Gyeonggi-do Companion Maru Protects Retired Military Dogs 'Yerang' and 'Yoonji' Until They Find New Families

Recently retired military dogs 'Yerang-i' and 'Yunji' are now able to spend their peaceful retirement at Banryeo Maru in Yeoju.

Gyeonggi Province announced on the 21st that it will provide protection and support for the retired military dogs Yerang-i and Yunji at Banryeo Maru, a complex pet welfare center opened in November last year, until new families are found.

Yerang-i and Yunji are retriever breed military dogs. Yerang-i, who is turning 12 this year, served as a tracking dog, while Yunji, who is 10 years old this year, performed reconnaissance duties.

Military dogs that have spent their entire lives in the military are generally not assigned handlers upon retirement and are classified as common management dogs, spending their remaining years in kennels.

Gyeonggi Province plans to protect Yerang-i and Yunji at Banryeo Maru in Yeoju while supporting efforts to find them new families. Last year, Banryeo Maru also received two retired military dogs from the Ministry of National Defense’s Military Dog Training Center, both of whom were adopted into new homes.

Recently retired military dog 'Yerang'

Banryeo Maru is a complex cultural space for pets operated by Gyeonggi Province, officially opened on November 11 last year. Situated on a 95,790㎡ site, it is equipped with one cultural center building, three shelter buildings, and one management building. It conducts programs such as stray animal protection and adoption, operation of an animal hospital, life respect education, grooming and training, and training of pet care professionals. Starting this year, it will also support related university field training, industry-academia recruitment fairs, and pet culture festivals to foster the pet industry.

Park Yeon-gyeong, head of the Gyeonggi Province Pet Department, stated, "Although awareness of pets has greatly improved compared to the past, the treatment of retired service animals remains somewhat poor. We will continue to do our best to improve the welfare of service animals who have dedicated themselves to the nation."

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