Fido, Fluffy on hit list

Noted & Quoted in: The WestEnder, page 5

The WestEnder

Gotta love the headline in the Feb. 15-28 edition of The Asian Post: 'No dog or cat meat will be eaten in Vancouver.' The story inside "Canada's Pacific Rim newspaper" reports that "it's raining cats and dogs on Vancouver menus"--that is, in this city it's perfectly legal to slaughter a cat or dog for dinner, according to SPCA director John Vanderhoven. The mayor's office may be horrified by such news, but anyone who's hopped on a plane to Bangkok (and spied a peculiar skeletal formation on the ol' dinner plate) ought to know that cats and dogs have been eaten by Asians for hundreds of years. Ergo, it must be happening here in Vancouver, despite health department rules that say cats and dogs are not considered "food" animals, and therefore can't be processed through registered plants. Conculdes the Asian Post story: "The list of food animals currently butchered in Canada is growing. In the recent past, ostrich meat has been added to the list, and currently a new bid for kangaroo meat is being considered." So depending on the strength of the political lobby, it could be only a matter of time before the meat of Fido and Fluffy finds it way to the local grocery store. Lock up your pets--coyotes are the least of your trouble!