Swiss activists seek ban on holiday eating of cats, dogs BERN , Switzerland, Nov. 28 (UPI) -- A Swiss animal activist group has asked the government to ban the traditional Christmas practice of eating cats and dogs. The animal rights group SOS CHATS Noiraigue, which claims three percent of the Swiss population still engages in the tradition, handed leaflets to politicians in Bern this week, calling for its legal abolition. Most of Western Europe regards eating dogs or cats as unthinkable, regarding the animals as pets, but in Switzerland, where horse meat is readily served in many parts of the country, sausages made from dog or cat are rare but still a part of Christmas dinner. "You can't report it to the police because there's no law against it," the group's leader Tomi Tomek said. A petition, thus far with 16,000 signatures, has been circulated; a referendum on the issue can be presented to voters if 50,000 people sign on. In 2013 Tomek's activism was responsible for a ban on the sale of cat fur in Switzerland.