{"id":324857,"date":"2026-06-18T04:34:00","date_gmt":"2026-06-17T19:34:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/?p=324857"},"modified":"2026-06-17T17:43:33","modified_gmt":"2026-06-17T08:43:33","slug":"north-korea-pet-culture-wealth-gap","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/north-korea-pet-culture-wealth-gap\/","title":{"rendered":"North Korea’s pet boom puts new spotlight on wealth gap"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A growing number of North Korean people are keeping pets, fueling rising sales of specialized dog food<\/a>, clothing<\/a> and other supplies in 2026. Pet ownership, once condemned as a capitalist habit, has spread into a popular new lifestyle trend in recent months, but some North Korean people say it<\/a> has also become a yardstick that makes the gap between rich and poor feel more pronounced.<\/p>\n

According to a source in South Pyongan province who spoke to Daily NK on Wednesday, the number of people raising dogs<\/a> of various breeds as pets has visibly increased in major cities, including Pyongyang<\/a> and Pyongsong, the capital<\/a> of South Pyongan province. In the past, most people kept dogs for security purposes or as a food source, but now many regard their dogs as pets and treat them like family<\/a> members, the source said.<\/p>\n

Wealthier people in particular are increasingly buying specialized dog food, treats, leashes and clothing imported from China<\/a>, according to the source. As recently as the early 2020s, dressing dogs in clothing was condemned as a “bourgeois lifestyle” or a symptom of “decadent capitalist culture<\/a>,” but such criticism<\/a> has largely disappeared, the source said.<\/p>\n

Analysts believe the shift has been influenced in part by publicized images<\/a> of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un<\/a> and his daughter, Kim Ju Ae<\/a>, with pets. In April 2026, state media<\/a> reported that Kim and his daughter toured a newly built pet shop in Pyongyang’s Hwasong<\/a> district, a large new housing<\/a> development, ahead of its opening. As the ruling family’s affection for animals became public, it grew harder for people to openly criticize pet ownership, according to the analysis.<\/p>\n

“People say that since the supreme leader and his daughter visited a pet store themselves, who would dare openly criticize someone for keeping a dog as a pet,” the source said. “Criticism has also decreased because people are worried that speaking out against it could cause trouble for them.”<\/p>\n

North Korea pet culture turns a joke into reality<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Amid the trend, some people have begun referencing a comedic stand-up routine by North Korean comedian Ri Sun<\/a> Hong to poke fun at the situation. In the routine, a drunk man stumbles past a sign for a knitwear shop, but after part of a character on the sign appears to have fallen off, he misreads it as advertising a “dog clothing store” and asks, “Did I cross the border<\/a>?” since such a shop seemed too far-fetched to exist in North Korea.<\/p>\n

But as pet culture has spread in recent years, people now joke that a real “dog clothing store” could soon open. Dressing dogs in clothing and accessories is no longer unusual, prompting cynical remarks that the punchline of the old routine has become reality.<\/p>\n

“Many people never imagined that dogs would be dressed in clothes<\/a>, but it has now become reality,” the source said. “Some people feel it is contradictory that authorities regulate how people dress and wear their hair<\/a> to conform to the socialist<\/a> lifestyle, but do not raise the same objections to pet culture.”<\/p>\n

With many North Korean people still struggling to make a living, some say that watching wealthier people buy specialized food and treats for their pets is deepening a sense of relative deprivation.<\/p>\n

“When I hear that people buy separate food and treats for their dogs, I can’t help but say their dog has a better life than I do,” the source said. “For people who are struggling just to get by, it is hard to accept that kind of scene.”<\/p>\n

Analysts say such reactions reflect less a rejection of pet culture itself than growing bitterness over the widening gap between social classes.<\/p>\n

“What really makes people uncomfortable is not the act of keeping a dog itself, but the difference between those who can afford to spend money<\/a> on it and those who cannot,” the source said. “The remark that a dog clothing store could really open reflects the complicated feelings many people have about the widening gap between rich and poor.”<\/p>\n

Read in Korean<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
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\n A Note to Readers<\/span>\n
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Reporting from inside North Korea<\/p>\n\n \n

\n Daily NK operates networks of sources inside North Korea who document events in real-time and transmit information<\/a> through secure channels. Unlike reporting based on state media, satellite<\/a> imagery, or defector<\/a> accounts from years past, our journalism comes directly from people currently living under the regime. We verify reports through multiple independent sources and cross-reference details before publication.\n <\/p>\n\n

\n Our sources remain anonymous because contact with foreign media is treated as a capital offense in North Korea — discovery means imprisonment or execution. This network-based approach allows Daily NK to report<\/a> on developments other outlets cannot access: market<\/a> trends, policy implementation, public sentiment, and daily realities that never appear in official narratives.\n <\/p>\n\n

\n Maintaining these secure communication channels and protecting source identities requires specialized protocols and constant vigilance. Daily NK serves as a bridge<\/a> between North Koreans and the outside world, documenting what’s happening inside one of the world’s most closed societies.\n <\/p>\n\n \n

\n How We Report<\/a>\n Subscribe to Our Weekly Briefing<\/a>\n <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A growing number of North Korean people are keeping pets, fueling rising sales of specialized dog food, clothing and other supplies in 2026. Pet ownership, once condemned as a capitalist habit, has spread into a popular new lifestyle trend in recent months, but some North Korean people say it has also become a yardstick that […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":256,"featured_media":324065,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wikipediapreview_detectlinks":true,"footnotes":""},"categories":[67,681,1360],"tags":[1652,1694,274,724,794,862,1098,1151,1177,1300],"class_list":{"0":"post-324857","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-news","8":"category-politics","9":"category-society","10":"tag-daughter","11":"tag-wealthy","12":"tag-pyongyang","13":"tag-kim-jong-un","14":"tag-south-pyongan-province","15":"tag-rodong-sinmun","16":"tag-pyongsong","17":"tag-clothing","18":"tag-culture","19":"tag-hwasong"},"yoast_head":"\nNorth Korea pet culture widens wealth gap divide | Daily 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