Dear Dale,
in Austria and as far as I know also in Germany Roel's "dakhaas" is
well known as "Dachhase". Especially Sinti and Roma people have been
slandered as notorious cat (and also hedgehog) -eaters. As a matter
of fact Sinti and Roma often sold tanned cat fur as a remedy against
rheumatic diseases.
In order to extend the discussion to another domestic carnivore it is
interesting to know, that in Germany slaughtering and trading of
dogs and dogmeat has been regulated by law from 1890 until 1987,
when this custom finally was prohibited. Eating dogs never has been
highly esteemed, but particularly in the first decade of the 20th
century it was rather a common way of meat supply for poor income
brackets (e. g. in Chemnitz from 1905 - 1909 3191 dog slaughters
have been accounted; source: P. Geppert [1990]: Hundeschlachtungen in
Deutschland im 19. und 20. Jahrhundert unter besonderer
Beruecksichtigung der Verhaeltnisse in Muenchen. Unpubl Thesis, Vet.
med. Fak. Muenchen).
The strong taboo, mentioned e.g. by Davidson's Oxford Companion of
Food or by F. Simoons (Do not Eat this Flesh!) seems to have been
handled in a more moderate way not only in exotic communities like
China or Philippines but also in Central Europe at the onset of
modern times.
Yours
Gerhard
Prof.Dr. Gerhard Forstenpointner
Dept.of Anatomy, Archaeozoological Unit
University of Veterinary Medicine
Veterinaerplatz 1
A-1210 Vienna
AUSTRIA
ph:0043/1/25077-22503
fax:0043/1/25077-2590
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