Is it normal to think eating guinea pigs is sad?

72% Normal
21 Comments

My friend told me a that people In Peru eat guinea pigs. I know someone from there, so I asked them if it was true, and I researched it. It's true. They have festivals where they dress them up in these cute little outfits and parade them around. Then they pick a winner, who gets to live. They eat the losers. I know it's just their culture and it's normal to them, but I find it really sad. So is it normal, or am I being ignorant?

Voting Results
72% Normal
Based on 108 votes (78 yes)
Help us keep this site organized and clean. Thanks!
[ Report Post ]
Comments ( 21 )
  • Megid
    12 years ago

    Given the society in which you were raised, yes.

    Comment Hidden ( show )
    5
    5
      -
    • MissClaire
      12 years ago

      exactly what I was thinking -

      Comment Hidden ( show )
      2
      2
  • dom180
    12 years ago

    Probably normal to think that, but it's really no different to eating any other animal, like a cow, pig, chicken, sheep etc.

    Comment Hidden ( show )
    4
    4
  • mariposa
    12 years ago

    I don't think that it's only because they're cute. They keep them as pets and name them, then kill them and eat them. I know some people keep cows, pigs ect. As pets sometimes, but they don't eat those ones. Or the fact that before they're eaten they're dressed up in cute little outfits

    Comment Hidden ( show )
    1
    1
  • moomus
    12 years ago

    I have snakes and feed them defrosted mice. Keep em in the freezer and people can't understand why I would want to but at the end of the day it's no different to sausages or burgers or pork chops or whatever. Having said that I am fond of guinea pigs and think that's sad, ESP dressing them up and doing all that.

    Comment Hidden ( show )
    1
    1
  • 1marcelfilms
    12 years ago

    Why do we eat pigs???

    Comment Hidden ( show )
    1
    1
      -
    • Shackleford96
      12 years ago

      Because bacon is delicious, that's why!

      Comment Hidden ( show )
      3
      3
  • zchristian
    12 years ago

    I have heard worse...

    Comment Hidden ( show )
    1
    1
  • [Old Memory]
    12 years ago

    I think its even more sad that they dont live long and tend to die suddenly all the time. Like people are always oh no my guinea pig died. Ive always wondered what the hell is up with them like do they have heart attacks or something?

    Comment Hidden ( show )
    1
    1
  • rin
    12 years ago

    At least they respect the animal. You don't see us throwing a celebration in thanks of pigs and sheep do you?

    Oh wait, I just Googled and found National Pig Day. Never heard of it so obviously it's not very important. I shall celebrate it or stop eating bacon. (>> March 1st.)

    Comment Hidden ( show )
    1
    1
  • Energy
    12 years ago

    That is kinda sad :/

    Comment Hidden ( show )
    1
    1
  • Malaglinir
    12 years ago

    I really hate it when people act like eating any animal like a cat, dog, guinea pig, etc, is somehow inherently worse than eating a pig, cow, or chicken. It's almost like they're trying to say that those animals somehow have more rights to life just because they are perceived to be cute.

    Comment Hidden ( show )
    1
    1
      -
    • seabird_71
      12 years ago

      It's just that so many people have dogs/cats/guinea pigs as pets and are so close to them. I consider my two dogs to be additions to my family and yes, I refer to myself as their momma. That's just how some people see it, so if I were to hear about someone eating a dog, it just sounds weird to me because I have two "babies" that are dogs. Now if I lived in a way that I had cows that were my pets, I strongly think that I would not eat meat from a cow. But I do not have any cows as pets, therefore it doesn't seem that odd for me when someone talks about eating them.

      Comment Hidden ( show )
      1
      1
        -
      • Malaglinir
        12 years ago

        Our perception of whether an animal makes a good pet or good food is purely cultural. If you strip the culture away and just look at this from the outside, eating a chicken isn't morally superior to eating a dog. I understand that we don't eat dogs and cats because we've grown up with them and are taught that they make great pets. That's just our culture and how we were raised.

        My main point is that other cultures aren't doing anything worse than we are by consuming animals that we commonly view as pets when we consume animals on a daily basis.

        I think we're on the same page here more or less.

        Comment Hidden ( show )
        0
        0
          -
        • seabird_71
          12 years ago

          I'll admit that when I get my pet pig, yes I'm planning on getting a tea cup pig, that after that, I probably won't have the heart to eat pig meat again. For some reason I'll consider that cannibalism, that I adopted a pig now I'm going to eat one, it just seems wrong. I'm not against another culture for eating an animal that people in the U.S may find to be weird to consume. All I'm saying is that it's normal for people to be taken aback by the eating of a guinea pig because it's simply what we're not accustomed to.

          Comment Hidden ( show )
          1
          1
  • InvadingPotatoLeader
    12 years ago

    Do you also get sad when you think of all the cows, goats, sheep and chicken who die in the slaughterhouse?
    Or is it just their cuteness?
    A bit naive in my opinion..
    It's just cultural difference.
    In some parts of China they eat dog.
    In India they don't eat cow.
    In Japan they eat whale.
    In Korea they eat live squid.
    In Peru they eat hamsters.
    Muslims don't eat pork.
    In vietnam they eat grasshoppers.
    In France they eat snails.
    We're all different, a lot of animals (as well as human children) get dressed up and paraded around in the west, though they don't get eaten I think the guineapigs get a swift death and don't suffer much before they die.
    It's all meat, and to be honest I would try almost everything, just not slimy shit like squid or snail.

    Comment Hidden ( show )
    0
    0
  • [email protected]
    12 years ago

    It's their way of life.Somebody has to eat the damn things.Get over it.

    Comment Hidden ( show )
    0
    0
  • alv1592
    12 years ago

    That is sad :(

    Comment Hidden ( show )
    0
    0
  • sweetbamagirl
    12 years ago

    I have a friend that went there on a mission trip and tried it. just thinking about it makes me sick.

    Comment Hidden ( show )
    0
    0
  • mtg710
    12 years ago

    Generally, people don't eat guinea pigs in the society I live in. I'm curious to know what one would be like, though. Actually, there are several animals not eaten here that I want to try.

    Comment Hidden ( show )
    0
    0
  • Who_Fan4Life
    12 years ago

    In the more remote parts of the world, tribes and sometimes cultures, in general, eat some pretty gnarly things. It could be worse. For proof of what I'm saying, just watch any of episode of Man vs. Wild or Surviorman!

    Comment Hidden ( show )
    0
    0