Horrific video footage captured in slaughterhouses in the Central Javan capital city of Surakarta, known as Solo, shows the animals being beaten and strung up to bleed out while still conscious.
The footage was captured by the Dog Meat-Free Indonesia (DMFI) coalition during an undercover investigation, which revealed about 13,700 dogs are snatched from the streets or stolen in Java every month.
Lola Webber, from the Change For Animals Foundation, said: “Dogs are captured from the streets and stolen from people’s homes to be taken on long journeys, often lasting for days, tightly packed in pick-up trucks or in hessian sacks, their mouths bound shut so they can hardly breathe.
“They are then taken to filthy slaughterhouses where they watch others being slaughtered as they wait their turn, trembling in fear. The look in their eyes is haunting, the blood-spattered walls unforgettable.”
DMFI’s latest investigations suggest that Solo is an epicentre for much of the trade that operates on Indonesia’s most populous island.
West Java acts as a “supply hub”, according to DMFI’s report, importing dogs into Solo’s densely-populated city centre.
Here the dogs are then brutally slaughtered and sold in one of the city’s 82 restaurants openly advertising the meat.
This is despite a central government directive in September which called for local governments to tackle the dog and cat meat trades.
DMFI launched a campaign in 2017, which is fronted by British comedian Ricky Gervais and backed by other celebrities, to end dog meat consumption.
It called for the Indonesian government to ban the sale and consumption of the meat because of animal cruelty and public health reasons.
Only seven per cent of the Indonesian population are actually thought to eat dog meat, with many of those believing claims that it provides special health benefits, such as boosting men’s sexual performance.
But campaigners have warned that eating it poses a risk of transmitting rabies or other diseases.
DMFI’s recent investigations have now prompted Solo to draft legislation for a ban on the sale of dog meat, according to ABC. The restrictions are expected to come into effect next year.
Java’s Karanganyar region has also pledged to wipe out the dog meat trade in the area, according to DMFI.