# If you were hungry enough, would you eat your own pets? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 12, 2005, 7:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-hungry-enough-would-you-eat-your-own-pets/316705 "2005-08-12T07:59:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Giant\_Spongess](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/94ad74/32.png) [@Giant\_Spongess](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giant_Spongess)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2005, 7:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-hungry-enough-would-you-eat-your-own-pets/316705/1 "2005-08-12T07:59:01Z")
I don’t like the idea, but if it were a choice between starving and killing and eating my cats, I’d eat my cats. Plus, if there weren’t any food for me, there wouldn’t be any food for them, so it’s better to kill them swiftly than let them starve to death, right? ---
**Author:** ![Bongtodd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/919ad9/32.png) [@Bongtodd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bongtodd)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2005, 8:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-hungry-enough-would-you-eat-your-own-pets/316705/2 "2005-08-12T08:11:09Z")
No. Cat’s and Dog’s could be used to hunt rabbits/rodents and I would prefer to eat rodents than my pets. I mean once youve eaten them thats it you only prolong your life for a day or two. Not worth the torment of killing something you love. ---
**Author:** ![Giant\_Spongess](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/94ad74/32.png) [@Giant\_Spongess](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giant_Spongess)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2005, 8:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-hungry-enough-would-you-eat-your-own-pets/316705/3 "2005-08-12T08:21:11Z")
My cats have never been outside. They couldn’t hunt their way out of a paper bag. Even if they could, there’s no way in hell they’d give me what they caught. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2005, 8:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-hungry-enough-would-you-eat-your-own-pets/316705/4 "2005-08-12T08:26:08Z")
If I ran out of food, I’m pretty sure my cat would desert me long before I got hungry enough to eat him. ---
**Author:** ![Bongtodd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/919ad9/32.png) [@Bongtodd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bongtodd)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2005, 8:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-hungry-enough-would-you-eat-your-own-pets/316705/5 "2005-08-12T08:35:06Z")
Mine are outside cats and quite often leave “presents”. Im sure your cat if hungry enough would have the skills to hunt??? Then its only a matter of tricking your cat to bring you its kill… :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![Dark\_Side\_of\_the\_Floyd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bb73d2/32.png) [@Dark\_Side\_of\_the\_Floyd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dark_Side_of_the_Floyd)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2005, 9:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-hungry-enough-would-you-eat-your-own-pets/316705/6 "2005-08-12T09:05:51Z")
It depends on the circumstances in which I was placed… If there was no other method of obtaining food, I’d probably have to pull a Kitten Donner Party and do it. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2005, 9:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-hungry-enough-would-you-eat-your-own-pets/316705/7 "2005-08-12T09:21:21Z")
I think I would have likely gotten rid of any pets long before reaching that level of starvation. ---
**Author:** ![AngelicGemma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/439d5e/32.png) [@AngelicGemma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AngelicGemma)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2005, 11:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-hungry-enough-would-you-eat-your-own-pets/316705/8 "2005-08-12T11:05:06Z")
I’d eat my bunny Ziggy. She’s quite fat. I’m sure she’d be tasty. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2005, 11:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-hungry-enough-would-you-eat-your-own-pets/316705/9 "2005-08-12T11:16:18Z")
Eat my pet steer, Alphonse? Never! ---
**Author:** ![gouda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c77e96/32.png) [@gouda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gouda)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2005, 11:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-hungry-enough-would-you-eat-your-own-pets/316705/10 "2005-08-12T11:21:44Z")
What **Bongtodd** said. ---
**Author:** ![Baldwin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baldwin/32/7264_2.png) [@Baldwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baldwin)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2005, 11:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-hungry-enough-would-you-eat-your-own-pets/316705/11 "2005-08-12T11:38:51Z")
My cat hasn’t been outdoors since he was a tiny kitten, but I think he’s got the hunting instincts; every night he drags in one of my socks and drops it in front of me. I bet he’d do the same with small rodents or birds. On the other hand, if that weren’t an option… I’d say he’d yield a good eight pounds of meat. Fat bastard. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2005, 11:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-hungry-enough-would-you-eat-your-own-pets/316705/12 "2005-08-12T11:43:47Z")
Oddly enough, I have given this topic (and variants) quite a bit of thought. I suppose some of that thought was prompted by such contexts as watching Steve McQueen’s character in _Papillon_ catch, squash and eat roaches; _Survivor_ and shows of its ilk having people eat disgusting things just to advance a plot or win a competition; the idea of stockpiling canned goods and other slow-perishing foodstuffs in preparation for the next terrorist attack(s); just idle speculation. I hate to speculate on what measures I might take in such desperate circumstances, since I’ve done some pretty weird things when I’ve been in dire situations. Saying I would or wouldn’t do anything specific is hardly relevant. Most likely any planning ahead I did would not be how things turned out. I’d weight my chances for eating our cat, regardless of how hungry I might be, as about 30-70 for/against. What’s the prize for a right answer? Free kitties? ---
**Author:** ![Trunk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/87869e/32.png) [@Trunk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trunk)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2005, 11:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-hungry-enough-would-you-eat-your-own-pets/316705/13 "2005-08-12T11:44:29Z")
Sometimes I think I’d just like to eat one of my dogs without having my hand forced by starvation. I’d really like to try dog some day. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2005, 11:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-hungry-enough-would-you-eat-your-own-pets/316705/14 "2005-08-12T11:50:50Z")
I suppose my will to survive would surpass my horror at the thought of eating the softies, but geeeez…can we nominate this thread for the “Darkest Thought of the Week” award? ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2005, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-hungry-enough-would-you-eat-your-own-pets/316705/15 "2005-08-12T12:38:40Z")
Can’t do it, if I was that short on food and still had my cats, I would just take a chance on them surviving w/o me outside. I am trying to picture the situation; I have taken my cats with me to a remote island? There is no food available? I can’t really imagine a situation where I would eat them. If some madman, locked me in a basement room with nothing but my Cats, I still wouldn’t bother eating them, I would only be delaying death by a few days and no sense adding more negatives to my “Karma”. In most circumstances, I could count of dying of thirst first. ---
**Author:** ![SnootQueen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c4cdca/32.png) [@SnootQueen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SnootQueen)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2005, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-hungry-enough-would-you-eat-your-own-pets/316705/16 "2005-08-12T12:55:11Z")
I would never eat my puppy! I guess I’m not as selfish as you are! I’d rather break my arm off from the shoulder and feed it to her for her to survive. She is too cute and too loyal and too my best buddy to kill her and eat her. FOR SOME ODD REASON. CAT KILLER! ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2005, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-hungry-enough-would-you-eat-your-own-pets/316705/17 "2005-08-12T12:57:35Z")
I’ll tell you one thing: if the roles were reversed and you dropped dead and your \pets\ got hungry enough, they would partake of _you_. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2005, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-hungry-enough-would-you-eat-your-own-pets/316705/18 "2005-08-12T13:07:23Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > I’ll tell you one thing: if the roles were reversed and you dropped dead and your pets got hungry enough, they would partake of _you_. Even if you’re not in Soviet Russia? I’d eat my dog, but only after he had first starved to death. I don’t think I could I kill him under any circumstances. If I die first, so be it. ---
**Author:** ![romansperson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/romansperson/32/17100_2.png) [@romansperson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/romansperson)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2005, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-hungry-enough-would-you-eat-your-own-pets/316705/19 "2005-08-12T13:13:17Z")
Well, I have greyhounds, and they’ve killed rabbits and brought them to me before, so I think I’d just let them hunt and we’d share the results. ---
**Author:** ![Madd\_Maxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Madd\_Maxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Madd_Maxx)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2005, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-hungry-enough-would-you-eat-your-own-pets/316705/20 "2005-08-12T13:16:27Z")
That’s why when I’m pissed at my cat her nickname becomes “Stir-fry Sally.” I like to remind her of her place in the food chain occasionally. I wouldn’t do it unless it was a dire situation though. As for hunting, I’m a better hunter than my cat could ever hope to be. She might catch birds & rodents, but deer is alot better suited to feeding people and if my Sally could catch a deer then I would be worried more about her eating me. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-hungry-enough-would-you-eat-your-own-pets/316705.md?page=2)