Olympic freestyle skier Gus Kenworthy might not be bringing a medal home with him, but he’s bringing home something even better: a puppy.
The animal lover rescued his new puppy from a dog meat farm in South Korea, and is using his platform to bring awareness to the horrific conditions that these dogs live in, Hello Giggles reports.
According to ABC News, Kenworthy wrote on his Instagram on Friday, “This morning Matt and I had a heart-wrenching visit to one of the 17,000 dog farms here in South Korea.”
“Across the country there are 2.5 million dogs being raised for food in some of the most disturbing conditions imaginable,” Kenworthy added.
The Olympic skier did address that this was a part of the Korean culture, and while he did not agree with it, he did not want to impose our Western ideals on South Korea. However, Kenworthy thought that the treatment of these dogs was deplorable, Hello Giggles reports.
“Yes, there is an argument to be made that eating dogs is a part of Korean culture. And, while [I] don’t personally agree with it, I do agree that it’s not my place to impose Western ideals on the people here. The way these animals are being treated, however, is completely inhumane and culture should never be a scapegoat for cruelty,” Kenworthy wrote on Instagram.
In his Instagram post, the Olympian also wrote about the conditions of the particular farm that he visited. “I was told that the dogs on this particular farm were kept in ‘good conditions’ by comparison to other farms,” he wrote. “The dogs here are malnourished and physically abused, crammed into tiny wire-floored pens, and exposed to the freezing winter elements and scorching summer conditions.”
According to ABC News, however, the dog farm that Kenworthy visited is actually being shut down, and will be sent to forever homes in the United States and Canada.
The great news, though? One very lucky dog from the farm is going home with Kenworthy!
“I adopted the sweet baby in the first pic (we named her Beemo) and she’ll be coming to the US to live with me as soon as she’s through with her vaccinations in a short couple of weeks,” Kenworthy wrote of his new fur baby. “I cannot wait to give her the best life possible!”
This isn’t the first time that Kenworthy has adopted a dog after the Olympics. Four years ago, Kenworthy adopted a mom and her four pups before returning home from Sochi, Russia, ABC News reports.
Kenworthy has a heart of gold. Beemo is just so adorable, and we are so happy that she is going to a great home!