# Is there any true moral difference between killing and eating a kitten vs a pig? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [February 25, 2003, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-true-moral-difference-between-killing-and-eating-a-kitten-vs-a-pig/157345 "2003-02-25T04:27:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Terrifel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c68b51/32.png) [@Terrifel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terrifel)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 11:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-true-moral-difference-between-killing-and-eating-a-kitten-vs-a-pig/157345/21 "2003-02-25T11:22:36Z")
Certainly there is a moral difference. Pigs are living creatures. Cats, on the other hand, are kind of like a virus. They have certain features of biological organisms, without being actually alive. Plus they are the spawn of Satan. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-true-moral-difference-between-killing-and-eating-a-kitten-vs-a-pig/157345/22 "2003-02-25T13:33:29Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Eddie the Dane \* > \*\*Moral difference? No…but our society frowns on the consumption of housepets for food. I think it highly unlikely that one would be able to persist in the routine consumption of cats (or dogs or…whatever) should it become public knowledge. \*\* If dogs and cats were herbivores, I don’t think that the “housepet” angle would be enough to keep them off the dinner table. After all, more than a few people keep cows, ducks, chickens and sheep as pets, and there’s nothing wrong with people eating them, at least from the not-a-vegetarian point of view. We don’t eat dogs and cats because we don’t eat non-aquatic carnivores in this society. ---
**Author:** ![smiling\_bandit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@smiling\_bandit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smiling_bandit)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-true-moral-difference-between-killing-and-eating-a-kitten-vs-a-pig/157345/23 "2003-02-25T13:37:31Z")
> [@](#): > > That’s news to me. Its actually true. They can and will eat grains and such if fed them. Its not something they seek out deliberately, but they will eat it. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-true-moral-difference-between-killing-and-eating-a-kitten-vs-a-pig/157345/24 "2003-02-25T13:48:02Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by smiling bandit \* > \*\*Its actually true. They can and will eat grains and such if fed them. Its not something they seek out deliberately, but they will eat it. \*\* You can feed dead cows and sheep to other cows (and give them mad cow disease to boot), but it doesn’t make them carnivores does it? AFAIK the designations have to do with natural diets, not what humans choose to force on them. ---
**Author:** ![Kalt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Kalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalt)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-true-moral-difference-between-killing-and-eating-a-kitten-vs-a-pig/157345/25 "2003-02-25T14:02:04Z")
No moral difference? You’d probably get **arrested** for eating cats (“cruelty to animals”) whereas eating bacon is not cruel at all. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-true-moral-difference-between-killing-and-eating-a-kitten-vs-a-pig/157345/26 "2003-02-25T14:06:12Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Kalt \* > \*\*…whereas eating bacon is not cruel at all. \*\* I’ve heard that pigs really look forward to it. ---
**Author:** ![Spavined\_Gelding](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/958977/32.png) [@Spavined\_Gelding](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spavined_Gelding)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-true-moral-difference-between-killing-and-eating-a-kitten-vs-a-pig/157345/27 "2003-02-25T14:10:13Z")
Plus, there is not all that much meat on a cat. In terms of net return and rate of gain pigs come out way ahead. Have you ever tried to heard cats? Pigs are much easier to deal with in large groups. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-true-moral-difference-between-killing-and-eating-a-kitten-vs-a-pig/157345/28 "2003-02-25T14:20:27Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Spavined Gelding \* > **Have you ever tried to heard cats?** Yes… They went “Miaaaoow” ---
**Author:** ![vanilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/f19dbf/32.png) [@vanilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vanilla)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-true-moral-difference-between-killing-and-eating-a-kitten-vs-a-pig/157345/29 "2003-02-25T14:22:06Z")
Aren’t all the animals we usually eat vegetarians? I heard its healthier to eat animals that eat vegetable products instead of carnivores; that eating carnivores would be too toxic. And cats are carnivores. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-true-moral-difference-between-killing-and-eating-a-kitten-vs-a-pig/157345/30 "2003-02-25T14:45:01Z")
Most of the _mammals_ that we eat are herbivores (or at least omnivores with a predominantly vegetable-based diet, but many non-mammalian animals we eat are exclusively carnivorous. ---
**Author:** ![ranwashingt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/779978/32.png) [@ranwashingt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ranwashingt)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-true-moral-difference-between-killing-and-eating-a-kitten-vs-a-pig/157345/31 "2003-02-25T15:13:38Z")
Kitty consomme…2 well blended Kittens(with all the little hard crunchy bits strained out) Pour into 2 quart pot and simmer at low heat for 1 hour… Garnish with puppy tounges marinated in concentrate of Kola Bear with a dollop of baby seal brains and a dash of grated hope of little lost orphan…although 17th century ragged asmatic London street urchin works best when in season. ---
**Author:** ![athelas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5e9695/32.png) [@athelas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/athelas)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-true-moral-difference-between-killing-and-eating-a-kitten-vs-a-pig/157345/32 "2003-02-25T15:17:14Z")
Survival fo the fittest -\> survival of the cutest ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-true-moral-difference-between-killing-and-eating-a-kitten-vs-a-pig/157345/33 "2003-02-25T15:31:16Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by ranwashingt \* > \*\*marinated in concentrate of Kola Bear \*\* Is that new, regular, classic, diet or cherry Kola bear? ---
**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:** [February 25, 2003, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-true-moral-difference-between-killing-and-eating-a-kitten-vs-a-pig/157345/34 "2003-02-25T15:43:18Z")
No. Of course, people don’t eat a pig, they eat pork, ham, bacon, ribs and chittlings. Like it’s not okay to eat a bunny, but okay to eat hassenheffer. ---
**Author:** ![bizzwire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/958977/32.png) [@bizzwire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bizzwire)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-true-moral-difference-between-killing-and-eating-a-kitten-vs-a-pig/157345/35 "2003-02-25T16:17:52Z")
The pigs we eat now are the result of centuries of domestication of a wild predecessor, the wild boar. Pigs have been, essentially, gentically modified to specifically serve as a food source. . If they didn’t taste so darned good, people would not have gone to the trouble to domesticate them and there would not be any pigs as we now know them. Pigs exist solely to be eaten. Cats, on the other hand, are not well-suited for food production but make excellent housepets and help keep the vermin population down. Modern domesticated cats are designed to be cute and cuddly, except for my cat, Mimi, who sprays everything in sight and will shred you to ribbons if you try to pet him. ---
**Author:** ![Feynn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecb155/32.png) [@Feynn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Feynn)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-true-moral-difference-between-killing-and-eating-a-kitten-vs-a-pig/157345/36 "2003-02-25T17:04:25Z")
Morality is relative so what is moral for you may be immoral to another. For example, a great number of people sharing this planet with us have a strong aversion to eating pork as they consider it to be a sin against their god. Now, I’m thinking of how “filet de chat a emballé dans le lard” \* would taste like. Sounds elegant doesn’t it? - [sub]filet of cat wrapped in bacon[/sub] ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-true-moral-difference-between-killing-and-eating-a-kitten-vs-a-pig/157345/37 "2003-02-25T17:11:55Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Urban Ranger \* > \*\* [Dogs are omnivores] That’s news to me. \*\* Dogs in the wild get most of their vegetation from the stomachs of the herbivores that they eat, but they have been seen to eat some plants, just taking a few bites here and there, and they also eat plants to medicate themselves. The behavior survives in domestic dogs in grass eating. ---
**Author:** ![ranwashingt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/779978/32.png) [@ranwashingt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ranwashingt)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-true-moral-difference-between-killing-and-eating-a-kitten-vs-a-pig/157345/38 "2003-02-25T17:22:45Z")
Mangetout The Kingdom of Butter quote: ## Is that new, regular, classic, diet or cherry Kola bear? Low Cal Brown ---
**Author:** ![ranwashingt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/779978/32.png) [@ranwashingt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ranwashingt)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-true-moral-difference-between-killing-and-eating-a-kitten-vs-a-pig/157345/39 "2003-02-25T17:51:52Z")
bizzwire Pigs exist solely to be eaten. * * * Speaking for Pigs worldwide( because its damn near impossible to type with a cloven hoof) I take exception with this cavalier attitude toward swinehood. We are much more than breakfast sausage, my artery hardened friend. And we have moved into many different facets of society, from the oft mentioned truffle hunters, to amazingly effective security forces…Just think about jumping that fence with an 800 pound snorting boar on the other side slobbering over the prospect…And further more, I’ll have you know that some of my best friends are pigs, although more on a metaphysical level than from the noble family Suidae And a pox of trichinosis upon you all! ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-true-moral-difference-between-killing-and-eating-a-kitten-vs-a-pig/157345/40 "2003-02-25T18:08:25Z")
How many predator species are there that routinely eat other predators, anyway? I’ve seen footage of cougars running into badgers and they never fight to the death. They just hiss and growl until one of them backs down (usually the cougar, because badgers are mean SOBs). Evolution didn’t provide any real reward for predator animals who try to kill other predators. There are fewer of them (since they can’t survive by eating plentiful grass) and they can defend themselves with their own claws and fangs. In short, the reward is too little and risk too great for any animal to hunt down other hunters. That said, teriyaki goes great on cat. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-true-moral-difference-between-killing-and-eating-a-kitten-vs-a-pig/157345.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-true-moral-difference-between-killing-and-eating-a-kitten-vs-a-pig/157345.md?page=3)