The dangers of dog meat
for human health
It is estimated that 30 million dogs are killed for human consumption every year in entire Asia, in brutal trade involving terrible cruelty to animals and often, criminal activities. From 10-20 million dogs were slaughtered in China, to the range of 1 million in South Korea, one million in Indonesia, and around 5 million in Vietnam; 80.000 or more from the last group were imported from Thailand, Laos and Cambodia (Humane Society International).
By : Drh.Mikeu Paujiah, Dipl.Montessori
Translator: Sri Meilyana Tjoewardi
The high rate of killings was identical with high demand for the meat.
But, do you know that eating dog meat is very dangerous for human health globally?
4 Reasons why dog meat trading
is dangerous for human:
1. Increasing the risk of rabies in humans.
A research by National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology (NIHE), 2007-2009: From 23 patients with laboratory confirmation of rabies from 2007-2009, 22% had no history of dog or cat bites, but they have experiences in slaughtering dogs or cats, or eating their meat.
A research by Wellcome Trust of Great Britain, 2009: Wertheim et al. published the case study of two men who died because of rabies with laboratory confirmation, after they killed, slaughtered, prepared and ate the animals infected by rabies.
2. Increasing the risk of
spreading rabies across regions
The spread of rabies virus across provinces and across countries was believed as one of the aspects responsible for the worst dog rabies epidemic in Indonesia and China, and WHO has explicitly highlighted dog trade for human consumption as a cause factor for spreading of rabies.
3. The risk of infected by other zoonotic diseases
The World Health Organization (WHO) estimated that eating dog meat increases the risk of being infected by cholera; recently, some large-scale outbreaks in Vietnam related directly to it. Rabies—which killed approximately tens of thousands in entire Asia every year—were found on dogs traded for human consumption in China, Vietnam, and Indonesia.
4. The risk of poisoning
To catch dogs, various poisons and/or sedatives are sometimes included in the baits by traders, to disable
or kill the dogs. Commonly used poisons include potassium cyanide and strychnine, and also muscle relaxants like suxamethonium. The poisons and immobilizers are not only very cruel to targeted animals, but
can cause health risks for the meat consumers.
Source :
Asia Canine Protection Alliance (ACPA), Risk Assessment- The Risk The Dog Meat Trade Poses to Rabies Transmission and the ASEAN Plus 3 Countries’ Pledge to Eliminate Rabies by 2020, October 2013.
Asia’s dog meat trade: faqs,humane society international.open 7 Agustus 2023.
Perdagangan Daging Anjing dan Kucing: Global Resiko Kesehatan,FOURPAWS International. Februari 2021.
