[blackie007]

I agree with what Maneki Neko said. It's a cultural difference. We were brought up to see cows, pigs, chickens and ducks as food, while the Vietnamese were brought up to see dogs as food.

Actually, not only the Vietnamese. The Koreans and Chinese from Qiling, too. I'm not sure about Chinese from other parts of China as I forgot to ask those from Qiling if it's the same practise elsewhere.

But this is what I personally heard from Korean and Chinese friends.

Dogs are just meat to Koreans. They eat stray dogs, and they don't make it a point to find out if a dog roaming the streets is their neighbour's pet or a stray. They just catch it, take it home, slaughter it and they have dog soup.

The same goes for people in Qiling, China. The honest & responsible ones would keep their own pets so they don't have to resort to killing strays or other's pets for soup. Yes, they are viewed as honest and responsible.

And, if anyone is interested, a pet, to them, does not have the same meaning to them as to Malaysians. A pet to them simply means an animal that you rear in your home instead of in a farm. So, yes, they do eat their pets.

My point is, and before anyone's dander is up, it's a matter of perception. I used to think anyone who eats dogs or cats are cruel until I had such discussions with them. They don't see it as cruel or inhumane, and my friends were actually surprised at why we see it that way. It is a cultural shock to them!!

So, it is our responsibility to keep our pets safe so they don't end up as someone's soup.