Extreme food: Hugjos in Surakarta, Central Java, is a restaurant that serves up dishes containing dog meat.(JP/Ganug Nugroho Adi)

Heru Krisnadi, an avid dog-meat eater from Surakarta in Central Java, says he eats dog at least twice a week. He likes not only its taste, but also the warm sensation he gets after the meal, which he says makes him more energetic.

He knows that dogs are domestic animals that many people feel are not fit for consumption, but that does not bother him. In fact, Heru keeps a pet dog at home.

“I have a dog, too, but I don’t have the heart to eat my own dog. I don’t care how the dogs are killed, as long as I don’t see the process,” he said on Tuesday.

Little does Heru know that to fulfill his culinary desire, the dogs, according to activists, face brutal treatment during capturing, transporting and slaughtering.

While many people think of dogs as man’s best friend, business-minded folks in Surakarta have found ways to profit from the creatures.

Sukardi, 61, for one, has had dog on the menu of his business since 1979 and currently serves it at four food stalls.

Paying around Rp 150,000 (US$11) per dog, he can make a profit of Rp 3 million from each of his stalls on a good day. Sukardi needs between eight and 12 dogs every day for each of his stalls.

Dog meat dishes can easily be found at food stalls across the city. Called warung guk-guk (woof-woof stalls), they offer various dishes, ranging from sengsu (dog stew) to dog satay and spicy
options.

They have been around for decades, and their existence has not been challenged by any of the city’s mayors, including the current President, Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, when he was still the mayor of Surakarta.

“We can’t forbid it, because there is no regulation that could be used to forbid it. This culinary [tradition] has existed for ages,” Surakarta Mayor FX Hadi “Rudy” Rudyatmo said.

In a shocking revelation, a 2017 study by the NGO Surakarta Dog Friends showed that about 1,200 dogs, including stray dogs, were slaughtered each day for consumption in the city. Some of them were bought in from West Java and East Java.

“Some 1,200 dogs are killed every day to be cooked at 136 food stalls,” Surakarta Dog Friends head Fredy Irawan said.

Fredy noted that the business involved cruel practices. Often, he said, the dogs were not slaughtered like other animals, but instead strangled with rope or put into a sack and drowned.

“This is torture. This is done because the consumers believe the meat will taste better if no blood flows when the dogs are killed,” he said.

In 2017, the Central Java Animal Husbandry and Health Agency said Surakarta was the city with the highest consumption of dog meat, with 400 dogs slaughtered every day, marking a significant increase from 63 dogs a day slaughtered in 2015.

Surakarta is just one example.

While dog meat is considered forbidden food in Islam, eating dog meat is common for Christians of several ethnic groups, such as the Manadonese, Batak and Javanese.

Research by the Change For Animals Foundation (CFAF) suggests there is also a high number of dog meat consumers in North Sulawesi, as the NGO found that around 8,000 dogs — including pets stolen from families and dogs snatched off the streets — were slaughtered every week.

“It is crucial to tackle this dog meat trade, not only for animal welfare, but also for public health and safety,” said Lola Webber of the CACF, adding that this could also help to prevent the spread of rabies.

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