Eating Dog

Caged in China

"It's very simple. Each country has its own culture, and here we eat dog." Dao Van Bien, Hanoi, Vietnam (WSJ Classroom edition, link here).

Personally, I find the custom of eating dog abhorrent. I wondered why the idea bothered me so much. Many dogs are housed and treated poorly--locked in small cages without food or water. Some are slaughtered using cruel and painful methods as well. However, most of us that oppose eating dogs do not oppose eating other animals. If we are against eating dog because it is an animal rights issue, we should all be vegetarians. Check out a big ag-business cattle slaughterhouse or poultry processing plant and you will see a lot of unhappy poorly-treated animals, although conditions have improved in the last few years.

Most of us don't think of the slaughterhouse when eating a hamburger or chicken teriyaki dinner. Our reaction against dog eating is personal and emotional, not based on avoiding cruelty to animals. Many of us grew up with dogs and saw them as individual personalities, maybe even as members of the family. In a sense, they have become people. Eating dog would be cannibalism.

Additionally, dogs are qualitatively different from other animals. A dog cares about its owner. A dog is sad when the owner is away and happy and excited when given attention. A pack animal, a dog is loyal to owner and family. (My cat, on the other hand, is much more of an opportunist.) It feels wrong to eat a creature that adores you, perhaps loves you, and is loyal to you forever.

 If Vietnamese dogs were pets, they would not be eaten.