Out of the meat trade, into agony - Dogs of Thailand

[buksida]

Dog meat is especially in demand in Vietnam during the cold season.

Yes, one of the pleasures of travelling in Nam was that there were no packs of feral dogs on every corner, my kids could cycle about without fear!

[MajorBloodnok]

That shocking video was shown on Thai PBS on New Year's Eve! I could barely bring myself to watch it.
People who "understand" that dogs end up on people's plates, fail to recognise that for thousands of years a special relationship between men and man's best friend, formerly wild wolves, has developed which is based upon total trust on the dogs' side.
When certain individuals betray this trust by abusing dogs, slaughtering them in the most inhumane manner, even skinning them alive I totally lack understanding, and I had better not disclose how I would treat any such individual.
When a town is under siege, and people are starving to death one might forgive people for eating dogs (& horses).
I certainly would NOT eat my own dog!
The King has set an example of ethical treatment of stray dogs by adopting some.
Of course, a countrywide programme of neutering should be implemented.
The Thai Border Police seem to be doing their best to stop such barbaric transports.
Recently they seized shipments of tiger cubs and cobras destined for one of Thailand's neighbours.
Needless to say many of the snakes had already perished.
Anyone condoning this kind of unethical treatment of animals is a monster.

[sandemb]

At the risk of being controversial, who are we to decide what cultures eat their protein? Hindis would not like our treatment of the holy cow! Much as the thought of eating little black puppies disgusts us, it is just another source of raised food to them. I'm sure on Asian travels I have eaten many foods disguised as something acceptable to us Farangs! KFC could be KFmeoow for all we know! Enjoy your food without wondering where it came from!!

[Takiap]

At the risk of being controversial, who are we to decide what cultures eat their protein? Hindis would not like our treatment of the holy cow! Much as the thought of eating little black puppies disgusts us, it is just another source of raised food to them.

I agree. For many people, dogs are simply another choice of food. I know who are disgusted by the idea of people eating lambs and/or baby calves (veal), but that's just the way life is. I personally believe it's okay to kill an animal, only if you intend eating it.

Unfortunately dogs are for the most part eaten by people/cultures that have very little respect/feeling for animals, which in turn means that the animals are not always slaughtered in a very humane way. Dogs however are not the only animals that suffer.

I've seen videos of cattle shipped from Australia to Indonesia (I think) and the way in which they are slaughtered is horrendous, and I suspect it's not much better here in Thailand if the truth be known, especially outside of the big cities.

Strangely enough, I only once actually seen someone eating dog meat in Thailand, and I certainly know that it's unheard of in the small village where my wife's grandparents live.


Maybe they should introduce a system where you're only allowed to eat meat if you're able to demonstrate that you can do the slaughtering yourself. I wonder how many meat eaters would suddenly become vegetarians.

[bsdk1960]

Maybe they should introduce a system where you're only allowed to eat meat if you're able to demonstrate that you can do the slaughtering yourself. I wonder how many meat eaters would suddenly become vegetarians.



well we done it before so i think we can adapt again if necessery.

[PeteC]

I could do and have done birds, and of course fish. Anything else I would have a problem. I was a terrible deer hunter when a kid. Used to shoot in the general direction for effect, but that's about it. Pete

[dtaai-maai]

I could do and have done birds, and of course fish. Anything else I would have a problem.

Interesting - it's all a matter of scale, I suppose.
I remember going to a country butcher's in France once to buy a chicken to roast for my dinner. It was packaged just as you would expect from a butcher or even a supermarket in the UK, and it was only when I got home that I realised the head was still attached. I was genuinely rather shocked! Our squeamishness is quite absurd, really...

well we did it before so i think we can adapt again if necessary.

Of course.

[Big Boy]

It was packaged just as you would expect from a butcher or even a supermarket in the UK, and it was only when I got home that I realised the head was still attached.

Our Christmas capon from Makro was like that.

[PeteC]

I forget to re-mention that one of my first jobs here in Thailand with the military was to shoot stray dogs with a 12 gauge shotgun. We had to clear the base of them on a regular basis. No problems with that as most were rabid and crazy, and wouldn't have problems now. Didn't have to dress and cook them though. Pete

[richard]

Witnessed and helped in killing to eat when I lived in Khon Kaen. The kill was inhumane but you as a farang tell them better.

As I was born up in the wilds of Yorkshire just after the second world war and food rationing was in place it was common to slaughter and use as bartering for other provisions. First necked a chicken when I was six years old and killed my first pig at 14

[Takiap]

BB, did your capon taste any better than a regular chicken? I've been thinking of giving one or two of our roosters the snip, but it there's no real difference then I won't bother.

Richard, when you were living up in the sticks, was slaughtering always left for the men to do? My wife wasn't born in Isaan but she basically grew up there, and I find it quite strange that she can't even watch when we slaughter a chicken, let alone do it herself. Her Mom is the same.......she'll gut them and cook them, but killing them is out of the question, so it's always my FIL or myself who has to do the deed. My FIL prefers to do it because I just chop their heads off, while the Thais prefer to slit their throats.

Anyway

[Big Boy]

BB, did your capon taste any better than a regular chicken? I've been thinking of giving one or two of our roosters the snip, but it there's no real difference then I won't bother.

The honest answer is that I don't really know. We had so much different veg on the table that you don't normally see in Thailand, that by the time I'd semi-gorged myself on that, my significantly reduced stomach didn't have any capacity to allow me to eat the chicken (I only managed 2 very small sips of beer over Christmas as well ).

My assumption is that it would have tasted a whole lot better than regular Thai chicken, but not because it was a capon, but because of the way it was prepared and cooked. It was a beast of a bird, but only lasted one meal, so it must have tasted OK.

[Dannie Boy]

BB, did your capon taste any better than a regular chicken? I've been thinking of giving one or two of our roosters the snip, but it there's no real difference then I won't bother.

Richard, when you were living up in the sticks, was slaughtering always left for the men to do? My wife wasn't born in Isaan but she basically grew up there, and I find it quite strange that she can't even watch when we slaughter a chicken, let alone do it herself. Her Mom is the same.......she'll gut them and cook them, but killing them is out of the question, so it's always my FIL or myself who has to do the deed. My FIL prefers to do it because I just chop their heads off, while the Thais prefer to slit their throats.

Anyway

A true Capon is a castrated Cockrel and the castration process should result in a much bigger bird and apparently more juicy and tasty. Could be a viable alternative to Turkey for next years Xmas dinner if I can find somebody with a sharp knife for the castration!!

[richard]

Richard, when you were living up in the sticks, was slaughtering always left for the men to do? My wife wasn't born in Isaan but she basically grew up there, and I find it quite strange that she can't even watch when we slaughter a chicken, let alone do it herself. Her Mom is the same.......she'll gut them and cook them, but killing them is out of the question, so it's always my FIL or myself who has to do the deed. My FIL prefers to do it because I just chop their heads off, while the Thais prefer to slit their throats.

Quite so. No women allowed near or to watch. My other half was scared when I was invited to a buffalo kill as sometimes the beast does not give in easily when being beaten senseless and may escape and charge at the nearest moving man. This ageing farang is not as quick or as nimble as a young Thai farm lad so she had cause for concern. Brutal process though. No quick kill. Waste of a bullet I was told.

Anyway Dogs are equally brutally slaughtered