A controversial annual Chinese festival where thousands of dogs are killed, often in inhumane ways, for their meat and eaten began Monday in a tiny town in the southern Guangxi region, despite international calls for the festival’s ban. The 2015 Yulin Dog Meat Festival has drawn the ire of animal rights groups from around the world who say it represents animal cruelty at its worst. Photos of the event show the dogs crammed in cages and enduring cruel treatment such as beatings and being skinned alive.

The custom of eating dog meat in China dates back centuries, but acceptance for it has waned in recent years as the animals have become more popular as pets among the country’s growing urban middle class. Still, dog meat is still considered a delicacy in parts of China.

Humane Society International described the country’s dog meat trade as “horrific” and said the animals “suffer terribly as victims … for human consumption.” The dogs are often kept in appalling conditions and denied water and food.

The Yulin Dog Meat Festival was first held in 2009. Many of the dogs are stolen from urban households and from farmers by thieves who sell the dogs for “easy money,” said Andrea Gung, a representative of a California animal rights group, the Duo Duo Welfare Project. Gung said she witnessed the preparation of dogs at the Yulin festival in 2014. “Some dogs were still wagging their tails when they were being killed in the slaughterhouse,” she said.

Many of the dogs are burned or boiled alive. Others are beaten to death with poles. Despite such gruesome treatment, many said they enjoyed eating dog meat. Festivalgoers described the meat as “delicious” and “nourishing,” according to CNN.

The local Yulin government has denied the festival’s existence in the face of rising criticism. “The so-called summer solstice lychee dog meat festival does not exist,” it said in a statement from June 7. “Neither Yulin government nor social organizations have ever held such activities.”

Here are images that show what many say is the inhumane nature of the Yulin Dog Meat Festival.

Photo: Reuters

Photo: Reuters

Photo: Reuters

Photo: Reuters

Photo: Reuters

Photo: Reuters