Danish consort admits to eating dog

Berlin: Prince Henrik, the prince consort of Denmark, has shocked animal lovers by declaring that dog meat, fried or grilled, is one of his favourite dishes.

The 72-year-old prince, a Frenchman by birth, said his penchant for dog meat had developed from the time he spent growing up and studying in Vietnam.

But the disclosure, made in an interview with a Danish magazine, has shocked the nation, particularly as the prince is the honorary president of the Danish Dachshund Club.

He has several dachshunds and, despite publishing a cookery book called Not Always Goose Liver, has even published eulogies to them.

He invited Danes to try eating dog meat themselves. "I do not mind eating dog meat at all," he said. "The dogs I eat have been bred to be eaten anyway, just like chickens.

"It tastes like rabbit, like dry venison, or like veal, just drier." He said the meat tasted best when it was sauteed or grilled and cut into thin slices.

He previously provoked nationwide debate when he suggested that parents should use the skills of dog training to bring up their children.

Since the prince's admission Danish newspapers have reopened their files on a royal dachshund that disappeared from Amalienborg palace in the early 1990s.

Despite a countrywide search, it never reappeared.