Swiss Animal Rights Activists Would Like People To Kindly Stop Eating Their Pets

A group of animal rights activists have this week claimed that 3% of Swiss people “secretly eat cat or dog”. Though the sale of this meat is illegal in Switzerland, founder of the group Tomi Tomek claims that approximately 242,430 people like to gleefully indulge by feasting on their family pets.

That’s nearly a quarter of a million people who care for and snuggle with their loving feline or canine companions for weeks, months or years, then happily slaughter them and serve them up at Christmas lunch.

Unsurprisingly, some people are outraged. A petition has been handed to Swiss parliament with 16,000 signatures calling for the ban of such practices. But, in fairness to the general processes of democracy, that number is a mere 7 percent of the total number of alleged pet eaters out there.

Animal welfare is generally a well-regulated issue in Switzerland. There are a vast array of federal laws in place to ensure people treat them humanely and provide adequate care. However, cat is still considered a traditional Christmas dish in some areas of the country — with white wine and garlic, if you’re interested — and it’s not uncommon for dog meat to be found in sausages.

“A political leader told us parliament won’t do anything unless people revolt,” Tomek said. “We are asking simply for a paragraph in the law on protecting domestic animals.”

“Of course!” yells everyone who’s ever got lost in their pet’s adorable little eyes or hugged them so tight they nearly squished them with the overbearing might of their eternal love. But you might be surprised to know that even Australia doesn’t have these kind of laws. Yes, it’s banned to buy or sell meat from cats or dogs, but if your beloved pet goes to the great sandbox in the sky LEGALLY, it’s A-OK to chow down on them.

It should be noted that a lot of the world is fine with eating cats and dogs — they are just animals, after all. Despite ongoing problems with animal welfare, cats are still traditional fare on the menus of China, Korea and South America. Some communities in rural Australia regularly eat feral cats as they pose a threat to the biodiversity of the region, and there’s a section of Jonathan Safran Foer’s Eating Animals that makes a pretty damn convincing case as to why we should eat dogs.

“The French, who love their dogs, sometimes eat their horses,” he says. “The Spanish, who love their horses, sometimes eat their cows. The Indians, who love their cows, sometimes eat their dogs … It’s time to admit that dog is realistic food for realistic environmentalists.”

Though Christmas is just around the corner, it’s not yet known whether the Swiss parliament will act on these requests. There are obviously a bunch of issues to consider. Either way, I’m sure we can agree this is going to be a tense festive season for Swiss pets.

–

Via BBC. Photo: Niklas via photopin cc.