Some FCT residents made up of Veterinary doctors, pet lovers, dog dealers and consumers on Friday, expressed divergent views about dog meat.

These views were expressed in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja.

Mr Uche Okafor, a dog butcher and seller at Kubwa, said that throughout his seven years in the business, none of his customers had ever complained about his meat causing harm.

“We used original local gin or seaman schnapp in cooking dog meat, we are always careful when purchasing our drink in order to be sure we get the ones with NAFDAC number.

“I have been in this business for a long time, dog meat does no harm to consumers,’’ Okafor said.

Another dealer, Mr Ituen Sylvester, told NAN that at the preparation stage, hygiene is of primary importance in order to prevent flies, which could cause contamination.

According to him, though dog meat is a nutritious, hygiene should be taken into consideration to prevent flies from feasting on it.

“Cleanliness, they say, is next to godliness. Food poisoning could come about as a result of unwashed hands or when left open to flies,’’ Ituen said.

Asked on how hygiene could be maintained during the cooking stage, Ituen explained: “after slaughtering a dog, you wash it thoroughly with water, cut it into parts.

“Then you wash them again with clean water, making sure all your utensils are clean. Then you put them inside a pot.

“You cook the meat with original ‘ogogoro’ or seaman schnapp (not with water), allowing it to steam with the alcohol for some minutes.

“When the oil starts coming up, you add salt, pepper, onions and maggi.

“After boiling properly, you now add the scent leaf and stir it. After a while, you taste the meat and sauce to ascertain if it is well cooked,’’ he said.

Ituen acknowledged that patronage is good, that his meat does not last long before it was sold out, saying that parts of the meat were booked ahead of time.

A consumer, Mr Barry Allison from Delta, said that the reason he liked dog meat was because it is medicinal.

According to him, it cures my fever.

“ I was sick once, the intestines with the oil and liver were mixed with traditional medicine for me, I was relieved and felt better,’’ Barry said.

Another consumer, Mr Daniel Okon, said “when you taste dog meat, you will realise that no meat had ever tasted like that because of the texture,’’ he said.

However, a pet and animal lover, Mrs Alice Owoeye, said that dogs were man’s best friend and that they should not be eaten.

Another animal lover, Mr Edmond Levi, said that he loves animals but that does not rule out the fact that they are meant for food.

A Veterinary Consultant, Dr Peter Adeyanju, agrees that dog meat, like every other red meat, contains protein and is good for consumption.

According to him, dog meat is medicinal and it is actually nutritious because it contains protein.

He however cautioned that the manner of preparation should be taken note of.

“Irrespective of cultural or religious bias, I think dog meat is just like any other meat. But consumers should be careful of Zoonotics disease.

“This is a transmittable disease from animals to humans, that is why it should be well cooked,” he said.

(NAN)