Dog Meat
All about dog meat – and how to avoid it
Eating dog is an idea that most Westerners find rather distasteful, but to some Chinese it’s no different from eating sheep or pigs. Outside the big cities hardly anyone keeps dogs as pets and most people can’t afford to be overly sentimental which may be why they haven’t developed the ‘can’t eat that’ status that they have in the West.
How to Avoid Dog Meat in China
When it comes to dog meat in China, most travellers’ main concern is simply to avoid it. Rest assured, dog meat is a very rare occurrence on menus in Beijing, it’s quite unlikely that you’ll come across a restaurant that serves it. Furthermore, most restaurateurs are well aware that eating dog meat is something of a minority interest, especially amongst Westerners, and they won’t serve it to you unless they’re quite sure that you want it.
Chinese for ‘Dog Meat’
If you want to be quite sure, the crucial character to watch out for is 狗 (gǒu – dog) of 狗肉 (gǒuròu – dog meat). 我不吃狗肉 (Wǒ bù chī gǒuròu) means ‘I don’t eat dog meat’. Make sure you stress the 不/bù.
Dog’s penis, like many other kinds of animal penis, is used in Chinese medicine. It is believed to boost a person’s Yang, and therefore might be useful to men suffering from impotence.
Dog Lovers Are Advised To Stop Reading Now
As a meat, dog is fairly versatile and can be served up in a variety of ways – anything from a dog and aubergine stir fry to dog-soup noodles. The meat is fairly dark and usually quite tender.
Dog is most commonly eaten in South China an in the far North East. Cantonese people (from South East China) especially have a reputation for eating all sorts of bizarre and exotic animals that leave other people cold, for example snake and cat. Northern Chinese like to say that Cantonese people will ‘eat anything with four legs apart from table and chairs’.
Visitor Comments
Mmm… Roasted labrador with dog gravy and all the trimmings for Sunday lunch, yum yum! Perhaps the threat of being eaten for dinner might stop dogs from biting the faces off small children?
From Johnny Marascalco · 7 June 2007, 08:55
dog penis YUK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!DEY CHINESE R AWFUL!!!!!!lLOL
From cheese · 18 June 2007, 18:27
i think eating dog is just like eating pig, cow, or even chicken. its just meat, but don’t think im going to cook up my puppies. i dont think i would eat dog, but what happened to ‘chinese eat cat’? i thought it was koreans who ate dog…
From aurielMoon · 5 September 2007, 15:31
Its not what you kill to eat thats the problem, its all meat. Its how they are killed. And I’ve read some pretty sickening ways animals are treated and killed for food.
From Dave · 24 November 2007, 18:02
This is a sensible article and not a great deal of sense in the comments. I would not choose to eat my companion animal, but equally I would not expect someone for whom, say, sheep or cattle were companion or sacred animals to understand how I could happily have roast lamb or steak dinners.
It is all to do with tradition. We have no right to be rude, as the comment on this thread mostly are, to people with different views than ourselves – we are not the only ones on the planet.
I do not believe that eating dog or cat is right, but then, pigs are more intelligent than either of them …. so where does that leave me? A hypocrite, probably.
My apologies, if this posting offends. It was not intended to.
From James · 23 January 2008, 23:26
Well done James, a very balanced view. Certain pig breeds make wonderful smart pets yet people just gulp them daily and then yet turn around and say how can some people eat dog? I just think back to certain people in india who think the cow is sacred and imagine how’d they’d feel about westerners eating them all the time like they were nothing. Though personally I am opposed to it, its still morally all relative. I think the only people that really have a say are vegans who are opposed to all animal exploitation.
From Sarah · 23 February 2008, 21:33
man i think you guys are all crazy. last week me dog got stolen. i think you guys took him.
From wee man · 28 March 2008, 12:54
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i think eating dog meat i sick i would never try it and i think it is totaly crul to dogs…just ask thoses alful people who eat it and say would you like it if someone beat u to death and the death wouldent be quik then ate you ,maybe if you were still alive they would burn u and eat u.my mission is to stop crulty to all animals and stop dog meat so watch out because when ,not if i do this ur all gonna no abot it!
From aislyn · 6 June 2007, 20:50