No more filet of canine on the menu?

Animal welfare in China
Off the menu
The right to eat cats and dogs is under threat

Feb 25th 2010 | BEIJING | From The Economist print edition

AT THE National People’s Congress (see main story), the Communist Party decides what laws to draft and when they get passed. But public pressure is beginning to count, too. An attempt to persuade the Congress to ban the eating of dog- and cat-meat has captivated the Chinese press and caused an uproar.

A proposed animal-rights law, circulated in draft last September by Chinese activists and legal experts, would be the first of its kind in a country where animal welfare rarely seems a priority. Pigs destined for slaughter are often seen crammed excruciatingly tightly in cages on the backs of lorries. In safari parks visitors happily pay to dangle live chickens into lions’ dens, or even to have a live calf dragged by its legs behind a jeep past ravenous tigers. But a fast-growing middle class, despite enjoying gory outings, is also fond of pet dogs and cats.

This creates conflict with ancient eating habits. Dogs are a popular dish in many parts of China, not least among ethnic Koreans in the north-east. Dog restaurants are also common in Beijing. Many believe that eating dog helps keep the human body warm in winter. Cats are popular in southern China. The sweet-tasting meat has been served to your correspondent, diced into small cubes reassembled in feline form with fur-stripped paws sticking in the air. The wretchedness of its foreshortened life was left to the imagination.

Dogs were once banned in many urban areas, but in recent years the government has caved in to soaring demand. For each household Beijing still has a one-dog policy and decrees that they must not be taller than 35cm (14 inches). They are nonetheless ubiquitous.