Olympic officials tell restaurants to hold the dog

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BEIJING -- Canine cuisine is being sent to the doghouse during next month’s Beijing Olympic Games.

Dog meat has been struck from the menus of officially designated Olympic restaurants, and Beijing tourism officials are telling other outlets to discourage consumers from ordering dishes made from dogs, the official Xinhua News Agency reported today.

Waiters and waitresses should ‘patiently’ suggest other options to diners who order dog, it said, quoting city tourism bureau Vice Director Xiong Yumei. Dog, known in Chinese as ‘xiangrou,’ or ‘fragrant meat,’ is eaten by some Chinese for its purported health-giving qualities.

Beijing isn’t the first Olympic host to slap a ban on the dish. South Korea banned dog meat during the 1988 Seoul Olympics by invoking a law prohibiting the sale of ‘foods deemed unsightly.’ After the Olympics, the ban was not strictly enforced.

Dog meat is also eaten in some other Asian countries, including Vietnam, the Philippines and Laos.

-- From the Associated Press