Over 2,000 Abandoned and Lost Animals Find Families in Chuncheon, the Pet Mecca

Stock photo [Asia Economy DB]

[Asia Economy Reporter La Youngcheol] In Chuncheon City, which dreams of becoming a pet industry hub, it has been revealed that over 2,000 abandoned and lost animals have returned to their families in the past five years.

According to Chuncheon City on the 9th, from 2016 to 2020, 3,178 abandoned and lost animals were rescued, of which 974 were returned and 1,100 were adopted, meaning 65% of the rescued animals were either returned or adopted.

Since 2018, the city has also been promoting a support project that provides financial aid for disease diagnosis fees and other expenses when adopting abandoned or lost animals.

This year as well, up to 150,000 KRW per animal is supported for adopting abandoned or lost animals.

If the expenses such as disease diagnosis fees exceed 250,000 KRW, 150,000 KRW is supported; if the expenses are less than 250,000 KRW, 60% of the expenses are supported.

The application deadline is within three months from the adoption date, and eligible applicants are those who have adopted animals through animal protection organizations or for the purpose of companionship, according to relevant laws and enforcement decrees.

Those wishing to receive adoption support must visit the animal protection center to submit the adoption support application, adoption confirmation, receipts such as medical bills, a copy of the bankbook, a copy of their ID, and the animal registration certificate.

In July last year, the city opened an animal protection center with an area of 893㎡ in the parking lot for soldiers entering the former 102 Supplementary Unit.

Meanwhile, this year the city will invest 60 million KRW to select six rural lodging businesses located in Nam-myeon and Namsan-myeon to support improvements to pet-friendly facilities and the installation of new facilities.

The creation of specialized areas aims to alleviate inconveniences for pet families traveling due to the increasing demand for pet-friendly tourism and to revitalize the local commercial district linked to the pet industry around Nam-myeon and Namsan-myeon.

Selected businesses must install play area fences, plant trees within playground sites, and provide convenience facilities such as play equipment and pet waste marking areas.

This year, a total of six locations will be selected, with support funds of 10 million KRW per location including self-payment. Supported businesses must operate as pet-friendly lodging facilities for five years. Even if ownership changes during this period, the pet-friendly status must be maintained for five years.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.