I definitely get it; there’s a lot more separation between the average person and cows than there is with dogs. Many people keep dogs as pets, but few interact closely with cows. That definitely makes it easier to dismiss their killing.
I think expecting moral consistency from humans is a bit of a high bar, as we’re well known to be irrational and emotional creatures. It’s probably better to appeal to people’s emotional side if you want to change their views, for example by taking them to meet cows in a farm and showing them how they’re sentient creatures too.
Sure, we are irrational and emotional, but the whole idea of modern society is that we surpass those base level instincts into rationality and consistency. Consistency is still important and something that should be focused on
Why is this about “the west”? Also what is a vegan who objects to eating dogs? Also what’s morally wrong with loving a meat animal like a pet until it’s time to slaughter it? We love all kinds of things that we know we’ll eventually get rid of - is that really wrong? So many questions.
If I picked up cats at shelters, fed them, cared for them, with lots of space and toys, and then after a few months slaughtered and ate them, that would be the most ethical meat consumption right? It would certainly be better for the bird population than letting them go to homes that allow them to roam.
So why does it feel wrong to pick up a healthy young animal that trusts you and slit its throat?
I hope you are aware that more than 99% of all animals raised for meat have a very different experience to what I describe, and not in a good way. So even if the slaughter is not an issue, consider their life.
dogs are friends
Cows are friends. Dogs are food.
:(
Hypocrite moment
So are cows.
Humans take irrational and even inconsistent positions? Really. Good point. 🙄
Ok I understand I will now consume dogs. Jkjk
The worst depiction of eating dog meat in Asian countries I ever read was about a village where people go about rounding up every dog they can find to hold a centuries old festival.
Although being outlawed, people go and steal pets from backyards. That is barbarism.
Cattle, no matter how well treated by farmers, are not pets. There is a very thin line between caring for an animal that actively engages and a connection with a human being and an animal that, at best, tolerates it.
And please be so kind, if you can find the patience for it, in explaining me just how this apparent higher moral grounds apply to places where substaining on a strictly vegetable based diet is insufficent to sustain life.
Nomadic people still exist and their life is intrinsically connected and dependent of cattle.
I think the worst, most despicable description of eating dog meat was the flat-out lie that Haitians in Springfield, Ohio were eating people’s pets.
Uhhh… what? That just completely went over my head.
During the US presidential debate this year, Trump said that Haitian immigrants were eating the cats and dogs of people living in Ohio, Springfield.
Which was an obvious lie that just brought extra racism against the people living in that town.
What constitues as a pet is kind of arbitrary no? Me and my family has a field we used for sheep not long ago. Not proud of that but would it be cool if we put dogs there not bred for the prupose of being pets but for the purpose of being eaten? Besides there are animals that commonly are common pets that are considered okay to eat.
What constitues as a pet is kind of arbitrary no?
Not really, at least as far as I know.
A pet is an animal that can be kept around human beings, usually in close quarters, normally indoors, that does not pose an immediate threat.
For the sake of conversation, I do not consider reptiles, insects, large felines or, in general, large animals as pets.
Me and my family has a field we used for sheep not long ago. Not proud of that […]
Did you mistreat the animals in any way? Starved them? Let them exposed to the elements or dangers? Or did you cared for their needs and health?
Because if you did, you were a better caretaker than 90% of those I know and live nearby. Be proud of that.
[…] but would it be cool if we put dogs there not bred for the prupose of being pets but for the purpose of being eaten?
Okay, so I’m going to dive a little into a book I read a long time ago where the consumption of dogs and cats in Asia was tied, to different degrees, to the traditional medicine used there, paired with older superstitions that upheld that by consuming a given animal, a person would somehow acquire their traits.
For what it may concern, to this day, although it has been banned, in Vietnam, cat soup is literally called little tiger soup, and is sought after not by the newer generations but by the older ones, as it is believed eating it prolongues life and keeps ones youth.
Not culture: superstition.
By comparison, even in the darkest of times, in western countries, dogs and cats were very rarely seen as viable food options. Dogs were always seen as companions, as well as cats, although those enjoyed less favour by association with witches.
(Superstitious bunch we are, universally.)
One last remark: besides cats and dogs, the other animals we managed to tame throughout our history don’t really like humans. They either fear or, at best, tolerate humans.
Besides there are animals that commonly are common pets that are considered okay to eat.
Tying this with the first part of my reply: which are?
Pigs
No way. No way in this life, the next nor the next over.
Pigs are not pets. Pigs are the only farm animals capable of receding into feral state in a matter of months if left to fend for themselves. And any pig herder knows taking a nap within reach of pigs is not safe.
Yes, I am aware of all the cute internet videos but those are exceptions, not the norm.
I kept a couple of potbellies to help clearing and digging a small terrain, kept them well taken care for, fed, sheltered, clean, safe, and one of systematically tried to bite or headbut me. Other breeds are openly hostile towards humans and some are borderline dangerous, especially around children and other small animals.
So, again: pigs are not pets.
Pigs do not deserve to be exploited and slaughtered just because they cannot be companions animals that you can have around the house.
By comparison, even in the darkest of times, in western countries, dogs and cats were very rarely seen as viable food options. Dogs were always seen as companions, as well as cats, although those enjoyed less favour by association with witches.
That’s a falsely romantic picture you painted of western countries when dog meat is still regularly consumed in rural Switzerland.
It’s racism.
What’s the point of this post? To start saying eating dogs is fine?
Haha deleting comments criticizing your bad meme, very open and cool
What’s bad about it?
Tradition, customs and emotions are stronger than logical thinking and morality in most people.
No one has the right to eat dogs or cows
Dogs can perform tasks such as protecting people, bonding with people to give them joy, helping people (therapy dogs or dogs for blind people), … Some of these require years of effort.
Cows on the other hand can take care of our meadows and mountain pastures, playing a crucial role in the preservation of such ecosystems. They don’t need any training for that, and there’s also much less bonding involved, so they’re easily replaceable.
Most importantly farmers have to sell something, if they wouldn’t sell their cows they couldn’t provide this experience for other cows anymore (only selling their milk just isn’t enough, the milk price is way too low for that), and these ecosystems would collapse (which often are the only ecosystems where many already endangered species still live).
By deciding to eat cows, I decide to support this way of cow-keeping, to support my local farmers on our quest to not become too reliant on other countries for food imports, and especially to support the preservation of critical ecosystems.
It goes without saying that I don’t buy mass produced meat or meat from distant places. Instead of discussing whether or not eating meat can be ethical we should focus on driving more farmers into a sustainable direction (= on getting more people to support such farmers). And yes, it is more expensive, but it’s not like we have to eat meat every day.
If everyone who cares about cows and sustainability switches to veganism, only the people who don’t care and who just buy mass produced meat are left, while the form of farming I’ve described that doesn’t only enable those cows to have a happy life but also is important for preserving our nature declines.
