from another friggin planet

I visited friends for dinner this evening for dinner. On my way into their building, I saw two puppies on their building doorstep. There were heaps of kids with them, so I didn't think any more of it. When I left 4 hours later at 11pm, the puppies were still there, by themselves, no blanket or box or people or anything. They had been abandoned, probably by the people who had moved out of the building that day. So Linda and I sat with them, and tried to figure out what to do. This guy who had been helping the new people move in walks past, we start talking/gesturing, since he couldn't speak much English, and we don't have much Korean. First he tells us the puppies are cute (because that's clearly the issue here, how cute they are, not why they're there). Then he asks us if we're Russian (code for prostitutes), whips out his wallet, and starts counting his money, and asking us where we live. Linda and I were mortified (and clearly very sexy) . Luckily he drove off and left us alone.
So its after 11pm on a Sunday night and here we have 2 puppies. The number listed on the net for the Korean SPCA turns out to be the number for a convenience store, and we cant find any 24 animal shelter or emegency vet.
anyway, linda and richard, fellow kiwi vegetarians who are also huge animal lovers, are looking after them tonight, and tomorrow, with the help of a Korean friend, we're going to see what we can do.
the mind blowing thing is that this is not just a one-off occurrence. this is Korea. This is how animals are treated, they are not seen as a living thing, a responsibility that one takes on for good. Hey, this is country where they make dogs wear shoes, dye their hair, and carry them around so that their feet never touch the floor. And if they're not dressing them up like dolls, they're eating them. How hard it is for someone to take the dogs to a vet or spca, instead of dumping them. I'm giving these bastards the benefit of the doubt and hoping they left them there for someone to collect them and help them, and not to die, but I wouldn't put it past them. and this isn't me making broad generalizations either, this is the everyday attitude. I hear it from the kids in my school every day. and its why I wouldn't ever be able to live here for a long time.
if it wasn't for the fact that I live in an apartment with no garden, and am away a lot of the day, I would take the puppies. They are the cutest wee things. I still can't wrap my head around the idea of someone dumping them.
anyway, sorry for the rant, I am just so appalled and disgusted and annoyed. I will sit down and write a proper post tomorrow, but right now I'm going to stomp around my apartment and curse all Koreans.