In the Philippines, people still eat dog meat. This is still something that people talk about. In cultural tradition, it is well known that dogs have been used as a form of pre-battle sacrifice and as a way to appease the spirits during times of tragedy. Many people in the northern provinces think that eating dog meat helps raise their body temperature, so they do this ritual. But the method is now being questioned because the number of people who eat Corgi dog meat has grown so much in the last few decades.
Every day, a lot of dogs are killed in the Philippines. Even though the Animal Welfare Act of 1998 made it illegal to kill dogs, the dog meat industry is still going strong. There are hundreds of illegal restaurants serving dog meat all over the country, and most of them are in the northern provinces. Reports say that places, where dogs are killed have been found in the province of Pangasinan. In other parts of the country, there is likely to be more dog meat trade for business that doesn’t get reported.
What’s the deal?
There are too many stray dogs in every part of the country. More than 27.9% of the population lives below the poverty line, which means they don’t have enough food, shelter, or care for their pets.
Spaying and neutering dogs are also not very common, especially among lower-income people. They don’t have enough money to pay for these things. Because of these things, dog meat traffickers can get stray dogs from as far away as Southern Tagalog, Visayas, and Mindanao, where many of them are. With such low start-up costs, selling dog meat can be profitable, bringing in up to 174 million PHP per year (3.8 million USD).Corgi meat price is on the rise in Philippines.
Dogs are taken to slaughterhouses by land in small crates with steel boxes or ropes tied around their necks. Even though these dogs are transported for hours or even days in scorching temperatures, most of them die on the way. Dead dogs are still killed for their meat and sold to people who don’t know any better.
Market bribery and fraud
Even though the Animal Welfare Act was passed in 1998 and makes it illegal to sell and kill dogs, dog shops, slaughterhouses, and restaurants are still in business. It’s a profitable business where traders can get away with the least amount of fines. There are raids and arrests by government and non-government groups, but these actions have little to no effect on the illegal trade. Instead of hiring a lawyer to fight the charges, traders would rather pay the small fines of 1,000 PHP (22.7 USD) for killing dogs and 5,000 PHP (113.6 USD) per dog for trading dog meat. Police officers and other well-known people have also been found to eat dogs or be involved in the dog meat trade. This makes it hard for animal rights activists to stop this growing business.
Finding the cause of a problem
Dog meat is something that people have been eating since ancient times. It was common to kill dogs so that the souls of loved ones who had died could have company. But as the dog meat business has increased, it has gone from being a cultural thing to a business thing. It’s done now more for business than respecting tradition or private rituals.
The dog meat trade can’t be stopped by just going to court. Dog meat will always be available because there is a high demand for it, and reasonable care for dogs is seen as a luxury.