By This is a common problem in Korea, soldiers buying pets:
Danni Armstrong, volunteer coordinator for the Osan Veterinary Treatment Facility and Osan Animal Shelter, said pet store owners often tell customers that a puppy is 2 or 3 months old when it actually is only 4 to 6 weeks old and still has a weak immune system.
And many haven’t been vaccinated or de-wormed.
In the United States, puppies typically are not sold until they are 8 weeks old, Armstrong said.
Some people get a pet without thinking about the difficulties of having an animal while deployed.
“Are you absolutely sure you want to adopt a puppy while you’re here?” said Osan veterinarian Capt. Rachel Hedlin. “Is it really their priority to have it here in Korea?”
She said most servicemembers are stationed in South Korea for only one or two years, and buying a pet is a decision they make on impulse, without thinking about whether they can care for it adequately. [Ashley Rowland - Stars & Stripes]
The number of stray pets on post in USFK facilities is not as bad as it was in years before, but it is not uncommon to go on a run during PT at Camp Casey and have multiple strays following your formation while running. If you didn’t know better you would think Camp Casey was some kind of animal shelter at the time.
To many soldiers would get a pet and then when it came time to leave they did not complete the paperwork to bring the pet back to the US and leave it on post as a stray. The pet problem became such a problem in my unit that a company policy was made that no one was allowed to bring a pet to the unit area besides owning a small fish tank with specific dimensions.
I can understand why soldiers want to own a pet, but Korea just isn’t the place they should be taking on the responsibility of owning one.
6:01 am on October 17th, 2007 1
With all the scams on base/post, I'm surprised this is a problem.
Like the Korean companies that are actually PAID to "dispose" of stuff like extra JP8 (which is immediately sold as heating oil)…
…certainly something could be worked out to accept inflated bids from "connected" companies to supply a friggin' dog catcher.
If there is any country this scam would work in, Korea is it. Come on… this is not even thinking outside the box, eh?
I even see another level of scam on the front-end where the company sells adorable little puppies outside the main gate, lets GI Joe fatten 'em up on a two-year tour and then gets paid by USFK to collect them for resale to Ajuma's Soup House. Even after the bribes to the commanders who know the deal, it's still a very high-profit operation.
As for stray cats… well… be suspicious of the two-for-one chicken stick sale.
J!
6:41 am on October 17th, 2007 2
Nothing suprises me here anymore, it's a dog(korean) eat dog)korean) country baby!
7:44 am on October 17th, 2007 3
If they are puppies we can make Sam-kae-tang.
1:55 pm on October 17th, 2007 4
Part of the problem (especially in 2 ID) is that the source of the puppies is sometimes the Field Ajumas.
Very often, a Field Ajuma will try to sell off one of her dog's new litters to soldiers in the unit that she supports.
The lucky puppies become the platoon or company mascots (and will often get better treatment than some soldiers). The unlucky ones become the strays.