they have endured, their spirits remain unbroken. They forgive and they love life again. Whilst we must fight on, for them, the trade has ended.

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In Bobby’s Honour

We found Bobby sitting in a wire cage in a busy dog meat market in North Sulawesi whilst we were conducting investigations in December 2017. He was surrounded by scenes from a horror movie, and the terror in his eyes was haunting. We knew we couldn’t leave him.

It breaks our heart that he left this world too soon, but he left having known love and with a name. And in his name, we will never give up until the dog and cat meat trades end throughout Indonesia.

Hero’s Story

The Dog Meat Free-Indonesia coalition spent many long and heartbreaking months investigating the inner-workings of the dog meat trade throughout Indonesia. As people who do what we do because we care so passionately about animals, doing investigations never gets any easier. It is soul-destroying and heart-breaking, but essential in documenting the reality of the trade so that we are best-positioned to fight it, and to ultimately realise our goal of ending the dog meat trade.

But we always save those we can…

On one particular day, we had the chance to save a dog who we named 'Hero'.

Change is coming in Indonesia and throughout Asia… Never before has the dog meat trade or the consumption of dog meat been questioned the way it is now. People are turning their backs on a trade and a practice that can no longer hide behind a defense of ‘culture’ or ‘tradition’.