OK, folks, you need a Catholic Coon Ass to set you straight. This all goes back to Meatless Fridays. In Louisiana what constitutes meat and non-meat becomes a problem. The solution is: warm blooded creature = meat; cold blooded creature = non-meat. So one can eat frog legs, gator, snake (any reptile) because they aren’t classified as meat. Now here’s a good one - absolutely true - from the same era. In Cajun country there is a fowl called the Pouldeau (pulldo). Cajuns had a special dispensation allowing them to eat pouldeau on Friday because the bird ate only fish and reptiles so it was classified as “fish” by extension (you are what you eat). If you have ever eaten a pouldeau you understand that the dispensation wasn’t a blessing because they are awful tasting - stinky, fishy smelling, tough chicken!
Nutria Rat on a Stick is quite the delicacy up here in North Louisiana.