DCHP-1 Online

dog feast Hist.

• among certain Indian tribes, a ceremonial feast in which dogs were eaten to propitiate evil spirits.

  See also: dog-eating  

  • 1755  (1907)  [Each tent killed two Dogs & had a Grand Feast.]
  • 1857  (1860)  The heathen Indians [at Fort Garry] held their dog feasts and medicine dances on the open plain. In one instance five dogs were slaughtered cooked and devoured. . . .
  • 1940  The year 1873, which saw the last Indian dog feast at Point Douglas, saw also the . . . cluster of buildings . . . incorporated as Winnipeg.
  • 1963  It was known as the coteau des festins, because the local Indians from time immemorial had held dog feasts on the site.