It's a dog gone shame!

This story, from Roy, just landed in my inbox. While it may be a bit gruesome for the gastronomically unadventurous, it is the reality of life in our corner of the Central African Republic. In this account, Roy talks about his first taste of dog, an animal that most of us would not want to consume. Fortunately for me, dog is on the 'list' of foods taboo for women to eat in CAR. Whew!
-Angela


The other day, as we were working on the roads, I heard some of the crew mumbling that there was a dog in the stew pot out in the yard near where we were working. It was a large cooking pot and sure enough, when I went over to check it out, it was full of pieces of meat that were clearly from a dog (don't ask how I knew!). I asked the workers why people were cooking dog. They said that people are desperate for meat. 

But, I said, this is the first I have heard of Central Africans eating dog. They replied that some do. I took a poll and it turned out that 4 out of 8 of the workers said they would eat it. One said it was the greasiest of all meats calling it "the meat that does not stick to your fingers". I challenged them and said, you know, in China, dog meat is a staple and they raise dogs just for consumption. Then, they dared me to try it! 


Now, you have to understand, Central Africans eat just about anything that moves - I've had the pleasure of eating snails, grubs, caterpillars, monitor lizard, python, anteaters, and just about every type of mammal.... so, I am no wimp when it comes to trying new foods, ...... but dog? I could hardly say no, so, I went for it! It was pretty tasty and not tough at all! In the end, how is one mammal really all that different from another? 

The point of this unusual tale is to point out that the search for a daily source of protein is becoming so difficult in Central Africa that people have resorted to eating their pets. At first, one may react to this as disgusting, but in reality, it is about survival. Put into the proper perspective, eating dog meat can increase the protein intake for your family, if only in the short term. While CEFA is open to new ideas for helping Central Africans with food security, raising herds of dogs is not one we will be advocating. CEFA will be focusing on more sustainable and low cost means to increase protein in the diet such as growing beans and raising fish.