The government through the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development has sounded a warning over the suspected sale of dog meat in the country.
Dr Obadiah Njagi, the director of veterinary services at the Ministry, sent an official notice to county directors of veterinary services in the country to stay alert and protect Kenyans from consuming canine meat.
The alert comes after an undated video of a man skinning a dog went viral on social media.
“Your attention is drawn to a social media post on suspected dog slaughter and sale of the meat to the public. Whereas it is not possible to identify the area where this criminal activity took place, it is important to take quick and decisive action to protect consumers and meat trade in the country,” Dr Njagi wrote.
The ministry official reiterated that dog is not a declared food animal in the country as per section 2 of the Meat Control Act Cap 356.
“This, therefore, makes it illegal for any person to slaughter any undeclared animal and offer the meat for sale to unsuspecting customers,” he said.
Dr Njagi warned that the consumers of dog meat are exposed to zoonotic diseases which are caused by germs that spread between animals and people.
The Ministry has asked all county directors to stay vigilant by enhancing surveillance and ensuring Kenyans are not exposed to dog meat.
“I would like to request you to be extra vigilant to activities conducted by such unscrupulous persons. This is by ensuring that all meat offered for consumption in your respective counties is slaughtered in approved slaughterhouses, duly inspected, stamped and transported under the control of the inspecting officers, the director of veterinary services in the country told his team.
“Surveillance of such activities should be enhanced in collaboration with other relevant government agencies and deterrent action is taken to curb this illegal activity,” Dr Njagi said.
