The Vietnamese capital Hanoi asks people not to eat dog meat

Officials in the Vietnamese capital, Hanoi, urge residents to stop eating dog meat as this could damage the city's reputation and lead to diseases such as rabies.

The People's Committee of Hanoi said that this practice could tarnish the image of the city as "civilized and modern capital".

The city council added that meat consumption could lead to the spread of diseases such as rabies and leptospirosis.

More than 1,000 stores in Hanoi still sell dog and cat meat.

The committee also urged residents to stop eating less popular but still available cat meat. This emphasized the fact that many animals were cruelly killed.

There are an estimated 490,000 dogs and cats in Hanoi, the majority of which are pets.

An increasing number of Vietnamese disapprove of dog meat consumption, but it remains "a deeply ingrained habit," according to Linh Nguyen, a Vietnamese journalist with the BBC.

Even on social networks, many people have welcomed the decision, but some have argued that it was a habit that many Vietnamese could not easily give up.

A Facebook user, Dang Ngoc Quang, argued that the dish should not be banned altogether, as this amounted to a deprivation of liberty.

Instead, he suggested introducing a large tax on dog meat or allowing it to be sold only in specific areas.