Dog/Cat meat: Fodder or food?

[Schrodinger's Cat]

I'd doubt it.

Since cats are true carnivores, every pound of meat you raise would require feeding it many pounds of meat. cows and chickens get fed subsidized corn, there's nothing you can toss to cats and dogs that'll fatten them up as cheaply.

Cats and dogs also have a lower ration of edible meat to bone, fur and organs, just a function of scale.

The only economical advantages would come from flouting legal standards, which could just as easily be done with other livestock, or if the price/pound was significantly higher as a luxury product, which may or may not be the case.

It's unfortunate that people care more about being able to eat as much meat as cheaply as possible to the point that we now feed corn to a ruminant animal who is not able to even digest it. This not only leads to horrible, painful health care conditions for the cattle (as their stomachs are pH neutral and corn makes them acidic, cows are constantly experiencing massive heartburn and getting sick, so they need to be fed massive amounts of anti biotics, which has the consequence of creating forever more complex bacteria. It also causes their organs to develop painful and dangerous abscesses. Not to mention they are eating something they cannot properly digest), but it leads for less nutritious meat, which is also FAR more likely to be contaminated by things like ecoli due to the living conditions and health of corn fed beef.

For thousands of years, we had a good thing going. Sun makes grass grow. Cows eat grass. Cows poop. Manure makes grass grows even better. Cows eat grass. We eat cows.

Now what we have is a cow eating something it can't even digest, to give us a crappier and more dangerous meat product. And the production of beef rather than being sustainable now requires huge amounts of fossil fuels both to fertilize the corn (whereas the prairie grasses just needed good old sun and poop), and to be transported to the factories the cows are kept in.

But it seems that to most people, the 99 cent whopper is worth it.

 

[Shadou]

french-canadians are a little backwards.

 

[Schrodinger's Cat]

sadhatter,
Horse meat is popular in Japan as well. I'm not sure about other cultures aside from that.

I lived in the Netherlands for a little while and never saw horse meat for sale. but then again, I wasn't exactly keeping an eye out for it either.

 

[sadhatter]

sadhatter,
Horse meat is popular in Japan as well. I'm not sure about other cultures aside from that.

I lived in the Netherlands for a little while and never saw horse meat for sale. but then again, I wasn't exactly keeping an eye out for it either.

Its actually awesome, with the exception of ruining a relationship ( i was 18 i think maybe 19 and had a girl over to my grandmothers, she ate and loved a sandwich, then proceeded to scream at me for about 2 hours later that night when i told her what it was. It wasnt that i was keeping it a secret, i just didn't think to tell her.). If you don't feel like eating any, the restaurant arby's is the closest taste to it ( in canada, i have heard it tastes slightly different in the us.) you know how it tastes like roast beef.....but not roast beef.

But i have had horse sausage ( no joke needed) steak and sliced meat, its all pretty decent.

 

[TX50]

In the Netherlands you can easily get horsemeat in the supermarkets. I've seen smoked, sliced horse sold in packs (called paarderookvlees or something like that). I've never tried it, but it looks rich and dark and probably tastes like venison. When my brother visited a while ago I asked if he wanted to try it. His horrified answer "I dinna want to eat a cuddy!" settled it.

 

[sadhatter]

In the Netherlands you can easily get horsemeat in the supermarkets. I've seen smoked, sliced horse sold in packs (called paarderookvlees or something like that). I've never tried it, but it looks rich and dark and probably tastes like venison. When my brother visited a while ago I asked if he wanted to try it. His horrified answer "I dinna want to eat a cuddy!" settled it.

I have had deer, and didn't mind it but i found it had that....tangy taste to it. Horse meat really tastes like a combo of beef and pork, like a beefy taste, a pork texture, with a very slight aftertaste.

Now i am glad my favorite animal is the skunk, don't think i will be accidentally eating one of those any time soon.

 

[Verde]

Whale meat (if not on your taboo list) is an aquired taste. Since most people on this forum have not tried it: I usually describe it as beef with a hint of herring. If improperly stored or overcooked, it is no longer just a hint.

Well, I never acquired it. Back in the early 80's I spent a lot of time a bit up the road from you (Skogn) and the market would have 'hvalbiff' (possibly spelled wrong, it was a while ago). Nice lean steaks, we thought it meant 'whole beef'.
The taste was awful. Closest I can equate it to was raw liver, which I detest.
No amount of spices or hot sauce could mask the taste, and we tried it several times over the course of a couple of years so I'm sure it wasn't just a bad batch.

As a nod to the OP, we did give the unused portions to the local dogs, and they seemed to enjoy it.

V.

 

[Paradox74]

It's unfortunate that people care more about being able to eat as much meat as cheaply as possible to the point that we now feed corn to a ruminant animal who is not able to even digest it. This not only leads to horrible, painful health care conditions for the cattle (as their stomachs are pH neutral and corn makes them acidic, cows are constantly experiencing massive heartburn and getting sick, so they need to be fed massive amounts of anti biotics, which has the consequence of creating forever more complex bacteria. It also causes their organs to develop painful and dangerous abscesses. Not to mention they are eating something they cannot properly digest), but it leads for less nutritious meat, which is also FAR more likely to be contaminated by things like ecoli due to the living conditions and health of corn fed beef.
For thousands of years, we had a good thing going. Sun makes grass grow. Cows eat grass. Cows poop. Manure makes grass grows even better. Cows eat grass. We eat cows.

Now what we have is a cow eating something it can't even digest, to give us a crappier and more dangerous meat product. And the production of beef rather than being sustainable now requires huge amounts of fossil fuels both to fertilize the corn (whereas the prairie grasses just needed good old sun and poop), and to be transported to the factories the cows are kept in.

But it seems that to most people, the 99 cent whopper is worth it.

Though that has nothing to do with the topic that is in discussion, it does spark some interest to me. You see, I've always believed that corn-feed cows produce better beef but, from what you are saying, that may not be true. That topic might be better suited for a different thread, or you can change it to fit this thread (such as comparing the nutritional/economic value of cow meat with that of cat/dog meat).

 

[Verde]

In the Netherlands you can easily get horsemeat in the supermarkets. I've seen smoked, sliced horse sold in packs (called paarderookvlees or something like that). I've never tried it, but it looks rich and dark and probably tastes like venison. When my brother visited a while ago I asked if he wanted to try it. His horrified answer "I dinna want to eat a cuddy!" settled it.

When we lived in Brussels, horse meat was very common. I like the taste of it, but the problem seemed to be that they just butchered the old horses, so the meat tended to rather tough. A bit more gamey than beef, but not so much as venison, which I really like.

V.

 

[Verde]

http://edition.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/03/09/china.animals/index.html?eref=ft

"Dog meat is good for your health and metabolism," explains Li, the hostess who declined to give her first name. "In the summer it helps you sweat."

I smell woo (quackery) in the kitchen.


Aside from any political/personal issues, does the claim have any merrit?

Also, is it economically sensible to raise cats/dogs for their meat? Posts and comments are appreciated.

I can only comment on my kitties, which are semi-feral. I provide them with food, but they live outside so probably add to their diet. Although they look sleek and healthy I doubt there is enough meat on them to make it worthwhile harvesting.

My dogs, on the other hand, have plenty of meat on them, but they are family so I could never contemplate eating them. It would be like cooking my grandchildren.

Mind you, if my kids keep on producing them, I may offer them a Modest Proposal.

V.

 

[Jeff Corey]

A restaurant in Los Angeles is in trouble for selling whale meat.

http://articles.latimes.com/2010/mar/11/local/la-me-whale11-2010mar11

Santa Monica, not LA. But what did they expect at a restaurant called The Hump? Camels?

 

[Hokulele]

Though that has nothing to do with the topic that is in discussion, it does spark some interest to me. You see, I've always believed that corn-feed cows produce better beef but, from what you are saying, that may not be true. That topic might be better suited for a different thread, or you can change it to fit this thread (such as comparing the nutritional/economic value of cow meat with that of cat/dog meat).

Read The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan.

 

[Andrew Wiggin]

Critter: the other white meat.

Just about every source of nutrition is loved somewhere and taboo somewhere else. No real basis to it either. Nothing inherently unclean about the unclean animals that's any different from the 'clean' ones.

A

 

[Aepervius]

That's nothing , sometimes when time are dire, people also eat two legged sheep.

 

[23_Tauri]

Critter: the other white meat.

Just about every source of nutrition is loved somewhere and taboo somewhere else. No real basis to it either. Nothing inherently unclean about the unclean animals that's any different from the 'clean' ones.

A

Is this true Andrew? It seems to me strangely coincidental that several religions forbid the eating of pork: Judaism, Islam and Hinduism. Maybe orthodox Christians too? Was this prohibition originally based on public health reasons? Did pork not keep well, so therefore caused more illness? Was it more contaminated with parasites? Why was some meat deemed 'unclean' by certain religious leaders?

 

[krazyKemist]

Have to point out some wikipedia bs though.

"In Canada, horse meat is legal, but there is only really a market—and that a small one—in the French-speaking province of Quebec, where the taboo is not so strong, and in a few (mostly French) restaurants elsewhere."

I myself was adopted by a dutch family, and the city i live in is highly dutch. Now i am not saying they are selling a mr ed burger at mcdonalds, but there are several specialty stores that sell horse meat, and it is fairly common especially amongst older dutch people. But even people my age ( 25) who come from a dutch family eat it fairly frequently. To be honest i didn't even know the french liked it.

Yes, you can find it in groceries here - really high protein meat, dark red. Never tasted it, but I would guess it has a pretty strong taste that not everybody would like.

I think that our consumption of horse meat started as necessity - in the 1800's it was common for men to go on lumbering expeditions as an added revenue to subsistance farming. Over there, supplies of food, particularly meat, was difficult. And as they were using horses as work animals, literally working them to death (sometimes doping them on nitroglycerin)... workers would sometime get fresh "beef" that was a little darker than usual.

french-canadians are a little backwards.

Hey, ho ! I am french canadian.

 

[krazyKemist]

Is this true Andrew? It seems to me strangely coincidental that several religions forbid the eating of pork: Judaism, Islam and Hinduism. Maybe orthodox Christians too? Was this prohibition originally based on public health reasons? Did pork not keep well, so therefore caused more illness? Was it more contaminated with parasites? Why was some meat deemed 'unclean' by certain religious leaders?

I have read somewhere an hypothesis that prohibition from eating pork dates from time where ritual cannibalism was in vogue. As human is said to taste a bit like pork ("long pig")...

 

[23_Tauri]

I have read somewhere an hypothesis that prohibition from eating pork dates from time where ritual cannibalism was in vogue. As human is said to taste a bit like pork ("long pig")...

Has this got anything to do with why bacon tastes so good? It seems counter-intuitive that the closer a species is to us genetically, then the tastier it is when put between two slices of bread with some ketchup.

 

[krazyKemist]

Has this got anything to do with why bacon tastes so good? It seems counter-intuitive that the closer a species is to us genetically, then the tastier it is when put between two slices of bread with some ketchup.

Bacon tastes good because it's fat, and therefore chock full of calories. We are adapted to seeking high calorie foodstuff, thanks to our calorie-expensive brains. Much to our despair nowadays.

As members of you own species are often your worst competitors because they occupy the same niche, there's nothing very prohibitive per se about killing and eating members of your own species - especially if they are not from your own group/tribe/village. Or eating the dead from natural causes.

Essentially, the main reason not to eat your own species is... parasites. Eating something is a formidable gateway to infection and infestation. And it's much easier for parasites to pass from host to host of the same species.

 

[23_Tauri]

Essentially, the main reason not to eat your own species is... parasites. Eating something is a formidable gateway to infection and infestation. And it's much easier for parasites to pass from host to host of the same species.

Ah ha. So maybe the reason why eating pork was prohibited by so many cultures/religions (I have come across pork prohibition in Amazonian shamanism, too) is that it carries more parasites dangerous to humans compared to other meat? i.e. it had a solid, practical basis, not based on religious superstition.

As an aside, when I was travelling in India years ago I decided I knew why people don't eat pigs: because pigs eat human poo and you don't eat animals that eat your poo. Another reason why they might carry so many parasites...