Chinese dog eaters and dog lovers spar over animal rights

By William Wan, Published: May 28
BEIJING — The mutts were destined for the dinner table — all 520 of them crammed onto a truck hurtling down a Beijing highway toward awaiting restaurants in northeastern China.

Then, fate intervened in the form of a passing driver, an animal lover who spotted the truck and angrily forced it off the road.

From there, things began spiraling out of control. News of the confrontation hit the Chinese blogosphere, sending more than 200 animal activists flocking immediately to the highway. Traffic on the road slowed to a standstill. Dozens of police officers were called in. Animal activists, however, kept arriving with reinforcements, carrying water, dog food, even trained veterinarians for a siege that lasted 15 hours.

Weeks later, those who were there still talk in disbelief at how quickly things escalated. But in many ways, it was a battle that has been brewing for years between the rural and the urbanites, the poor and the rich — between China’s dog eaters and its growing number of dog lovers.

more
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia-pacific/chinese-dog-eaters-and-dog-lovers-spar-over-animal-rights/2011/05/20/AGvgmVDH_story.html

I'm glad to see animal rights people in China acting up!! That poor dog in the picture, I could cry.

And snooty "cultural relativists" who get mad at people who don't like to see companion animals eaten can just stick it up their superior minded asses. I don't give a damn what that lot thinks, never did, never will.

Therefore, anyone who eats pork is a horrible, evil person.

That makes sense, right? :sarcasm:

I don't eat pork.

Guess what? Dogs shouldn't be used as food IMO, I will keep my opinion and cultural relevance will continue to be considered, by most people, disgusting. It's an argument that won't win, so you can just keep considering dog lovers, like myself, complete monsters, that's ok, you will still not win with the majority of people.

Fuck dog eaters.

Just ignorant. You make a great American.

:evilgrin:

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Complain how awful the chinese are for eating dogs while we eat an animal revered by hundreds of millions of people as sacred.

My opinion on the murder of what I consider a sentient being is "cultural bigotry" but worshiping cows in other countries (not that I have a problem with that) is not?

Double standard much?

So funny!!!! The same old tired challenges to people who have differing opinions. "Cultural bigotry" what a laugh! ALL cultures were born to die throughout time, including ours. There has never been a culture that has lasted forever nor will there be.

If there were, my condemnation of them would be as strong as my condemnation of other people who are being cultural bigots. I don't care what your silly opinion about dogs is, anymore than Indian people's silly opinions about cows. The opinion isn't the problem, it is judging people outside of your culture, by arbitrary cultural standards.

There are people within their own country that don't like it. I guess they are evil too because they desire cultural change.

NOTHING ever stays the same. I don't mind being considered a "bigot" by someone who can't see truth in anything, not one bit.

Some cultures are nothing but complete piles of shit.

Just like it is wrong for people on DU to judge rural Chinese people for their food choices.

Nothing stays the same. True but doesn't really matter in this context.

Is not any less strict than mine. To you anyone disagreeing with someone's cultural practice is just WRONG!!! OK, that's your opinion, worshipping transient "cultures" more than anything on the planet (so sad about the cave men, damn the end to the ice age!). I consider dogs sentient and quite special beings that shouldn't be eaten, I think you are wrong. We are no different except I'm willing to admit I have zero wiggle room. Cultures are made to change and die. Hopefully all dog eating cultures change quickly and I applaud those in China trying to make change.

Condemnation of cultural practices needs to be based on reasonably expected negative outcomes.

"I applaud those in China trying to make change."
Which is saying that you applaud the people who are forcing your cultural values on other people. Which is only marginally better than doing it yourself.

Cultures are made to die, change, and grow. That doesn't justify imposing your cultural values on other people to accelerate the process in the direction that you want. If those cultures decide to stop eating dogs for the same reasons that I don't than it is great for them.

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I just posted something similar downthread. This is a cultural thing, plain and simple.

PB

I wouldn't do it. And the idea of eating fido is unsettling to me.

But I recognize that's largely a cultural thing so I don't begrudge them their choice in animal protein.

it appears that things are changing and some Chinese don't want dog on the menu any more. It's their choice. I applaud them for standing up for what they think is right.

It's pretty funny watching the outrage here when someone in another country dares eat an animal that Americans have on their "Do Not Eat" list.

Let's hope the Chinese legislature passes that ban on dog meat. :cry:

on food like dog meat.

for centuries. Why should the Chinese legislature ban eating of dog-meat. If the Chinese legislature bans the eating of dog-meat, why shouldn't they ban the eating of all forms of poultry, fish, beef and any other animal that is eaten in China. Closer to home, why shouldn't Congress ban all meat eating i this country? A dog has no greater right to not be treated as food as any other animal, the only reason why our cultural norms does see that situation is because we are not dog-meat eaters.

It is they who are considering the ban, ask them. While you're at it, you can save the condescension too.

Companion animals should not be food.
That's my opinion and I couldn't care less if you agree.
Thank you.

Dogs are friends, not food!

Dairy and eggs too, since I don't eat any of those things and therefore neither should you (at least if your logic holds sway.)

Let's hope the Congress passes a ban on ALL non-vegan foods. :cry:

THIS NEEDS A WARNING IN THE TITLE!!!!!!!!!!

FUCK!!!!!

and sent to the pound or humane society where, at least in today's economy, there isn't enough room for them, so many of them would be put to sleep in relatively short order and dumped at the landfill are instead being killed for food for the poor.

I don't see a problem with the Chinese killing these dogs for food rather than caging them for a few months and then killing them and throwing them away.

round em up those escapees for kabobs!! dont bother trying to find an owner.

I'm never fond of living near overly emotional people that in this case think the landfill is a better option than the dinner table.

So just out of curiosity, if they try to find homes for say 8 weeks and then prepared them for the dinner table when they are not adopted, would that be okay with you?

killing them because they are in excess = good.

Using the meat rather than wasting it = evil.

I admit to feeling queasy at the prospect of eating dog, but that has no rational basis. It's a cultural construct.

And it's not as if the average American doesn't eat some kind of meat.

Dogs are smart and loyal sure, but so are pigs.

I have no issue with killing excess dog populations, but I would also prefer the carcasses be used for something rather than wasted.

seems a better way to honor the critter as well.

in assuming that we want those dogs to be killed in an animal shelter, which I can assure you we don't (Well, I don't, and I'm pretty sure others don't either) so rejecting your false dichotomy and saying that neither is ok, and we should change the way shelters handle animals, and how people handle animals too, puppy mills, etc. It's not a simple issue, the whole paradigm needs to be changed.

:thumbsup:

due to disease or age. It is the compassionate route.

And we have far too many stray animals in this country. That needs to be dealt with.

Likewise anyone who eats meat cannot morally object to eating dog.

I certainly believe it.
http://www.americanhumane.org/animals/stop-animal-abuse/fact-sheets/animal-shelter-euthanasia.html

As a meat eater, I have to recognize that I am off-put by others eating meat from animals I do not. Inwardly, I find it offensive for different reasons, depending on what the "other meat" is. But outside of my emotional response I have to recognize there is no difference.

In places like India, people would view my consumption of beef as just as barbaric (if not moreso) than how I emotionally respond to others eating dogs.

If we're talking intelligence of the animal being the determining factor for generation of opprobrium then pigs should be at the top of the list for defense. But they're not. How we eat and what we eat isn't really based on any sort of empirical guidelines or reasoning. It's almost entirely cultural and when I read articles like this, and the responses here, I see a far-less reasoned approach to the difference and more of a cultural one.

PB

food animals, but rather as pets. In other places, that is not the case. Keeping pets implies that the pet owner has surplus food or the means to buy food for that animal. That's not true where dogs work with humans, of course, or are used by humans as hunting animals. But, in the US, most dogs are kept as pets and fed the meat of other animals, which were killed and slaughtered for that purpose. The meat dogs eat is generally more than the meat eaten in countries like China, where meat is not the principal ingredient of most meals.

So, in some ways, our pet dogs eat better than Chinese people. That's another way to look at it, and worth a thought.

Affluent people can afford to keep meat-eating dogs as pets. Poor people in countries where meat is scarce cannot afford to keep dogs. Dogs are not pampered pets in those countries. They are just another animal that is a protein source.

I wouldn't eat dog meat. But, then, I don't live in a culture where that's done. If I did, I suppose I would. :shrug:

i mean really?

come on people, wake up and turn off the Hong Kong Phooey. Sheesh.

you know, as a "cultural" thing.

we have to be humane and respectful towards the animals we regard as food. That means raising them in conditions that give them a good healthy quality of life, slaughtering as painlessly as possible, and doing our best not to let any part of it go to waste.

Which animals are regarded as food is a cultural issue.

and it is a falsehood that people need meat to live, it simply is not true.

and an aphrodisiac. It is banned in most urban areas, and is very expensive.

"The eating of dog meat in China dates back thousands of years. Dog meat has long been thought by some to have medicinal properties, and is especially popular in winter months, as it is believed to generate heat and promote bodily warmth. Also, dogs have occasionally been eaten as an emergency food supply.

Eating dog is a socially acceptable practice in parts of southern China. Dog meat is very popular in the Guangdong and Guangxi regions of China.

**Chinese astronauts even incorporated dog as part of their diet in space."**

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dog_meat#China_mainland



It is a frikin' CULTURAL THING and I've the right to protest it.




I do not eat red meat or sentient critters. I disapprove of their being raised and slaughtered. Btw, did you know that people who slaughter animals in this country cannot serve on juries. Wonder why!!

And since when is there a ban on slaughterhouse workers serving on juries?

people do not need meat, it is not a necessity. Therefore, there is no excuse to be butchering dogs (or any other animal as far as I am concerned) for ones palette.

No matter how it's done. Nice work, activists. I salute you.

used to sell frozen, ready-to-cook guinea pigs. They look like a fairly meaty little creature, and raising them for food is probably far lower-impact on the environment than cows or even pigs of the non-guinea persuasion.

Thanks for posting this piece. The dogs were collected and in the process not fed or given water; one dog was DOA.

It was wonderful to read that activists intervened, however, China has a longass way to go toward treating animals humanely. The United States does too in that regard. :cry:

:popcorn:

or anything else we eat?

this doesn't make the dog any more special. i personally wouldn't eat dogs, because i have cultural taboos, buts its highly hypocritical of me to eat a goat but condemn eating a dog

My grandmother always told me it was wrong to eat any animal without a cloven hoof ... I never asked where she got that from, but just presumed it was from the Bible, and I may have been wrong about that all these years. I love all animals and have raised cows and pigs that were just as precious to me as my dogs ... it was just a fact of life they eventually had to go, which definitely was hypocritical but always a horrible, awful day. However, I just couldn't eat a dog. I understand that some have little choice but it rips your heart out thinking of it.

Or fish?

Yeah, she ate chickens and fish.

because they can't find homes.

Maybe, since we're killing them anyway, we should sell the meat to the Chinese?

I have eaten dog in China and North Korea. Actually it is quite good and I was surprised. I find it culturally arrogant to condemn what other people eat. I draw the line at eating other people but there are plenty that want to take away our right to eat chicken, pork, or beef. The Japanese eat whales, so what? Lets just make sure we do not eat animals to extinction.


Dog soup in Kaesong North Korea

Some cultures are insensitive. Call me arrogant, I don't care.


I love the Chinese people but not some of their customs.




Some studies have shown that a lack of sensitivity and empathy toward animals correlates across species, including humans.

Btw, I think the Japanese are and have been ruthless in the way they've treated animals and especially their neighbors.

in a nation where - just as a fer'instance - nearly 9 BILLION (with a b) chickens are slaughtered for food each year after being raised in appallingly cruel and inhumane conditions.

some people just have something against food qua food, so they turn it into a game of ethical one-upmanship

Just for the record, I don't eat red meat nor sentient critters.


If China has enough food to export, they have enough to feed their poor. IMO.







Caveat: I was in China last yr and am going again next yr.

Yes, I know it sounds like a dumb question, but.........how do you answer it?

china has a lot of problems. dog-eating isn't one of them.

edit. or to quote the rap artist Jay-Z...

It's a long hard road educating these beasts. Glad we're up to the task.

are disgusting.

and their apologists are also disgusting, and cause many billions more deaths annually than all the dog-eaters in China. The majority of people wailing about this incident this morning are almost certainly doing so with breath redolent of half-burnt pig flesh from their breakfast. Pigs are, BTW, smarter than dogs -- why is it okay to munch down on them but not Fido?

and i certainly wouldnt want my cat eaten, but as long as we eat sentient creatures, who are we to get so outraged?

it would be one thing if dogs were endangered.

otherwise, as long as i am not a vegetarian, i really dont get to fuss

i think monkeys are a grey issue, because the chances of spreading diseases is so high, it poses a public health threat.

I understand there are cultural differences in play. I don't want to see pets snatched off the street, but in general I don't see a dog different from a cow or chicken when it comes to hungry people.

were dogs are eaten (the frequency of them being eaten varies depending on the part of the country)
However I never see people rounding up strays for food, in fact most "pets" are allowed to run free
while those destined to be eaten are tied up and not allowed to roam.
As far as my personal view I never pass judgment based on cultural differences

Rick

I much prefer to eat cats, because - prepared right - they have much more flavor! I hope I never ever get so hungry that I would eat a dog.

Or do you mean only when it is poor, starving, foreigners? Sounds xenophobic to me.

at shelters and pounds in the United States. Six to eight million. Rotting in landfills or burned in incinerators for the sake convenience.

This truckload of 500 dogs destined to be eaten (rather than just killed and dumped) is but a mote in a logjammed eye.

it's up us enlighted westerners to show those slanty eyed savages what aninamls are the right ones to eat.
:sarcasm:

I don't give a shit what their culture is.

Man created dogs to live with us and work with us - NOT TO EAT!

:rofl:

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You just made my day! :rofl:

Yes, you're funny.

:boring:

You sure showed me what a comedy master you yourself are...

domesticated animals doesn't spare them from us eating them.

that regularly saves human lives and I'll consider your argument something more than a joke.

particularly cattle breeds.

Without them people would literally die. By the millions. You would never dare eat beef in light of this great service they provide humanity, would you?

Oh but they're poor, hence "fucked" in the head.

:silly: :eyes: :shrug:

and in many parts of the world dogs have been raised for food for millennium.

If they were bred for this purpose then were they not created by man to eat?

The difference between eating a dog and a pig is entirely philosophical. There is no objective reason why one is ok and the other is not.

Every dog born has a natural love for man.

People who eat dogs are desperate motherfuckers in overpopulated, starving countries and otherwise fucked in the head.

Emphatically not true.

"Dogs have been bred to work alongside man."

Not true of every animal, no. That excludes the ones that were bred for food.

"People who eat dogs are desperate motherfuckers in overpopulated, starving countries and otherwise fucked in the head. "

Yeah those assholes, how dare they not be rich and well fed.

It should be a crime to be hungry and poor.

I assume of course that you never eat meat right? Additionally you have been poor and on the verge of starvation and made the conscious decision not to eat dog because it would be "fucked"

"Natural love for man" my ass.

thing I have ever read in my long life.

Man has always considered the dog a food animal -- some cultures reject it, but it's never ceased to be be globally.

what??? in his cave man bio lab?? science fail!!!!

Wow...

Now get the fuck out of my way, I need a Whopper.

Ever see that soup "The Dragon and Phoenix" on a Chinese menu? The "dragon" is snake, the "phoenix" chicken, and... well, let's just say it's called "The Dragon, Phoenix and Tiger" over there. :puke:

to drown because they cannot swim. I would never knowingly eat a dog but as someone pointed out, that's my cultural bias that was ingrained in me from infancy...just as Hindus find eating a cow anathema, it's just their particular taboo, and all taboos are cultural (or religious which is really the same thing.) I've eaten a lot of dishes around the world that I did not DARE inquire as to the ingredients. I did not want to know then or now, either. There truly is no rational reason to oppose cutting up a small dog for supper but having no problem with grinding up a whole cow for burgers...but then humans have never been perfect exemplars of rationality. This story seems to suggest the dogs were not well treated, and that is offensive of course, I am also very offended when any animal is mistreated but absent prolonged pain and suffering, I can't really get too excited about using them for food. (Nobody has ever, to my knowledge, expressed outrage at the practice of catching fish and letting them 'drown' in air while going to market)

about eating dog meat. South Korea still has some restaurants that serve dog meat, but they are slowly disappearing. One of the major reasons is that younger people don't agree with the practices. If you look at the demographics of Korea in terms of age right now, a large majority of people are older (60+). When that generation dies, the demand for dog will fall off even more then it has now. It is only a matter of time before it becomes rare (no pun intended) to find dog meat served in Korea.

Someone mentioned North Korea, I don't have any direct experience, but have read quite a bit. My understanding is that they will eat anything the moves due to the lack of food. It may well be that dog meat is more common in the North due to lack of food. When people are starving, they'll eat anything they can find.

That dogs are sacred but pigs, cows, sheep, goats, fish, chicken, etc. are all OK? How culturally superior of you.

Stop cooking all those weird smelly foods and wearing strange clothes. And what's with that god-awful noise they call music, anyway?

:sarcasm:

That our eating habits are superior?
If they want to eat dogs in China, Korea, Viet Nam, the Philippines or anywhere else
what business is it of ours?
Personally I prefer my canine adobo style instead of fried

Not dinner.

You can't say that about cattle.

Bake

for catching prey, hauling loads, keeping away pests or as warning devices. The affection and love Americans seem to have adopted for dogs as companions is a unique and recent development. I happen to like dogs a lot, have had many in my life and wouldn't think of eating one but I'm not stupid enough to imagine that is because of anything but a lifetime of cultural imprinting.

40,000 years ago they were wild wolves. Now they are companions and working dogs, but still domesticated.

Bake

Thanks for setting me straight!

It's a discussion board. I simply referred to a science program I saw. Instead of the logical fallacy of denigrating the source (it's not like it's Freeperville), address the substance. You'll last longer here.

Oh wait. I forgot. This is GD. Where logical fallacies go to reproduce.

:smoke:

Bake

just more than you. :D

America is only, what, 230-some odd years old. So thanks for that bit of wisdom, Sherlock.

Whether it's a cow or a pig (I once saw a truckfull of pigs stacked on top of each other when driving on the highway and it was sad so I can understand the reaction of these animal lovers to seeing the dogs in the truck) or a dog. I am not currently a vegetarian and I think all animals are "fair game" in terms of being used as a food source. Obviously, cultures vary. However, I do think animals used for food should be treated humanely and the amount of meat eating should be severely reduced (especially in this country).

And no, I don't eat ANY animals. But it takes a special kind of scum to eat an animal as capable of compassion and empathy directed towards people as a Dog.

Call me a cultural imperialist, I don't care, it is wrong.