Cats and dogs – it’s not a movie

The story of Haitian migrants eating people’s cats and dogs started four days before President Donald Trump mentioned it publicly. He of course mentioned it in his debate with Kamala Harris – a debate he won in a delayed reaction. At the time, many commentators expressed disbelief of not only Trump but also the Springfield residents reporting the practice. Now comes fresh evidence that Haitians are eating cats and dogs. Furthermore, they are doing it in other cities besides Springfield – and even in other States besides Ohio. This isn’t a movie, nor some kind of arcane racist joke. This is real, and several officials, from the President down, are guilty of negligence for letting it get started.

Latest on the cats and dogs story

The first appearance of this latest story happened eight days ago (September 6, 2024). X influencer End Wokeness shared a screencap of a post, apparently since deleted, about a pet cat that disappeared. The owner “checked pages, kennels, asked around, etc.” Then, as she returned from work, she saw her cat – hanging from a tree, with a Haitian family carving it up to eat. This happened in Springfield, Ohio.

Two days later, Jim Hoft at The Gateway Pundit shared the post, and link and text from this story in The Haitian Report, from 2019. The story referred to a holiday tradition called Reveyon, held on Christmas Eve. This tradition apparently goes back to slave days, when runaway slaves trapped and ate feral cats to stay alive. According to the article, at the time, Haitians respected the laws of host countries, and would not take cats.

Something has happened in the years since, to make Haitian immigrants far less scrupulous. Residents of Springfield came to their City Commission meeting to complain – loudly. That meeting in fact took place last month (August 27). From that day to the resident reporting her missing cat hanging from a tree, the city seems to have taken no action.

“Memes” began to appear on X, suggesting that Donald Trump might become the protector of cats and dogs:

Disputing the story

At once that story came into sharp dispute. Several X users cried racism:

Other X users did not receives these posts well. But by far the worst offender was Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.). In a hearing in the House Judiciary Committee, the Congressman raged against Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), the Chairman. He was talking about Jordan’s “Protect our ducks and kittens” post, and Jim Hoft provided this transcript:

What in the hell is this? The chairman tweets, “Protect our ducks and kittens in Ohio,” because he goes down some crazy rabbit hole, completely debunked, that aliens are eating pets? My God, are you okay, Mr. Chairman? Because last year, for a very long time, you tweeted and promoted Kanye West as he was calling for genocide against the Jews, and you kept it up. Now, when we have victims coming here, you’re tweeting this nonsense. I don’t know why you would do this. I hope you’re okay. I don’t know if the aliens who are eating your ducks are in the room with us right now. But, Mr. Chairman, this is a serious issue. These people have loved ones who have been lost, and you tweeted this.

Swalwell once threatened Americans with nuclear attack if they oppose his gun-control proposals.

But as to the Springfield cats and dogs story, he would have done better to stay out of it.

Eric-Woods Erickson asserted, without evidence, that the cats and dogs story was a lie. But Sen. J. D. Vance (R-Ohio) lent it credence.

But a certain Indian billionaire denied the claim:

“Could be worse, I suppose…” said Elon Musk, who quoted this story about cannibalistic practices in Haiti itself.

Elon continued with police bodycam footage of an officer responding to a complaint about someone eating a cat.

Of course, during the debate, Donald Trump addressed the issue directly:

They’re eating the dogs, those people who are coming in! They’re eating the dogs; they’re eating the cats, of the people who live there!

And off to the side, Kamala Harris burst out laughing, and said, “Talk about extreme!” In retrospect, CNAV believes she really meant to deny the story, not to make light of the practice.

They are eating cats and dogs

Moderator David Muir insisted that Springfield’s city manager told ABC that “no credible report” existed of the consumption or abuse of pet-kind animals by “members of the immigrant community.” Trump retorted that he believed those citizens who testified at that video-recorded hearing. Laughing Girl doubled down on her scorn, both for Trump and for those Springfield citizens.

During the debate, CNN’s Dana Bash (who had done the softball interview with Kamala Harris and Tim Walz) said it was “racist” to claim “people of color are eating your pets.” Like Rep. Swalwell, she accused the Springfield residents of lying.

But Laura Loomer jumped onto Muir’s statement and shared a police report about a 911 call about Haitians taking geese.

So did Donald Trump, Jr.:

Erick-Woods Erickson would later say, “They’re eating the wild geese, not the [pets].” The problem for him is that even taking the geese violates federal law. The Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918, as amended, forbids that practice, in conformance with several conservation treaties. (Title 16, U.S.C., §§ 703-712.) And on Wednesday afternoon, Jeremy at The Quartering posted his corroboration of the cats and dogs story. He based it on a YouTube video from one Tyler Oliveira, who conducted sidewalk interviews of Springfield residents.

Former Democratic primary challenger Marianne Williamson warned her fellow Democrats that belittling this story could cost them the election:

Continuing to dump on Trump because of the “eating cats” issue will create blowback on Nov. 5. Haitian voodoo is in fact real, and to dismiss the story out-of-hand rather than listen to the citizens of Springfield. Ohio confirms in the minds of many voters the stereotype of Democrats as smug elite jerks who think they’re too smart to listen to anyone outside their own silo.

She deleted her own post after those same fellow Democrats said in effect:

Come on, girl! Get with The Program!

And not only in Springfield or even only in Ohio!

Before Wednesday was out, reports started coming in from elsewhere. KPRC-TV (Channel 2, NBC, Houston, Texas) reported that police have three cases of dead and mutilated cats in Houston. Someone had cut these cats in sagittal (lengthwise) section, dissected them, and spread their internal organs out as if for display. The local Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) chapter tried to blame it on coyotes. But coyotes could never clean the scenes of blood! The Houston Police Department is investigating all possibilities, including that human beings did this deed.

This morning, Jim Hoft reported on an investigation by Chris Rufo, one of the last of the investigative journalists. He has footage proving that migrants are grilling cats in Dayton, Ohio. WARNING! This post includes seventeen seconds of raw footage of a VERY sensitive nature. Parental judgment and discretion are advised.

Rufo has more details on his own site.

A short time later, Sharika Soal (TGP) shared several social-media posts saying Haitians are indeed eating cats and dogs alike.

https://www.tiktok.com/music/original-sound-7413854819611364139

https://www.tiktok.com/music/original-sound-7413546450073881390

What’s more, Haitians who have access to social media, are not denying it. They talk freely of the practice of eating cats and dogs. They seem not so much brazen as blissfully ignorant of the implications, for themselves and for the election. Then again, free elections are not a thing with which Haitians would be familiar.

History of ambiguous relations

The past eleven years has seen a redefinition, in some political quarters, of the relationships between humans on one hand, and cats and dogs on the other. In 2013, shortly after Barack Obama’s second term began, someone actually started a conversation about pet cats killing mice! In 2016 (Trump’s first campaign) came this report that residents of Venezuela were eating cats and dogs to survive. Eleven months ago, Jim Hoft reported that climate activists wanted to kill dogs and cats to reduce the “carbon pawprint.” How many of those activists put “I Pause for Paws” bumper stickers on their cars is far from clear. But recall that several Democrats criticized Sen. Vance for referring to “childless cat ladies.”

Cats and dogs have been part of American culture since America’s inception, but especially in motion-picture projects. Recall such titles as 101 Dalmatians, originally an animated feature, then a live-action feature with a sequel (102 Dalmatians). The projects with those titles spoke of a villainous rich woman seeking to kill dogs for their skins. People laughed that that. They’re not laughing now – not after it started happening to their pets.

Certain denizens of the media (legacy and at least one “conservative”) owe an apology to those who have lost their pet cats and dogs to a problem those same denizens say doesn’t exist. Certain public officials need to lose their jobs – from the city manager of Springfield, Ohio, to the President and Vice-President.