Women in Tafawa Balewa town of Bauchi State have ventured into the selling of dog meat, once the exclusive preserve of men in the area, and are making brisk business.
A correspondent of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) who visited the town on Sunday, reports that the business was providing financial succour to a lot of women.
Some of them who spoke to NAN said they veered into the trade because the men appeared not to be interested in the business any longer.
They said even though in the past, meat selling business was exclusively reserved for the men, it had now become an ‘all-embracing’ trade for both men and women.
Mrs Lucy John, one of the butchers, said some women decided to take to the trade because their male counterparts were gradually abandoning it and venturing into other trades.
She said that dog meat, being a delicacy in the area, was fast becoming a scarce commodity in the market because the male butchers were gradually abandoning the business.
John said the neglect of the business by men had opened up an opportunity for women, not just to prepare and sell dog meat, but also breed and market the animal, especially because of the lucrative nature of the business.
She said that during festive seasons, they made ‘good money’ because dogs were expensive, with the least price being N5,000.
“The abandonment of the trade by men created an opportunity for me and other women to make money, feed our family and satisfy other needs of our people.
“Selling dog meat is the best as people in the community love eating the meat,’’ she said.
John said during the celebration of an annual cultural festival in Tafawa Balewa, she slaughtered four dogs at the cost of N25,000, sold the meat and made huge profit.
“We need to do this for survival and since dog meat is preferred in this community, we make business out of it.
“I used to slaughter only one dog at a time but I now kill six,” she added.
Another woman, Mrs Blessing John, also corroborated the statement of Lucy, saying that this was ‘boom time’ because of the just concluded and impending festivities.
She said she had slaughtered six dogs during a recently concluded cultural festival, adding that each ‘piece’ of meat was sold at N100.
“Our men no longer do this (selling dog meat) because they are no longer interested, and for us women, we need to survive, as such had to engage in the trade since the patronage is very high.
Madam Kyauta Illiya, a consumer of dog meat, explained that the delicacy had a unique taste and so she preferred eating it over any other meat.
She said dog meat had become a favourite cuisine among some people of the area, and had value.
Mr Isiaku Gambo, another consumer, claimed that dog meat had medicinal effects as it could serve as cure for some diseases.
He insisted that eating dog meat prevented one from any attack and also served as an antidote to some diseases.
“If you serve me varieties like fish, cow, chicken and dog meat, I will opt for dog meat because the meat is nice.
“In this community, those who eat dog meat are the strongest,’’ he said. (NAN)