Korean Alliance for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (KAPCA)

I am so happy to see more shelters advertising here! I hope you gain many volunteers :D If I lived closer, I would definitely rally for Yangju.

If you have any special, rare breeds like Afghan Hounds, French Bulldogs, Borzois etc you can often find breed specific rescues in North America to import the dogs. At KAPS, we have sent two Frenchies to Canada and a Afghan Hound to California. I am not sure what breeds you have available. Since there are so many, do you think you can make a video of all the dogs on site?

Hi I want to volunteer this Saturday, March 24. How do I get there by Subway? I live near Suraksan Station Line 7.

there are a few of us going this saturday :) if anyone wants to join, the event has been posted on the ARK Facebook page! we plan on meeting @ Yangju subway station at 10am. i was told the bus can go to the culture centre.....and then we can walk from there?

I love getting updates on all the dialogue about this new (to ARK) shelter. Godspeed~

thank you! see you tomorrow

Today was our first time going to Yangju; 6 of us met at the subway station around 10am and luckily we had 2 cars so everyone got a ride. It's a bit of a drive and it took us some time to locate it; and I'm not sure how long it would take if we had bussed it. If there are enough of us in the future, we could taxi it; it's about 20 minutes away from the station. Otherwise, we can figure out a carpool situation and give gas money to the drivers.

For all those interested, we are planning on going every weekend; we will create Facebook events. We happened to have arrived on a day when a large group of Korean volunteers showed up (they go one weekend each month). They were really nice but spoke very little English, like the shelter staff. We did meet the woman in charge and got her contact info and they seemed very pleased to know we wanted to become regulars - we are supposed to call or text her whenever we want to go by.

It was pretty busy, so we didn't get to find out too much info on the dogs, or the shelter itself. But from what I can tell, they would be happy for our help, and I'm sure they could use donations. Unfortunately, I don't think these dogs get walks, but the little ones have a large pen they run around freely in.

When we arrived, we started working right away - they provided rubber boots and gloves and we started cleaning up the poop and scrubbing all the cages and washing the bowls. And of course, spent some time playing with the pups and just giving them some individual attention. The little dogs are just dying for attention, they absolutely loved to be held. And as soon as they were in my arms, they calmed right down and were just so sweet. There is an outside pen, which leads into an indoor area. Then there's a 2nd room with more little dogs. There's another smaller room with cats, and one for the handicapped, blind, and senior dogs.

We moved to the back area where there are 2 sections of large dogs. It ranged from 2 - 5 dogs per pen and they are a good size. We started cleaning up the poop from the pens, getting rid of the excess water that created large pools of mud, then we fed them, and filled their water bowls.

Then it was play time! I tried to spend at least 5 minutes in each pen, just playing with the dogs. Most of them are very friendly and just loved to have human interaction; there are a few that are very timid or snippy, but none were aggressive with me. Most of the dogs seemed relatively healthy though some had limps, some had some skin infections from what I could see; but most of them were just in need of a good grooming session :)

Lots of them had really matted fur, so I would like to spend some time cutting the mats out next time. I estimate there to be around 50 or so little dogs, and maybe 150 medium - large dogs. There are sooo many Jindos, quite a few Beagles, one Dalmatian who desperately needs out of the pen she's in, some Cocker Spaniels, and the rest are mixed-Breeds.

It's going to be tough creating profiles for all these animals, but we can do it! Hopefully we can start working more closely with the shelter staff to establish a relationship with them and maybe start walking the dogs. We can photograph the dogs, a few at a time, and post their info on ARK. It'd be great if we could figure out a foster program with them, and donation system too.

I would say the shelter conditions are pretty good and at least all the little dogs can be inside. The large dogs all have a roofed shelter. Unfortunately, that is about all the info I have at the moment. I am going to try to go again this Monday, but please join us every weekend if you can!

I will take more photos next time; I got all caught up with the dogs I totally forgot this time.

shelter entrance

Hi I posted a comment in the blog section earlier about looking for a place to volunteer. Having seen this post I think its as good a place as any to start :) if you are going next weekend would it be ok for me to tag along? Google maps says its about 30mins away from where I live so I think I can easily spend all day volunteering without worrying about a long journey home when I'm tired :) Can you let me know what time you will be meeting at the train station in Yanju? I don't have a mobile yet as I only got to Korea 3 days ago, but my email address is [email protected]

Thanks Isaac and Zoe for helping out at Yangju today :) was a long day, hard work but totally worth it :) pictures to come soon! They need dry food, wet food, heartworm medicine, toys would be nice and if anyone knows how to groom, your help would be greatly appreciated~I bought some combs I'll bring next week, let's make them pretty :)

the type of food they use

http://cafe.naver.com/dogpalza.cafe?iframe_url=/ArticleRead.nhn%3Farticl...

some much better photos from Yangju taken by one of the Korean volunteers from the Beagle Club; take a look!

a few photos from the past Saturday

Isaac Macias-Ramirez, you are amazing! Along with the help of his friends, they are bringing 150lbs of dog food to the shelter next weekend! Yippie!!!!

for anyone who wants to come tomorrow, please join the FB event! and if you know how to groom dogs, that would be a great help! or if you have grooming supplies to spare, the doggies need to be trimmed for the hot weather! thanks!

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10101071718649312.2978479.2810...

some pictures from today's visit. and a great big thanks to all the donations, as well as all the volunteers. we had 10 people today which was GREAT! cleaned the remaining dog houses and got to groom a few of them.

I am in the process (slow-going) of creating profiles for all the dogs I have been able to spend a fair amount of time with and believe would be adoptable. Please check-in often to see new profiles; there are about 200 dogs, so it'll take some time to get all of them up :D

How to get to Yangju shelter

Alright, so yesterday I finally went to the shelter by way of public transportation and I thought I would try to describe how to do it; it's quite easy but it's because I've taken the taxi so many times, I recognize the way and the area to get off because the taxi and bus go the same route. From Yangju Station, cross the street and you will see a bus stop directly in front; it is the only one so you can't miss it. You can take the 133 or 32-1 but the bus stop name you need to get off at differs depending on the bus (although it is the same stop). Please refer to the pictures I've attached; about 20 minutes from Yangju station, you will see the gas station. When you see it, ring the bell, and the stop coming up will be the one you get off at and take a taxi the rest of the way to the shelter: cost is about 4,000won.

I thought I should update on some of Yangju's policies and give an overview of their procedures and what volunteers can do.

First of all, all volunteers are welcome; just be prepared to get very, very dirty. They provide rubber boots and have gloves, but sometimes when there are a lot of volunteers all at once, they may not have enough so my advice is come in clothing and shoes you don't care about. You need to bring your own lunch and refreshments, and PLEASE take all your garbage with you when you leave. The regular shelter workers speak very, very minimal English so understanding on our parts as foreign volunteers is expected.

Yangju is extremely organized, far more organized in their daily routine than any other shelter I have been to. It is quite amazing what they can get done in a matter of a few hours, especially consider they currently house around 300 animals.

The shelter opens at 11am, and when you first arrive, your job is to clean the indoor area, and enclosed front "yard". This involves scooping up all the poop, dumping it, and disposing of all the soiled newspapers, then taking squeegee mops and bleach-cleaning all the indoor floors. And then the small dogs who live in this area are fed and given fresh water. They always wash the water and food bowls everyday, and water is always available for the dogs.

After this, we go outside with bags of food to the first outdoor enclosure. We put the food in a trolley, sometimes mixing with leftovers of a different brand. And then one person is in charge of scooping food into the metal bowls, while another person places the appropriate number of bowls in front of the dog kennels. Another person or 2 goes into each kennel and distributes the food evenly spaced in the kennel, and takes the water bowl out at the same time, and leaves it outside the door. Another person goes around and washes these bowls, then places them back into the kennels, while another volunteers fills them with fresh water.

We do the exact same process in the 2nd outdoor enclosure. And then we go back and collect all the empty bowls, and wash them all, refill water if needed, and scoop up all the poop into a trolley to dump behind the shelter. This is an incredibly efficient process and in less than 2 hours, we are able to clean up after, feed, and give water to 300 animals.

Then after this, if there are no other jobs, you are free to play with the dogs, groom them, continuing with cleaning, etc. I was and continue to be extremely impressed by Yangju's organization. With what little they have, they really provide all the dogs, cats, and rabbit with the best "home" they can offer under the circumstances.

The only downside is that we are not allowed to walk the dogs here. They have never been walked, except for the one time we were allowed but after that, we were told the dogs became extremely aggressive towards each other, out of jealousy. We tried to take every dog out, but some dogs don't trust a collar or harness at all, so we couldn't take them all out. And as disappointed as we were to not be able to walk them again, we understood where the shelter was coming from. A lot of the dogs were hurt by other dogs, and the injuries are not worth the risk. So, to all volunteers, please be aware of this fact, and we will continue to work to hopefully change this policy eventually, but it takes time so please respect the shelter's decision, they know better than us, and they are just trying to keep their animals safe.

Also, for any volunteers and visitors, please always check with management before giving any of the dogs treats or toys; again jealousy arises. And if you are too frightened to go in and give each dog treats individually, then don't give them treats at all; do not throw them into the kennels as it becomes a free-for-all and results in aggression and fights.

And on the subject of being frightened; there is no need. All the dogs here minus one pitbull named "Happy" are completely non-aggressive towards humans. Most are friendly, or will at least let you pet them, but the ones who are shy or scared will only run away from you, they would never bite or attack. I rough play with all the dogs, small, medium, or large - at least the ones that will let me ha ha, and they are all just teddy bears. Of course, always exercise caution and know how to approach a strange dog before getting too comfortable. Considering that a lot of these dogs were abandoned, tortured, abused, have only known the inside walls of the shelter their whole lives, have never been walked.....considering all of this, it is absolutely amazing how sweet they all are, and how much they crave human affection. Please be advised though, that their nails are quite sharp and when they are trying to play and paw at you, you will be scratched so wear long sleeves if you're not comfortable with being scratched by accident.

Also, if you are going in and out of kennels, be sure you lock the door~ a few of the dogs try to be sneaky and get out ;)

You may be asked to do some other errands, like cleaning the cages, or feeding the cats, etc, etc, but what I have talked about above is what we always do, and what you as a volunteer can be expected to do. The more experienced will give medical care to the dogs in need, I've never had to do that. They are constantly working hard to keep the shelter from falling apart and making improvements; like better gates, raising the kennel grounds in preparation for monsoon season, thorough cleaning of the dog houses and pens themselves, and the list goes on. Let's just say there is always something to do :)

okee dokee last time i went, i took the bus all the way and walked the rest of the way to the shelter. i took detailed pictures so for future reference, if anyone wants to go on their own, here's exactly how to do it by bus. the only problem is i do not know the name of the bus stop close to the culture centre; you may have to ask the driver to let you know - i don't know how to ask this in Korean.

Does anyone know how close Yangju is to Gwangju? I bet a few of my friends would love to go!

Thank you to Heather Lynne-Kwon for donating 100,000won to the shelter. The money will go towards buying Frontline for the outdoor dogs! The doggies appreciate it very much :D

A few pics from today's visit ^^

Please see the attached file for the new adoption guidelines for Yangju. The shelter is very seriously in debt, and has needed to raise its adoption fee to 100,000won per dog.

There has been some backlash to some of the shelter's methods and the increase in adoption fees. This shelter, like others, is very poor. They have needed to raise the adoption fee to cover medical costs - they are very much in debt. This is a big decision I'm sure, but it is obviously a decision that has had to be made; I am sure they realize it could deter some potential adopters but at the same time, if you are serious about adopting a dog, what is the difference between 50,000 - 100,000? Are their lives not worth 50,000 more? In addition, the shelter is constantly at over capacity. There is also a much smaller number of volunteers who make regular trips here. Their number one concern is being able to feed each animal, provide them with the ability to LIVE. Yes, they recognize walking them is important and yes, it can be frustrating to volunteers who want to walk the dogs to not be able to. But the shelter has its policies in place for a reason. Changes will be made, but it takes time. Walking the dogs was causing physical harm so there is reasoning behind every decision they make. But things are changing slowly, and we are now able to walk the small dogs. Hopefully, soon enough we will be able to walk the big dogs too. If not being able to walk the dogs is deterring you from volunteering at the shelter, please think about the fact that you are then depriving them of at least some human interaction and affection. Each and every dog and cat there appreciates any attention they get; being able to sit with them in their kennel and play with them or just hold them in your arms, is MUCH, MUCH, MUCH better than nothing at all. So please open your hearts, and come out to the shelter! Also, the reason we cannot walk the dogs is because there are not enough volunteers to keep the dogs NOT being walked at bay; this would be a new introduction, a new thing which is very difficult for them to get used to, that's why they fight. We can't just explain to them that they will all be walked, so once again, please understand there is a reason to the way they run things at the shelter.

I would like to help out and volunteer once in a while. Anyone plan on going in November?

Hello all, some wonderful news for the shelter. First of all, Happy has been receiving daily walks, her kennel has been enlarged so she has more space. Also, we are now allowed to walk the outside dogs, under the supervision of the staff. However, because many of these dogs have either NEVER been out of their kennel their entire lives, or they have not been out in a very, very long time. I believe we need some more time to set down some rules before I start arranging some "Dog Walk" days. The one time we were allowed to take dogs out months ago, other volunteers and myself were able to take maybe 20 dogs out. There are only a handful out of the 200+ dogs there that know what a collar/harness and leash are. Many shy away from it, no matter how much time you spend coaxing them. So I am thinking for the familiar volunteers and staff to do test runs first to figure out which dogs are easy to be walked and do a sticker system so that volunteers can tell which dogs can be walked. Then there are the dogs who maybe CAN be walked, but need help ; they would be a different coloured sticker, etc. So I will keep you all updated! And once I create a list of rules for people who want to volunteer, we can start arranging some "Dog Walks"!!

Hello all, here is a guideline handout I've created for volunteers who wish to walk dogs. These will be available at the shelter as well starting this coming weekend, and every volunteer must review it before being allowed to walk dogs. Just an FYI, for those who wish to only go to the shelter to walk dogs, they are on a precise schedule with feeding and cleaning so normally it is not until 1:30pm that all the "errands" are finished, so you should come after that :)

Next Sunday, we are trying to get as many volunteers as possible to help put down hay for warmth for the coming cold months. Also, since we can now walk the dogs, we need more people :) Right now, there are only a handful of dogs that have the "blue" sticker because I walked them myself so I know they are walkable. I need to do more "testing" with the other dogs, and slowly determine every dog's "walkability".

Here's a picture of the colour-coded sticker system we started implementing today!

There are HUNDREDS of photos so I am going through them slowly and posting the best ones here for your viewing pleasure :)

Alright, this is the first batch.

Photo credit: Ben Robins

**If you are interested in any of these dogs, please message me :) Many do not have profiles yet.

2nd batch :)

3rd batch :)

4th batch :)

Hello to all interested volunteers; I lead the trip mostly every weekend, sometimes Saturday, sometimes Sunday. For anyone interested, please contact me.

I would suggest for your first time, to go on a day when I will be there or when Gemma, another English-speaking volunteer will be there. The shelter staff speak very minimal English, and though I don't speak Korean myself, I have been volunteering there for 9 months so I can guide you on what to do.

It is not a do whatever you want kind of shelter, they do things step-by-step so if you go on your own the first time and are not able to communicate, you may have a very difficult time. It CAN be very confusing on how to get there; but it is very hard for me to explain in a clearer way than the pictures I've provided in previous posts and the instructions there. If you follow it exactly, it should be relatively easy to find the shelter. If you get lost, you can call me of course, but as the shelter is in the middle of nowhere, it's a bit hard for me to describe which no-name road to turn at ha ha.

Please give yourself ample time to get to the shelter. FROM Yangju Station, it will take you another 45 minutes if you do the bus & walking route. It will take about 20 minutes by taxi. Or about 30 minutes if you do the bus & taxi way. If you are taking a taxi or driving, the address/name of shelter is provided in the information section at the top of the page.

Also, I understand some volunteers are mainly interested in just walking the dogs. So I think it would be best to divide the volunteering into 2 sections. If you want to participate in all of it (cleaning, feeding, etc.), you should get to the shelter no later than 11am. If you just want to walk the dogs, I suggest arriving by 1pm (after lunchtime) because this is when we will have completed all the basic tasks. This will give me time to show you around the shelter, go through the rules with you, and for you to meet all the dogs and get familiar with them before you take them out for walks.

The shelter closes at 5pm so if we start walking by 2pm we should be able to get quite a few dogs out :)

It was freezing, it was wet, it hailed. But we had an amazing day and got to walk the dogs! Thank you so much to all the volunteers who braved the less than pleasant conditions, and who trekked up to 3 hours to get to the shelter. Pictures to come soon! And new profiles to be put up soon! These dogs are absolutely amazing and did so well on leash, ESPECIALLY considering some have not been walked for months, years, or ever.

Hey, y'all! I organized a volunteer trip for my students to Yangju Shelter. Here are their "promotional" videos! :o)