- "The civets' unenviable fate seems sadly at odds
with its origins as a shy, fruit-eating tree dweller."
-
- SHANGHAI, China (AP) - The
poor civet cat is an animal with an image problem.
-
- Nine months ago, they were banished from markets as suspected
spreaders of the SARS virus, only to be back on the menu after the outbreak
subsided. Now they and other wild animals sold as food are again being
targeted for slaughter, as China seeks to block a re-emergence of SARS.
Some 10,000 have been ordered drowned, electrocuted and incinerated by
Saturday.
-
- "People eat wild game for its supposed health-giving
properties but the civet had come to be known as a damned creature,"
said Hu Xueming, deputy general secretary of the Guangzhou Food and Beverage
Association.
-
- The civets' unenviable fate seems sadly at odds with
its origins as a shy, fruit-eating tree dweller that is prized as a delicacy
in southern China.
-
- Civets are mongoose-like animals found throughout Africa
and Asia and only distantly related to the common house cat. Some species
are ground-dwelling and omnivorous, although the Chinese species tied to
the SARS virus, the masked palm civet, lives in trees and eat oranges,
papayas and mangos.
-
- Members of the Viverridae family, civets have a pointy,
striped nose like a weasel, with a long, cat-like body and tail. Most are
between two to five kilograms but can weigh up to 11 kilograms.
-
- Civets are usually only served in specialty wildlife
restaurants called "yewei," or "wild taste" in Chinese.
Often located in hilly rural areas on the edge of Guangzhou and other southern
cities, the restaurants keep live animals in cages, awaiting the customer's
selection, then slaughter them on the spot.
-
- Other than its distinctive flavour, civet meat is also
credited with having medicinal qualities. Consumers say civet flesh can
improve male virility, cure skin diseases and help with other ailments.
-
- There are various forms of preparation but the most popular
is to fry the meat with soy sauce adding bird's nest for flavour and nutritional
value, Hu said.
-
- "You have to eat it while it's hot, because if it
gets cold the oil will congeal and you'll have a gamey smell," said
Hu.
-
- Other animals also suspected of carrying the SARS virus
and ordered slaughtered:
-
- -Raccoon dogs, a primitive canine with racoon-like facial
markings.
-
- -Ferret badgers, small, omnivorous nocturnal badgers.
-
- -Hog badgers, larger badgers with protruding claws.
-
- -Eurasian badgers, large badgers resembling small bears
with a prominent white stripe down their nose.
-
- Copyright © 2003 Canadian Press
-
- http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1843&ncid=1843&
e=1&u=/cpress/20040108/ca_pr_on_he/sars_civets
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