Dog meat

[Boo Radley]

Dog meat _ a thriving trade

 

 

 

Man's best friend is increasingly ending up on the dinner table, no thanks to a trade that some condemn as cruel to the animals and dangerous to human health. Defenders say that eating dog is rooted in tradition

 

 

 

Story by CHOMPOO TRAKULLERTSATHIENu Pictures by SOMKID CHAIJITVANIT

 

 

 

When I travel to the North, I regularly come across wooden signs advertising ``Dogs for Sale''. The signs can be anywhere, from highways to country back roads. I had always assumed they pointed the way to dog breeding farms selling cute puppies to dog lovers like myself.

 

 

 

But during a recent conversation with a northerner I was startled to learn that these farms raise dogs for human consumption. Judging by the ubiquity of the signs, it is apparent that business is brisk and dog meat a hot commodity.

 

 

 

A trip to one of these farms might, I thought, help me to understand _ and to come to terms with my inner conflict between sympathy for a poor man's need for a livelihood and anger at cruelty to animals.

 

 

 

At a farm in Nan province, I was greeted by a diminutive, polite and humble old man in his early 60s. Our request for information about his dog farm was granted on the condition he remain anonymous _ there would be similar requests from other dog farm operators I later interviewed.

 

 

 

Like others in the business, he believes he is making an honest living, and yet he is aware of public resentment against cruelty to dogs. He insisted his operation was no different from pig farming or raising cattle. He too just raises animals to butcher and sell for human consumption.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The old man led me to his backyard, where a dilapidated and cramped wooden cage housed dogs of different breeds, ages, sizes and colours.

 

 

 

Most seemed exhausted. They had been transported from distant locations the previous night in a pick-up truck. Some slept soundly, others moaned sporadically.

 

 

 

When a butcher approached with a lasso, dogs backed away from the front of the cage, crowding into the back. Many howled. Some went to a corner, shaking.

 

 

 

The old man said pregnant dogs were generally not butchered until they had given birth to their litters.

 

 

 

The young puppies? ``They are allowed to live. They grow up outside the enclosure, until they are about a year old. Then their time is up.''

 

 

 

The most dreadful scenes are at the area where the dogs are butchered _ in full view of the other dogs. This causes the still-living to panic, as though they are aware of their destiny.

 

 

 

In recent years, a large number of dog meat farms have emerged in many provinces including Phitsanulok, Uttaradit, Phrae, Payao, Nan and Chiang Rai, where the consumption of dog meat has been practised for over a century.

 

 

 

In the old days, dogs were killed as food for special occasions such as the pithee wai phi ceremony to pay respects and make apology to the spirits. Dog meat was also a feature of the long kaek, the time when villagers would lend a hand helping others with the rice harvest.

 

 

 

The current supply of dog meat doesn't meet the apparently ever-increasing demand. So homeless dogs have become the new target for dog farm operators. Catching strays is much cheaper than breeding the dogs.

 

 

 

``We can make a huge profit with just a meagre investment,'' said one dog meat farmer in Uttaradit province who uses stray animals.

 

 

 

Commercial hunters roam the provinces of the North hunting for strays. Dog populations are particularly dense in and around the main provincial cities and a day's catch can net upwards of a hundred dogs.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

``We find homeless mongrels in places like local communities, markets, streets and temples. Animals between the ages of one-to two, with brownish-red fur are preferable. When the number of the dogs decreases, we move on to other neighbourhoods,'' said one dog hunter.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After the dogs are captured, they are distributed to the various farms that have placed orders. The farms pay between 50 and 60 baht for each dog.

 

 

 

Dogs are generally transported at night or early morning, when there is less risk of anyone noticing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The management of a dog farm is rather simple. Newly-arrived dogs are kept in small cages and are given anti-parasite tablets for about a week. They are fed twice a day. Most animals are on a farm for about two weeks before they are butchered.

 

 

 

Some farms in Phrae put their dogs through a rather agonising routine. The animals are first fed a great deal, until they get fat. Then they are forced to run on a mechanical belt to reduce the level of fat.

 

 

 

``So what we get is low-fat dog meat,'' said one farmer who has been in the business for two years.

 

 

 

In Payao province, where the dog business is also booming, strays are caught and fattened before being butchered and the meat exported to China.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The ``Dogs for Sale'' signs are typically covered over with a piece of cloth if there are no dogs available. When the four-legged goods arrive at a farm, the sign is uncovered.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

``I sell two or three dogs a day. The price is 300 baht for a big dog and 100 baht for a small one. I earn about 2,000 baht a month,'' said one old farmer in Nan.

 

 

 

A middle-aged man in the same province said consumption of dog meat in his village was a personal matter.

 

 

 

``I don't dare eat dog meat myself, but some of my friends love it. They've tried to persuade me to try it, but I've refused. You can't force people to eat things or not eat things _ it's their personal preference, their choice. For some people, it's a way of life.''

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Another villager in Nan province claimed that dog-eating was practised only during special occasions, such as parties.

 

 

 

``When we want to invite lots of friends to a get-together, we serve dog meat. It's cheaper than other kinds of meat,'' said the 48-year-old villager.

 

 

 

In Thailand, the dog meat trade operates in a legal grey area. While the slaughter of dogs is not banned _ in fact, operators need not seek a slaughtering license because dogs are not covered under the Control on Animal Slaughtering and Meat Distribution Act _ they may run foul of legislation forbidding cruelty to any animal. But in practice this is difficult to enforce.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In recent years there have been ongoing meetings between various government authorities, the National Police Office and the Thai Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals to find solutions to end cruel practices in relation to dogs and cats.

 

 

 

It has been suggested that certain other Acts relating to animals, like the Animal Disease Control Act Amendment 1977 and the Criminal Code could be more seriously enforced to help alleviate the suffering of farmed dogs.

 

 

 

An official campaign is also currently underway to reduce the eating of dog in Sakon Nakhon province, where business in the dog meat trade is the most brisk.

 

 

 

According to Ruksit Wadhayotha, Chief Sakon Nakhon Public Relations Officer, there have been several attempts to promote the consumption of other kinds of meat like fish and beef. Sakon Nakhon is well-known for its abundant high-quality fish found in Nong Han Reservoir and quality beef from Baan Phon Yang Kam Agricultural Cooperatives.

 

 

 

At local trade fairs, local authorities have regularly urged people to switch to these sources of protein.

 

 

 

A number of ordinary people in the region are also concerned about the animals' fate.

 

 

 

At the dog farm in Nan that I visited that morning in late March, I bade farewell to the old man, but I also couldn't help expressing my sympathy towards the ill-fated dogs. The old man said nothing, just excused himself to go back to his work on the farm. My passion for humanity's four-legged best friend was hardly going to distract him from doing his job. After all, for him, this is just an honest livelihood.

 

 

 

From http://www.bangkokpost.net/en/Outlook/25Apr2002_out94.html

 

 

 

 

[Old Hippie]

Sorry, I missed the point...

[Boo Radley]

No real point. Just an article some may find interesting about cultural differences when it comes to eating different types of food.

 

Does every post have to have a point? Do all your posts have a point?

[Old Hippie]

No, not every post has to have a point. I was just wondering if I missed something in terms of what you were trying to say I tend to be a bit dim witted at times:) As for dog meat, I have seen it for sale in Sakon Nakon. I have heard of it being sold in the side streets in BKK, but not in restaurants. For the record, it tastes like nasty beef or lamb, maybe it just wasn't cooked right!

[Sarisin]

Yeah, the old joke when you meet a gal from Sakhon Nakhon is "Gin maa mai?" Usually brings a smile or a smack in the back of the head.

 

 

 

The first time I had dogmeat was in Korea back in the 70s - on a pizza. I had no idea what it was and asked my yobo (Korean girlfriend) what it might be. It was a bit stringy, I guess you would call it. When she said it was kaegogi I decided to eat around it the rest of the way.

 

 

 

Of course dogmeat is commonly consumed in China, Vietnam (you can see the poor canines hanging in the market), and, I think the Philippines too.

[khunsanuk]

Hi,

 

 

 

As a dog lover I can't help being utterly repulsed by this.

 

Some animals are to close to us humans to be eaten. Dogs most certainly fall in this category.

 

 

 

Sanuk!

 

 

[Guest]

Post deleted by DoxyBlue

[khunsanuk]

Hi,

 

 

 

I think the line is intelligence. Your average dog is way more intelligent than your average cow.

 

 

 

(Yes, I am aware that pigs are intelligent as well).

 

 

 

Having spend my entire live around dogs, which were treated as part of the family, the idea of eating one revolts me.

 

 

 

Sanuk!

 

 

[Guest]

Post deleted by DoxyBlue

[khunsanuk]

Hi,

 

 

 

"I wonder what dolphin tastes like... "

 

Hahaha, you are incorrigiable (sp?)

 

 

 

Sanuk!