Americans shouldn’t serve dogs or cats for dinner

The Sunday syndicated article, “Killing dogs and cats for food should be illegal,” touches upon an issue that is much bigger than just outlawing this practice in the United States and punishing those who break the law.

There is a reason why this bill’s passage is so important. Foreign countries have routinely killed billions of dogs and cats for human consumption over the decades. Their governments have looked the other way while those in the trade steal pets, grab animals off the streets or purposely raise them for food. These animals are tortured and brutalized in some of the most heinous ways because of the delusional belief that their meat will be tastier if they suffer.

These victims are kept in filthy conditions, often with their mouths tied shut as they struggle to breath. Or there might be many packed tightly into cages, gasping from sheer terror as they watch others being slaughtered before them.

Humans, as well, are at risk of contracting disease from eating the meat.

The scale of this trade and the immense suffering that it involves calls for the global community to stand up against these practices and condemn them. The United States can be the vanguard, playing an influential role by drawing attention to this issue. Not permitting any semblance of this trade in our own country serves to help end it and persuades others to act in a consistent manner. We need to encourage and urge our representatives to push this bill over the finish line.