Lassie come home

It is a great day for headline writers everywhere following news from Brazil where a boy has reportedly bitten a pit bull terrier. However there is nothing unique about chowing down into man's best friend.

Dog eating is still permitted in China, which exported 31 tons of doggy filled goodness to Japan in 2006. In Japan, dog meat is enjoyed by expat Koreans who are not allowed to eat it in their home country, but in Japan, can go to dog meat restaurants.

Dog meat is popular in other Asian nations such as Vietnam, but surprisingly, is a traditional dish in remote parts of Switzerland. One health conscious Swiss is quoted as saying, "meat from dogs is the healthiest of all. It has shorter fibres than cow meat, has no hormones like veal, no antibiotics like pork".

In 2003, health inspectors discovered four frozen coyotes in the freezer of a Chinese restaurant in Edmonton, Canada. This breached guidelines only because the meat had not been inspected.
Need to know more? Want recipes? Which breed is best? Make this your one-stop dog cuisine reference centre.