Letters to the Editor
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Come & Get It!
Having done business in China for 18 years & lived here for the past 5, I've seen a lot in China which doesn't phase me, especially when it comes to eating & how Chinese view other life forms that happen to be lower in the food chain.
Probably the worst was seeing what literally appeared to be a zoo in front of a large restaurant in Shunde that included many different species of cats & dogs for the gourmand to chose from. Another was waiting to pass through a toll booth in Guangzhou & having a livestock truck pull up next to my car filled with barking black dogs, all straining their heads out the bars for me to pet them before being driven off to their doom. Black Angus they are not, but they were the "food dogs" I've heard about that are bred specifically for eating in the south. In Shanghai where I used to live, I can buy dog noodles in several restaurants in my old Puxi neighborhood. And who can forget those cost saving entrepreneurs, our street side kabob vendors from Xingang who were busted several years ago for substituting cat meat for the lamb they sell on a stick for 2 quai apiece. It became such a profitable venture, stray cats from as far away as Beijing were being shipped in to fill demand! One can understand how we felt a few months ago when our young British Shorthair tom disappeared after the housekeeper accidently let him out the door. Luckily he came back home a week later safe & did not end up as some cute furry home accessory to be placed on the shelf in a child's room.
I certainly hold a special place in my heart for the Chinese & their rich culture spanning more than 5,000 years past our own. Granted, the attitude towards pets has greatly changed in the past decade & will continue to improve, but that still doesn't make me feel any better knowing how many locals still view animals as well as what I routinely see offered on menus in this fascinating land I call home.