Eating ones best friend?

[Timelord]

Mobile Food source?

Loyal Protector?

I suppose it may depend on the dog itself. Some are not cut out for it. others may be a suitable breed, but individually not capable or opsec enough.

Also it would depend on the preppers individual situation - and this may change over time.

If the dog was a good useful one and maybe could hunt small game - then what? What if the game was absent. Would you keep it for future use or redeem it as nutrition in dire circumstance?

If you were starving, then could you eat your loyal companion? I guess some could and some would not. Is it merciful to terminate the dog if the situation gets desperate?

In history in extreme survival situations, the dogs are often eaten as a last resort. Generally if you were forced to eat your dog or dogs, then it was usually near the end of the road and only luck etc may be ones saviour.

Eating sparse useful resources wether dog, donkey, cow, mule or similar is always going to need a serious weighing up. These resources are not easily replacable.

This does not readily apply if bugging out on ones lonesome, but may well be a scenario that develops.

It is a good thing to have contemplated this scenario beforehand. It may only be one of you in a group, either you or an ally that you are surviving with that owns the animal. How would you handle it then? Is this unanswerable until you actually find yourself in that situation? Could it spark a critical falling out when morale is already low?

To some people their pets are like children. It may easier to justify euthanising a pet that is no use, in fact it may be a necessity at a much earlier stage for practical reasons - But for a pet that is useful, then there could be some strong opinions.

I read that when a human intake of calories is below about 1500 per day over a longer term, then emotions become suppressed. This was noted by German doctors in the prisoner of war camps in WW2 (Alas Babylon - so not checked for real) So this may result in decision making that is quite different from what we would feel now.

Just thought it would be an interesting question and one that many pet owners will often ponder. TL