Seoul's Mayor Park Won-soon campaigned for a year to end on-site slaughter, and said in a statement he wants the city to promote the dignity of animal coexistence.

The mayor announced in February all dog slaughterhouses in Seoul were to close after he watched the movie Underdog, a film about stray animals, earlier in the year.

Korean animal charity Humane Society International welcomed the closure and said it was "wonderful" to be one step further away from that industry.

In July, South Korea's Gupo dog meat market in Busan closed after the largest dog slaughterhouse in the country shut in 2018.

Many of the dogs at the market were Korean Jindo mix, and all dogs were freed by charity workers after the market closed.

Attitudes towards eating dog meat are changing and consumption is declining.

A 2018 survey by Gallup found 70 per cent of South Koreans said they won’t eat dog meat in the future.

Eating dogs is still legal and the meat is commonly found in the stew Bosintang, consumed during July and August.