# Eating cow, eating lamb, eating dog, eating cat? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [November 14, 2023, 9:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-cow-eating-lamb-eating-dog-eating-cat/993106 "2023-11-14T09:09:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2023, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-cow-eating-lamb-eating-dog-eating-cat/993106/21 "2023-11-14T21:08:52Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > Basically the problem with insects is that they’re small and you have to work really hard to gather enough of them to eat. I haven’t given it much thought or researched it, but if there were money in it, I would imagine they could be [farmed](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Insect_farming), rather than gathered. Sounds like crickets are pretty easy to raise and nutritious. ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2023, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-cow-eating-lamb-eating-dog-eating-cat/993106/22 "2023-11-14T21:20:14Z")
never mind ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2023, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-cow-eating-lamb-eating-dog-eating-cat/993106/23 "2023-11-14T21:34:56Z")
> [@Odesio](#): > > Jared Diamond, author of _Guns, Germs, and Steel,_ refutes the idea that predators don’t taste good by making note that lion actually tastes pretty good. My Dad said that bear on a salmon diet tasted terrible, but berry eatin’ bear was tasty. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2023, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-cow-eating-lamb-eating-dog-eating-cat/993106/24 "2023-11-14T21:56:40Z")
Most of the animals we eat are turning grass, grain, or garbage into meat. There’s no real point to farming an animal that just turns meat into a different kind of meat. ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2023, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-cow-eating-lamb-eating-dog-eating-cat/993106/25 "2023-11-14T22:29:27Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > but berry eatin’ bear was tasty. I’m sure it tasted ~~beary~~ berry good. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2023, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-cow-eating-lamb-eating-dog-eating-cat/993106/26 "2023-11-15T01:14:04Z")
> [@Dinsdale](#): > > if there were money in it, I would imagine they could be [farmed](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Insect_farming), rather than gathered. Sounds like crickets are pretty easy to raise and nutritious. Happening. (As your link also says.) Gift link: > **[Why companies are racing to build the world’s biggest bug farm](https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-solutions/2023/11/12/biggest-insect-farm-record/?pwapi_token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJyZWFzb24iOiJnaWZ0IiwibmJmIjoxNjk5OTM4MDAwLCJpc3MiOiJzdWJzY3JpcHRpb25zIiwiZXhwIjoxNzAxMzIwMzk5LCJpYXQiOjE2OTk5MzgwMDAsImp0aSI6IjNmM2NhNWRjLWI0ODgtNDljNC05NzIwLWRiZWM1N2UyMDEzZiIsInVybCI6Imh0dHBzOi8vd3d3Lndhc2hpbmd0b25wb3N0LmNvbS9jbGltYXRlLXNvbHV0aW9ucy8yMDIzLzExLzEyL2JpZ2dlc3QtaW5zZWN0LWZhcm0tcmVjb3JkLyJ9.ec-Mar4I1Lb61p3EQiiZSP-kGjl32RoEQmHqITl7yLU&itid=gfta)** > > Companies are building bigger and bigger insect farms that rear crickets, mealworms and fly larvae as a low-carbon protein source for pet and livestock feed. ---
**Author:** ![InternetLegend](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/internetlegend/32/13154_2.png) [@InternetLegend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/InternetLegend)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2023, 6:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-cow-eating-lamb-eating-dog-eating-cat/993106/27 "2023-11-15T06:56:34Z")
If my cats’ experience is true of all mammals, I would suggest pulling the legs off your locusts so you don’t puke them up on the carpet later. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2023, 10:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-cow-eating-lamb-eating-dog-eating-cat/993106/28 "2023-11-15T10:03:34Z")
> [@DPRK](#): > > One legend goes that after the Siege of Leningrad was broken four trainloads of cats had to be sent in as rats were eating all the food that was once again being delivered to the city; (apparently all the cats from before had been eaten?) Not necessarily eaten. But if the humans were starving, what would be left over to feed the cats? They starved to death, too, just before the humans. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2023, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-cow-eating-lamb-eating-dog-eating-cat/993106/29 "2023-11-15T15:05:18Z")
They were very likely eaten; by people who knew they couldn’t feed the cats, and the cats would die anyway. (And, of course, by people who were starving and who didn’t give a shit about cats.) ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2023, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-cow-eating-lamb-eating-dog-eating-cat/993106/30 "2023-11-15T16:06:42Z")
I thought the implication was that the humans were eating _everything_–dogs, cats, rats, mice, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2023, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-cow-eating-lamb-eating-dog-eating-cat/993106/31 "2023-11-15T16:33:16Z")
> [@thorny\_locust](#): > > They were very likely eaten; by people who knew they couldn’t feed the cats, and the cats would die anyway. (And, of course, by people who were starving and who didn’t give a shit about cats.) Pets can be a great comfort in times of trouble. Particularly famine. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2023, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-cow-eating-lamb-eating-dog-eating-cat/993106/32 "2023-11-15T16:46:06Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > My Dad said that bear on a salmon diet tasted terrible, but berry eatin’ bear was tasty. I’ve heard people say that bears who are eating garbage taste terrible, but the ones raiding your apple orchard are delicious. > [@InternetLegend](#): > > If my cats’ experience is true of all mammals, I would suggest pulling the legs off your locusts so you don’t puke them up on the carpet later. Naw, those grinding molars we have are good for that. I’ve eaten grasshoppers (cooked) and none of our party had any problems with the legs, at any point in the digestive process. ---
**Author:** ![InternetLegend](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/internetlegend/32/13154_2.png) [@InternetLegend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/InternetLegend)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2023, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-cow-eating-lamb-eating-dog-eating-cat/993106/33 "2023-11-15T16:47:51Z")
Cooking them crispy probably helps! ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2023, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-cow-eating-lamb-eating-dog-eating-cat/993106/34 "2023-11-15T16:57:47Z")
Indeed – we fried them in butter. It was kinda like cooking popcorn. When they stopped hopping, they were done. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2023, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-cow-eating-lamb-eating-dog-eating-cat/993106/35 "2023-11-15T17:25:10Z")
> [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#): > > Pets can be a great comfort in times of trouble. Particularly famine. Certainly true. But being unable to feed them must be terrible. There’s no way to explain to them that you haven’t any food, and aren’t just refusing to give them any. I can imagine that some people who can’t stand watching this any longer might give a quick death, if they’re able to do that. It must be an awful position to be in. I don’t know whether they’d then be able to stomach the remains; but they might give the body to someone else rather than bury it, in those circumstances. ---
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2023, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-cow-eating-lamb-eating-dog-eating-cat/993106/36 "2023-11-15T17:30:15Z")
Yesterday I saw a video of 2 goats fighting to the death. I can never un see it. The cruelty humans are capable of is unfathomable. They felt the fighting would improve the flavor of the meat. One of the goats repeated tried to hide behind its owner, it did not want to fight. It was bloody and too dizzy to stand yet his owner repeatedly stood him up to take another blow. I will never be able to unsee this. . ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2023, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-cow-eating-lamb-eating-dog-eating-cat/993106/37 "2023-11-15T17:31:09Z")
> [@thorny\_locust](#): > > I can imagine that some people who can’t stand watching this any longer might give a quick death, if they’re able to do that. It must be an awful position to be in. I don’t know whether they’d then be able to stomach the remains; but they might give the body to someone else rather than bury it, in those circumstances. When faced with their children starving to death before their eyes, most parents have historically been able to turn the family livestock and pets into nourishment. I saw our ‘pet’ chickens and rabbits get turned into meals as a kid, and considered it pretty normal. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2023, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-cow-eating-lamb-eating-dog-eating-cat/993106/38 "2023-11-15T19:02:03Z")
We raised a calf with the kids when they were young. When it got too big to play on the lawn we fenced it in. Fattened him up and had him butchered. My kids have never forgiven me for trying to feed “Flip flop” to them. I did have fat Betsy the Beagle who had real nice hams on her. I often said we’d eat her if times got tough. I’d never eat dog ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2023, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-cow-eating-lamb-eating-dog-eating-cat/993106/39 "2023-11-15T20:00:19Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > I’ve heard people say that bears who are eating garbage taste terrible, but the ones raiding your apple orchard are delicious. Makes sense. ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2023, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-cow-eating-lamb-eating-dog-eating-cat/993106/40 "2023-11-15T20:29:30Z")
[This article](https://www.historytoday.com/miscellanies/creatures-devoured-leningrad) at History Today tells how it is thought that the Leningrad authorities did not kill or eat any of their zoo animals, and many of them survived the war! Unlike many other cities (London, Antwerp, Tokyo…) Compare to [this menu from Paris, 1870](https://www.caloundracity.asn.au/Francofiles/gastro/1870menu.html) which, besides the expected cats and rats includes elephant, camel, bear, donkey, antelope… [This](https://www.rbth.com/history/332805-hermitage-cats-siberia) article on a Russian state news site says that > [@](#): > > During the siege of Leningrad, which lasted from September 1941 to January 1944, the city was left without cats, who had either died of hunger or were eaten by starving people or animals. and that in 1943, when the blockade was breached, one imported kitten was worth 10 times the price of a loaf of bread, which was itself in short supply. [This article](https://historycollection.com/eight-horrific-facts-siege-leningrad-1941-1944/7/) repeats the story that most citizens had eaten their cats and that bringing in trainloads of cats was necessary to deal with roving gangs of rats that were “organized, intelligent, and brutal”. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-cow-eating-lamb-eating-dog-eating-cat/993106.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-cow-eating-lamb-eating-dog-eating-cat/993106.md?page=3)