Little tiger: Tongue got your cat?

(Photo by Bertil Videt)

In downtown Hanoi, ordering “little tiger” might mean that you’re about to eat somebody’s pet cat.

Hanoi AFP reports that cats there are routinely “drowned, shaved and burned to remove all fur before being cut up and fried with garlic.”  Although there is an “official ban” against the “consumption

of cats,” cat thievery is still common.  Pet owners therefore keep a close eye on their feline companions for fear of never seeing them again.

After all, as one Hanoi chef put it:  Eating cat meat is better than eating dog as the meat is more sweet, more tender than a dog.

Besides, why have to choose between eating cats and dogs or keeping them as pets?  One can have the alleged best of both worlds by raising them as pets, then eating them as snacks.  At least that is the going philosophy in some

parts of the world.

Lest these practices seem rather crude, consider this reader’s comment:  …In America we raise and eat pigs, cows, chickens, sheep and any number of other animals.  By all rights, pigs are far more intelligent than dogs or cats…

Since humans are biological omnivores, and can thrive upon a balanced vegetarian diet, perhaps it is time for all cultures to reconsider the heartless killing of our four-legged companions.   

Resources

http://news.yahoo.com/vietnams-taste-cat-leaves-pets-peril-035946482.html

Copyright August 1, 2014 by Linda Van Slyke   All Rights Reserved