Gutter Rabbits & Other Parisian Delicacies

"By October [1870, during the Siege of Paris] whatever social stigmas previously inhibited the well-to-do from buying horsemeat were abandoned amid its packaging in the accouterments of haute cuisine. At the commencement of the siege, there were 100,000 horses at Paris; at the end only one-third of that number remained. Towards mid-November, signs began to appear advertising dog and cat butchers, with cats being advertised as 'gutter rabbits.' It has been estimated that over 25,000 cats were eaten during the siege, often boiled and seasoned with pistachios, olives, pimentos, and cornichons. During the second to last week of November, a rat market opened up at the Place de l'Hotel de Ville, with rats selling for 10-15 sous, or one-third to one-half of a National Guardsman's daily salary. The rats were almost assuredly destined for the infamous salami de rat." (49) --David A. Shafer, The Paris Commune

"Cantine municipale pendant le siege de Paris"
by Henri Pille

The Siege of Paris occurred during the Franco-Prussian War that began in 1870. As the Prussian army closed in on and surrounded Paris in September 1870, they cut off all supply lines to the city. Parisians were forced to survive on their existing food and other supplies until the end of January 1871. As you can see, the food situation became very difficult. Their situation became even more pathetic when the extremely cold winter of 1870-1871 began. It was one of the coldest winters of the 19th century in Europe, being more than 2 degrees Celsius colder than average. (Shafer, 50) This meant that fuel for fire to keep warm and cook food was scarce. Lower class Parisians were likely eating either raw or undercooked cats and rats part of the time. Shafer also describes how all the animals in the city zoo were slaughtered in late December because zookeepers could no longer sustain them. The meat was sold to wealthy Parisians.