A photo purportedly showing a Vietnamese girl in tears beside her pet dog, which had been slaughtered, roasted and put out for sale at a street-food stall, has gone viral on social media and raised ethical questions about the trade in dog-meat.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The People's Daily, a Chinese newspaper, reported on Saturday that the little girl's dog had wandered off a few days earlier, and when she stumbled across the pet at a local dog-meat stand, cries of "That's Flower!" could be heard.
The newspaper said Taiwanese ETTV Television Network had reported that the photo was taken in the countryside in north Vietnam, but the time, exact place and girl's identity could not be confirmed.
The photo, showing the distraught girl crouching down with one hand on the deceased dog's back, has captured the hearts of people around the world.
Twitter users called the photo "heartbreaking" and some said it had moved them to tears.
Others said it represented an "abhorrent practice" and said this was an example of why they were vegetarian or vegan.
The photo has provoked discussion around the issue of the dog-meat trade in south-east Asia.
In 2013, The Guardian looked at the black market smuggling of dogs into Vietnam for consumption, reporting that the meat was a highly sought-after product, eaten at special occasions and believed to cure a host of medical conditions.
It said that high demand, particularly in north Vietnam, was fuelling the theft of pet and stray dogs, but activists concerned about animal welfare and the potential transmission of infectious diseases through dog-meat were fighting back.
Fairfax Media
