Tragedy to our lovely buddy Happy – a fate too many Korean dogs share.

Some tragic and very sad news. This evening my wife and I were out walking our two dogs (Doogie and Lora) when we called in to pick up Happy for her daily walk. Happy is a two year old ginger Korean mix dog.

For the last year and a half my wife and I have been walking happy, and in that time we watched her transform from a malnourished state, with bulging eyes to an always happy and excitable young dog. Over the two years we watched her raise two litters of puppies, the first littler got sold. But her last two remind with her at the property. They had so much energy.

Tonight, while I was tying up my dogs, my wife mentioned that her adolescent puppies were gone. She was about to give them treats and some attention, I was taken by surprise, and did not believe her at first but their cage was empty. No panting, no excitable barks. Just empty.

I rushed in to check on Happy, the door to her makeshift shelter was open, and she was also gone.

In Korea, when farm dogs disappeared in August it is rarely good news. August is the hottest season in Korea (Called Malbok). Thus is when traditional Koreans eat dog meat in a mistaken belief that dog meat provides a source of vigor, and enhances stamina against the heat.

Happy and her two pups, more likely than not have been sold off to a dog slaughter house. To fuel the country’s dog meat trade. My wife was heartbroken, no dog deserves such mistreatment, and Happy and her puppies were simply good girls. They caused no trouble.

My wife asked the old farmer, what happened to the dog. But all he would say is that someone collected them and taken them far away, and he does not know where. We will miss Happy, the happiest dog I have ever met.

The first time I saw Happy, I was out walking my two dogs there she was a tiny, young puppy barely bigger than a can of soda but a lot more adorable. She just sat in a farmer’s cage looking out at the world, she never barked, nor cried just sat there.

Over the following months, I slowly watched Happy grow. Her puppy cuteness, lengthen into a lean, somewhat gaunt young dog. Still, she did not bark, just sat there as the world went by around her.

One evening, when Happy was about 6 months of age, my wife and I were out walking our dogs again. We walk them twice a day, every day and she noticed Happy on her chain sitting there and she felt sorry for the skinny young dog.

So, she decided to talk to the old farmer who owned her to offer to take her for a walk. The farmer, agreed and was concerned that Happy was not eating and one eye was bulging out and bloodshot. My wife discovered that Happy’s collar was extremely tight, “she could barely breath” and the suffocation was likely the cause of her eye injury.

After loosening the collar, and finding an old leash we took happy out for her first walk. She was weak but enthusiastic, she had poor coordination and wobbled along as she walked. The first day we only took her for a short walk, the next day a little further, and then further again. It was not long before she was walking strongly beside as.

Having never been leashed trained, happy was always a handful. My wife eventually convinced me to allow her off leash, and she was free. She will sprint up and down the rice paddies with the biggest smile on her face. She was so happy, hence why she earned the name.

She loved her daily walks, and never caused any trouble off leash. Happy was actually much better behaved than my two dogs. She will never run off hunting, or challenge other dogs, she also showed no interest in people. She was basically the perfect dog.

Early, on she was a bit excitable, but Happy was a fast learner and motivated for food. In only a couple of weeks, I taught her to come at the sight of her leash. She could be zooming around all crazily, and I will take out her leash and she will be by my feet looking up. In many ways she was the perfect dog off leash. So different from the majority of Korean Jindo crosses.

Our time together was not without adventures, Happy was blind in one. So she did not always have the best sense of balance, on one of our walks, and before I taught her to come, she was off zooming around and fall into an irrigation canal. Poor Happy, when I found her she was rushing up and down it panting and ‘smiley’ like she always does.

Happy was such a lovely dog, I doubt she could even hurt a flea if she wanted to. She never barked, and the only sounds I heard her make were a few quiet yelps when she realized we were coming. Happy always greeted me with countless leaks of affection.

We will miss happy, and looking back, we wished we had done more to keep her and her two adolescent puppies safe. I know all dogs are good boys and good girls, but I am not exaggerating when I say she was simply good. A nice dog, a friendly dog. May you run free happy.