So, I was going to bed and the lights were off. It was 11pm. But, friends came over and they were kind enough to bring over some "puaka" for me. Puaka is pig in Tongan. This "puaka" was cooked in the umu. (Tongans roast pigs or cook them in the umu or underground oven.)
Anyway, my friends got me out of bed to have some "puaka". I wasn't really committed to sleeping and I am on my weight-gaining program and so I went to have some "puaka". Plus, they were so nice to have brought me food and I was grateful.
At the table I saw the meat and I thought to myself, I never saw a puaka that looked like the one they brought. They brought over a leg and other parts of the "puaka". But, the skin was really dark. It was almost black, but it wasn't burned. I never seen pig skin like that. (They brought over some mei also [breadfruit] to eat with the meat.)
So, I tried the meat. It was hard to tell that it wasn't puaka at first. When food is cooked in the umu, it has this taste to it. I will just call it the umu taste. Anyway, I was familiar with the umu taste but the meat was a little different. I suspected it was dog shortly after this but I didn't want to falsely accuse my friends, although I knew they were the type to play this kind of joke on me. I just kept tasting while my friends were feasting on the meat. The meat is tough and I don't really like it, but that is mostly because I suspected it was dog. There was barely any meat on the bones, which is not surprising to me at all. I have never seen a healthy looking dog in Tonga. They are all skin and bones pretty much.
Anyway, my friends and I had this silent conversation during the meal that consisted of a lot of laughing. Basically they knew that I knew, and without saying a word, the joke was exposed. They just kept asking for confirmation from me that I was eating and that I was enjoying the food. Later, when my friends were walking out the door to leave that night, they confirmed that it was dog just to have the last laugh. I was cool with it and I found it pretty hilarious more than gross. I was down with trying dog at least once while in Tonga.
But, I really hate Tongan dogs with a passion and I definitely do not enjoy eating Tongan dog and will not willingly eat one after this experience. Dogs are pests here. They are really annoying menaces. Just imagine a country where all dogs are filthy and ugly! strays. They are walking diseases. They just roam around, sometimes in packs, and they bark at me while I am riding my bike. They attack sometimes too and I always have to be ready to fly off my bike to defend myself and hope that a car doesn't get me first. I guess this is how it feels to be a Mormon missionary or a postman. Anyway, the dogs are also doing the nasty in public everywhere. Come on, get a room!
Anyway, it is mostly sad but it is hard for me to sympathize with the dogs in Tonga. I forgot about the funniest part of the night. All the left over dog meat and bones...we fed it to our dogs! Haha. And I swear after our dogs ate the dog meat, the look in their eyes changed. I was trying to interpret the look. It was like they thought I betrayed them, but that they also felt that they are helpless prisoners of a country where it is not in the culture to care for them properly and so they have to resort to eating their own kind. Faka'ofa.
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3 comments:
THIS is really funny - I would like to try dog just to see what it tastes like. I have to be honest though, I am really bad at identifying the taste of meat. I am also SUPER picky about the meat I eat. I tried real "birria," which is made out of goat and I thought it was a bit nasty. I think, though, that the reasons why I'm picky are mental...you know, it's only the idea of eating something that disgusts me.
Tongans eating dogs is unique. BUT there are some Mexicans that eat snake and some have tried bull testicles. Very few people have done it though. It is not as common as a native Tongan eating dog, but it still happens.
More than anything, I think it's sad...I love dogs, they just need attention! LOL you want to know something funny? I told Bishop Vaea that I had an injured dog (from his leg), it's a siberian husky, and he started to ask me about the dog. I thought it was nice of him to show concern until he said "you know? my people eat dog, so if you don't plan on keeping him I can take care of him for you!" LOL - he was joking (I hope) about eating my dog!
Have you thought about contacting an animal welfare organization about the suffering dogs in Tonga? For instance WSPA?
Since you spent a year there, you would be able to provide them with an accurate account of the dire situation.
Are there any actual vet clinics in Tonga?
Dying a slow death caused by severe parasite infestation and starvation is horrific.
No, it has not come to my attention to call WSPA. I don't know if I am the right person to do that. My reccomendation to them would be to exterminate all stray dogs in Tonga. I have heard of people throwing dead dogs off cliffs into the ocean as shark feed. That is neither here nor there, that just came to mind. One thing to take into consideration is that these dogs are not those lovable house pets, man's best friends of the first world. These dogs have become wild animals, they have the wolf-pack, alpha male, type mentality. At this point, they should all be shot in order to increase public health & safety. There is no natural habitat for these dogs to retreat to as a sanctuary. My suggestion is that WSPA brings a boat to Tonga and transports all the dogs to some WSPA place (not an island) to care for them, rehabilitate them or, for all I care, drop them all into a black hole to be forgotten. Ok, I am not that cynical, but I am open to your suggestions as to what might happen to remedy the situation. Actually there are many developing nations where some type of measure to address the "dog problem" needs to be taken. Not a priority?...I am not surprised. I believe there were unsuccessful attempts taken a few times by the Tongan govt to neuter all dogs. I have nothing against dogs, and the proper care for them, but this is a systemic issue that goes beyond just the propoer care for dogs...there are barely properly equipped hospitals in Tonga to care for its people. In any case, there are barely any vets, if any, in Tonga. And there are barely any financial safety nets, if any, to care for dogs on the govt level, or famiy level. You feed your family before you even think of feeding a dog, even your house pet dog. Hence, eating the dog.
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