What are your views about using dogs as food? To Westerners this might seem horrific but in some cultures its perfectly accepted. What do you think? This report in the Guardian debates the issue:
Would you eat rabbit? Even those who regularly consume meat from chickens, sheep and pigs will often balk at the thought of eating a cuddly little bunny rabbit. But what’s the difference? Why do we see some animals as furry friends and others as fair game to chop up and eat? With the Winter Olympics turning attention towards South Korea, dog meat has been put on the media menu. The west has gone into shock mode. They eat dogs? They must be mad!
30 million dogs are slaughtered each year for the Asian market and served up in dishes like dog salad and dog stew. As a vegan, this appals me. But no more than I’m appalled by people eating chickens and cows. Is there really such a difference? I sense some hypocrisy in the outrage, and perhaps a little dollop of racism (or at least xenophobia) on the side.
The details of the dog meat trade are indeed horrific. Puppies are squeezed into excruciatingly cramped metal cages. They are left alone for most of their lives, yelping for help that never comes. Dog mess collects beneath the cages. Paws become torn and bloody as they struggle for firm footing on the hard wire they are supposed to stand on. Some of them collapse and die. The rest are sent to markets in even more cramped crates. Then they are killed. In other words, it’s much like what happens to pigs and many other animals in much of the west. In this context, the recent coverage of Korea’s dog meat industry amount to little more than the condemnation of foreigners for having their own food culture.
korea-eating-dog-meat-animals-food-westYes, dogs are smart and friendly – but so are pigs. Researchers from Cambridge University found pigs are as smart as three-year-old humans. They can play computer games and recognise people they met several years ago. They develop trust and empathy like we, and dogs, do. Few people relish the thought of any animals being slaughtered so it’s normal for those who eat meat to try to justify it. Just as westerners get angry about people in Asia eating dogs and cats, many Indians get outraged by westerners eating cows. People shake their heads in disbelief at guinea pigs and alpacas being served up in South America.