Ban on Dog and Cat Meat in China? Not Exactly

One thing that struck me in Chengdu was how many pet dogs there were.

Little dogs, medium-sized dogs, a few huge dogs -- dogs were everywhere. Most wore jackets or sweaters (it was the depth of a chilly winter, after all), some rode in bicycle baskets. Dogs in shops, dogs in parks (Chengdu's municipal government should be lauded for its efforts at creating green spaces), dogs cradled like babies, dogs on chairs and on laps, dogs inside homes and outside, patrolling their patch of sidewalk. And not mean, wild dogs either, but well cared-for, well-fed dogs who've obviously been raised as companions, not guard animals.

It's something you just wouldn't have seen 15 years ago. It's a sign of rising affluence, I suppose, a burgeoning middle class with money to spare. But who knows? Maybe it's a sign of something else too -- a slowly changing attitude toward an animal often called 'man's best friend'.

Coincidentally, the evening we returned to Kuala Lumpur I stumbled across (while enjoying a free, unrestricted browse of the internet for the first time in three weeks) a link to story in the Chongqing Evening News about a possible 'ban' on dog meat. We'd been in Chongqing just a week before; judging by the number of restaurants advertising xiang rou ('fragrant meat', as dog meat is known in China) and dog hot pot, the possibility of dog disappearing from menus in China seemed rather slim. So I decided to investigate a bit.

It turns out that the proposed ban is not really a ban, and is unlikely to be enacted into law in any form any time soon. That doesn't mean it might not happen some day, though. You can read our story about China's 'dog meat ban', and why the media hoopla over it is much ado about not much at all, over at Zester Daily.

The Zester story is an analysis, not an opinion piece. But this is a blog, so I'm going to use this space to alert you to Animals Asia, an organization based in Hong Kong that has been working to change attitudes to dogs, cats, and other animals such as bears, in China, Vietnam and elsewhere in Asia for many years -- well worth checking out if you're an animal welfare advocate.

Comments

[Dave -nibbleanibble]

Honestly, a law wouldn't really do much in China. At most, the police would show up for some sort of bribe and all will be well again...for the restaurant.

[Carmelita]

Just testing Robyn, to see if I can type a comment today! I left a comment on this well balanced article on your Facebook page already.

[Joy]

After reading about "dog hot pot", I'm going give pause the next time I eat a hot dog. I suppose it'll be OK, so long as it wasn't made in China.

[Preeta]

I hope I won't offend anyone with this comment, but I honestly don't see why the consumption of dog meat should be banned. Pigs are possibly even more intelligent than dogs, and certainly quite sociable and capable of similar affection etc. etc. Yet there's never been an attempt to ban the consumption of pork (except in Muslim countries, but that's an obviously different story), and this is purely because the consumption of pork is not a foreign or weird concept to the West. Sure, there should be strict animal welfare laws to ensure that the animals people choose to eat are raised and slaughtered humanely, with the chance for decent lives. And no one anywhere should be consuming endangered animals. But to decide what's acceptable to eat and what's not acceptable, based *purely* on which ones the West sees as pets or companion animals (dogs and cats are definitely not endangered, after all) has always seemed xenophobic to me, even though I am an inveterate dog lover and have never eaten dog meat myself.

[Robyn]

Dave - you could say that about a lot of things in China, but I'm not sure it's a valid argument *against* a law.

Hi Preeta - Thanks for your comment, don't worry about offending it's an open forum here.

It's true, there is no logical argument against the consumption of dog and cat meat. The way dogs and cats are often killed in China (it's believed that more adreniline before death -- achieved by inflicting lots of pain, of course -- makes for more tender meat), however is objectionable.

But I don't agree that it's xenophobic to wish for a ban in China, simply because there are more and more Chinese who themselves object to the consumption of dog and cat meat (for the reasons explained in the article). My feeling is that there's little basis to the 'culture' argument bec cultures, all aspects of cultures, are living things that change over time. (Kind of like those ridiculous arguments about democracy not being compatible with Asian culture, you know?)

Ultimately I am with Animal Asia's founder --- let the Chinese decide for themselves, of course. If attitudes change to the extent that a critical mass objects to the consumption of dog meat and it's banned bec of that I don't see a problem with it. Nor do I see a problem with working on behalf of 'changing minds' in that direction via projects like Dr Dog etc.

[Naturally Kick Doggy]

To be Honest ...Both R looking Good...
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Viva-Magazine-Your-Premium-Womens-Natural-Health-Magazine/262734921452?ref=ts

[Simon inEaston]

Can't honestly say I can see the difference between cute fluffy lambs, cute fluffy bunny rabbits, cute fluffy guinea-pigs and cute fluffy cats 'n dogs - let's eat 'em all, I say :-)))

[tessa connorton (@ladytess2012)]

Preeta should read how dogs and cats are stolen pets from other provinces and skinned and boiled alive before being beaten to death, SO, she should NOT make such CRASS coments on how it's OK to eat dogs. see #yulin festival. BE AWARE of this.

[Robyn]

Yes I agree -- the way that dogs and cats are killed before cooking in China is pretty awful. Yes yes, slaughter houses in the USA also engage in awful practices. But the one doesn't justify the other. Let's treat all animals humanely, I would argue.