<Oh!
Click> The last search term is 'one out of five households are worried about disposing of their pet'.
Hundreds of pets are abandoned every day.
According to a survey by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, one out of four Koreans raises a companion animal.
Enlarge Image
However, it was found that 22.1%, or 1 out of 5 pet caregivers, responded that they had an experience of giving up parenting or considering dissolution.
As for the reason, 'behavioral problems such as damaging things and barking' was the most common at 28.8%, followed by 'spending more than expected'.
Enlarge Image
There were also answers such as 'conditions such as moving and employment have changed' and 'animals have contracted diseases or suffered accidents'.
The average monthly cost of raising a companion animal is about 150,000 won, an increase of about 30,000 won from the previous year.
Netizens responded by saying, "I'm worried that more people will be abandoned because the economy is getting worse these days", "Only companion households have exploded, but there seems to be a long way to go for shared growth", and "How can they give up easily when they say they are family?"
(Screen source: Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs)