skip to main |
skip to sidebar
Food poisoning isn’t only a human problem, according to the US Food and Drug Administration, which says that pets are also at risk if they eat foods that are contaminated with disease-causing bacteria. Two of these bacteria—Salmonella and Listeria monocytogenes—are particularly dangerous to both pets and humans, says the FDA.
test
Raw petfood consists primarily of meat, bones and organs that haven’t been cooked, and therefore are more likely than cooked food to contain organisms that can make a dog or cat sick, says William J. Burkholder, DVM, PhD, veterinary medical officer in the FDA’s Division of Animal Feeds. Moreover, raw food can make humans sick as well if it isn't handled properly. The FDA says it does not believe feeding raw petfoods to animals is consistent with the goal of protecting the public from significant health risks.
The agency recommends cooking raw meat and poultry to kill harmful bacteria like Salmonella and Listeria monocytogenes before the food is given to pets. Burkholder says people who choose a raw diet for their pets often point out that feral dogs and cats catch prey and eat it raw. “That’s true,” he says, “but we don’t know how many of these animals get sick or die as a result of doing that. Since sick feral animals are rarely taken to a veterinarian when they’re ill, there’s no way to collect that information.”
Consumers also run the risk of getting sick if they handle contaminated petfoods and accidentally transfer the bacteria to their mouths. “If you’re going to handle raw foods, you need to pay particular attention to good hygienic practices,” says Burkholder. “Wash your hands and anything else that comes into contact with the product with hot, soapy water for at least 20 seconds.”
Feeding raw food to a pet also increases the risk of contaminating food contact surfaces and other places. “Even if the dog or cat doesn’t get sick, they can become carriers of Salmonella and transfer the bacteria to their surroundings, and then people can get the disease from contact with the infected environment,” says Burkholder. Once Salmonella gets established in the pet’s gastrointestinal tract, the animal can shed the bacteria when it has a bowel movement, and the contamination will continue to spread.
“Feeding raw foods to pets increases the risk that both the pet and the people around the pet will encounter bacteria that cause foodborne illness, particularly if the products are not carefully handled and fed,” says Burkholder. “This is certainly one factor that should be considered when selecting diets for your pet.”
Adherents to the raw petfood diet trend claim that pets eating raw diets have shiner coats, healthier skin, cleaner teeth, improved immunity and easier weight management, but Colorado State University veterinarians say there is no evidence to support such claims. There are, however, real risks.
test
"We advise that pet owners analyze nutritional claims and look for the research to support those claims, especially if they seem too good to be true," say the vets. "Look for references to research that has been both published and peer-reviewed; this approach is built on scientific rigor and helps ensure valid data." Some of the risks associated with feeding raw petfood include:
- Raw food has an increased risk of being contaminated with harmful bacteria, including Salmonella, Listeria and E. coli. These pathogens can cause dangerous illnesses in pets—and the people who handle raw petfood. For these reasons, federal agencies including the US Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend against raw food diets for pets.
- Raw food diets have been shown to have nutritional imbalances.
- The bones in raw diets can cause fractured teeth and intestinal trauma.
Veterinarians at the CSU Veterinary Teaching Hospital recommend the following when considering nutritional options for pets:
- Feed a diet that is balanced and appropriate for the age of your pet.
- Puppies and kittens should be fed a diet that is formulated to meet the specific needs of a young animal. Avoid diets stating they are for “all life stages.”
- Feed a diet from a company active in nutritional research and continuous improvement to formulations, with strict quality control, and that employs a boarded nutritionist.
- Home-cooked pet diets should be made with the help of a boarded nutritionist. Meat in homemade pet diets should be cooked until the internal temperature of 165 degrees F is reached.
- Any dietary change should be made slowly, over five to seven days, to avoid stomach upset.
- Consult your veterinarian with any questions or concerns regarding nutrition and your pet.
A new study from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) found that compared to other types of petfood tested, raw petfood was more likely to be contaminated with disease-causing bacteria. As a result, FDA is warning pet owners who feed pets a raw diet that they may be at a greater risk for infections from Salmonella and Listeria monocytogenes.
The warning to pet owners comes after FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine (CVM) screened more than 1,000 samples of petfood for foodborne illness-causing bacteria in the two-year study.
The study involved more samplings from 196 commercial raw dog and cat food brands. CVM says it purchased a variety of raw petfood online from different manufacturers and had the products shipped directly to six laboratories for analysis. According to FDA, the raw petfood products were mostly frozen in tube-like packages and made from ground meat or sausage.
Of the samples analyzed, 15 tested positive for Salmonella and 32 tested positive for Listeria.
The study "identified a potential health risk for the pets eating the raw food, and for the owners handling the product," said Dr. Renate Reimschuessel, a researcher at CVM's Office of Research and one of the study's principal investigators.
FDA says the best way for pet owners to prevent infection is to avoid feeding pets a raw diet. More information on the study, including tips for pet owners to prevent infection from foodborne illness, is available on FDA's website.
Feeding raw petfood diets has been debated by both pet owners and health experts, says an article on the pet website Pawnation, which looks at whether or not these diets really lead to a longer life for pets.
Pet writer Dorri Olds says she supports the raw diet after having success feeding it to her dog and believes the health benefits will help her dog to live longer.
Raw petfood diets are based on the concept that dogs are carnivores and so, would naturally eat raw meat in the wild, as opposed to the grains like wheat, rice, soy and corn found in typical commercial diets.
Olds says she decided to try the raw food diet after meeting dog chef Kevyn Matthews, who told her that raw food will help extend her dog's lifespan. Olds claims her dogs bowel movements are healthier and her dog's breath and coat improved after switching to the raw diet.
"When your pet eats heated and processed 'dead' food without enzymes, their system will kick into survival mode to digest food," Olds says. "This means borrowing digestive enzymes from their metabolic enzymes. When that happens, your pet's body is in overdrive and only able to partially digest food. Whatever isn't digested can enter the bloodstream."
However, some believe that the health risks of feeding a raw diet are greater than the benefits. Bacteria like Salmonella can be spread easily, but Olds says Matthews assured her his raw diet plan includes probiotics to fight off potential infection.
Raw petfood manufacturer Bravo! is recalling 2-pound tubes of Bravo! Raw Food Diet Chicken Blend for Dogs and Cats because the raw petfood diet has the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella.
The recall involves 2-pound tubes of Bravo! Raw Food Diet Chicken Blend for Dogs and Cats, manufactured on June 14, 2012, with product code 21-102, batch ID code 6 14 12, and "best used by" date of June 12, 2014.
Routine testing of the petfood product by the Minnesota Department of Agriculture, collected from a single retail location, indicated the presence of Salmonella. The company says it has not received reports of illness related to the recalled petfood.
Pet owners should return unopened frozen tubes of petfood to the store where they were purchased for a full refund. Pet owners should dispose of opened petfood tubes and return the washed plastic batch ID tag to the place of purchase for a full refund.
Consumers with questions should contact the company at +1.866.922.9222, Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The American Animal Hospital Association has joined the American Veterinary Medical Association in discouraging the feeding of raw pet food diets to dogs and cats.
According to a statement on its website, the American Animal Hospital Association “does not advocate or endorse feeding pets any raw or dehydrated nonsterilized foods, including treats that are of animal origin.” The association's decision was based on “overwhelming scientific evidence” and cited 50 sources.
“Homemade raw food diets are unsafe because retail meats for human consumption can be contaminated with pathogens," the association said. “Studies that have been done on both commercially available and homemade raw protein diets have found a high percentage (30-50 percent) of them contaminated with pathogenic organisms, and up to 30 percent of the dogs fed such diets may shed pathogenic organisms in their stool.”
Following an earlier recommendation to pet owners, the American Veterinary Medical Association has approved a policy that discourages feeding raw animal-source protein diets to cats or dogs, unless the petfood has undergone a process that eliminates pathogens.
The new policy on raw petfood states that cooking and pasteurization are the “traditional” methods for eliminating pathogens in dog and cat food, but recognizes that safety methods such as irradiation are “being developed and implemented.” The new policy had two revisions, including a change from, “Never feed inadequately treated animal-source protein to cats and dogs” to, “Avoid feeding inadequately treated animal-source protein to cats and dogs.”
Nearly 91 percent of the association's delegates voted for the new policy during the organization’s convention in early August. Also at the meeting, the association provided a look at findings from its 2012 US Pet Ownership and Demographics Sourcebook, which will be made available in the fall. This survey of nearly 50,000 US households found that US pet ownership decreased by 2.4 percent from 2006-11, while pet spending increased. The average expenditure per dog was US$227 in 2011, up from US$200 in 2006. Expenditures per cat increased from US$81 to US$90.
Selecting the right pet food is important for maintaining a pet's health and with so many choices, it can be difficult to determine what type of pet food may be best, which is why one veterinarian is blogging about her experience switching her dogs to a raw pet food diet. Dr. Amy Nesselrodt is chronicling her experience in switching her dogs to Answers Pet Food raw diet for one year, monitoring the dogs' health and weight before, during and after the switch.
Nesselrodt says she will be brutally honest in her findings, so that other pet owners may become more educated on feeding their pet a raw food or kibble diet. She says that much controversy exists in the debate over what is really good for dogs and cats to consume, raising questions about the nutritional balance of raw petfood, whether pets are really meant to eat commercially processed cooked foods, whether ingredients like grains and potatoes are actually meant for pets to eat and if raw diets put pets at a greater risk for bacteria consumption.
Nesslerodt's experience and results from her raw pet food challenge can be viewed on her online blog.
Now this was unexpected. According to an article in USA Today, wildlife officials in Florida say recent trends in petfoods have spurred an illegal internet business hawking wild game.
Citing the "prey model" pet diet, Florida Today writer Jim Waymer quotes Lieutenant George Wilson, head of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Internet Crimes Unit: "The philosophy behind it is feeding your pet a hormone-free, naturally grazed diet. We're seeing solicitations for wild ducks, anything wild." Wilson said his unit has arrested 177 people and issued 92 warnings to date for the illegal buying or selling of raw wildlife, and he claims some of those people were making purchases for their pets.
The article also says pet owners are posting queries on sites such as Craigslist and eBay, saying they are seeking animals such as squirrels, pheasant, rabbits, geese, ducks, chickens -- "just about any game to feed their cats and dogs," Waymer writes. "Some seek raw fish, meaty bones and organs such as hearts, livers and kidneys -- everything a growing carnivore needs."
Neither Wilson nor Waymer make a direct, specific link to growing commercial (and legal!) petfood categories such as raw and "wild." The latter typically features low or no grains and higher levels of meat (often fresh meat). But the writer does refer to the 2007 melamine-related petfood recalls, saying "going raw may have gotten a boost" from that situation.
Other than the numbers provided by Wilson, Waymer doesn't cite any data for how prevalent this practice is. Have you heard of it happening anywhere besides Florida, or have you seen such solicitations online? Do you see any link between the commercial raw and wild pet diets increasingly available in pet stores and other retail outlets, and these illegal sales of wild game?
The Minnesota state veterinary board has issued an order to Will Winter, a formerly licensed veterinarian, stating the man must cease describing himself as a vet, according to a Minnesota Star Tribune article. Winter, who calls himself a holistic veterinarian and runs Restoration Raw Pet Food, had his license to practice veterinarian medicine suspended 11 years ago after complaints.
Earlier this year, the board issued a cease-and-desist order against Winter since he had not ceased to refer to himself as a veterinarian.
"... his website claims that 'over the past 20 years of his holistic veterinary practice our staff veterinarian, Will Winter, has observed and effectively treated his client's pets with a natural diet of raw meat and greens,'" said the board's order.
Although Winter can use the academic designation of DVM after his name, he must be state licensed to describe to himself as a veterinarian.
The board's order happened weeks after an ongoing Minnesota Department of Agriculture investigation shut down Traditional Foods Minnesota, which Winter co-founded.
The Landfill Diversions Program partnered with three Portland, Oregon, USA, Walmart stores in an effort to use unwanted grocery store food as petfood for rescued animals, according to an article from Fox News Oregon.
The program collects expired turkey, chicken, beef and pork from stores that would otherwise throw the meats out. The food is distributed from the northeast Portland home of Virginia Dunn, director of the group Northwest Working Dogs. According to Dunn, any pet owner who wants to feed animals raw food is eligible for the program.
"The US Department of Agriculture says literally billions of pounds of meat go in the landfill every year and it could be diverted and used for animal feed, which is obviously much healthier for dogs," Dunn said.
Despite the popularity of raw petfood diets, many vets are not comfortable recommending a raw food diet to their clients, according to NY Daily News.
Veterinarian Philip Raclyn's concerns about raw diets include the risk of contamination from Salmonella, E. coli and other bacteria, not to mention potential dietary imbalances and internal injuries from sharp bones.
Bravo! published "Bravo! Beginnings: Raw Diets for Cats," an 18-page informational booklet on feeding raw written specifically for cat owners.
The company published the feline-specific follow-up to its "Bravo! Beginnings" series to address the nutritional needs of cats and the process for transitioning cats to a raw diet.
“Since education is a key part of our process, we felt we needed a booklet that would address more specifically the nutritional needs of cats and the significance a raw diet can have on their health and well-being,” said David Bogner, Bravo! owner and co-founder.
The Canadian Veterinary Medical Association and Public Health Agency of Canada have issued a statement warning pet owners of the potential health risks raw food could pose to their pets, according to a news report.
“Careful handling while cleaning and storing the food is most important. People in households with seniors or very young children need to be particularly careful,” said veterinarian Wanda Vockeroth.
