Raw Diets & Bacterial Contamination

[Guest Willow]

I'm looking into changing my two dogs over to BARF, from commercial food, and I've ben flicking through some old threads...one thing that concerns me is that I read an article that said theat 30% of dogs fed on a raw diet exctreted salmonella bacteria in their faeces....

Is chicken riskier to feed than other raw meats?

Are you at increased risk of catching a bacterial infection if your dogs lick you (other than from the normal nasties that lurk in their mouths!!!) ????

Can you eliminate this risk by freezing the patties for a certain period of time?

Am I being paranoid & silly???

I'm a vegetarian, so I really don't have anthing to do with meat, if that explains why I seema bit of a thicky-thicky-thick-thick with these questions!!!

[Guest Tess32]

Personally I think you're being paranoid Thousands of dogs are on raw and would be licking their owner and if the risk was significant we'd have a lot of dead owners dropping like flies, hehe.

There is bacteria everywhere....if you have a healthy immune system it shouldn't matter anyway.

[Cavandra]

Yes Paranoia! LOL

Ive been feeding raw for over 10 years & I am still alive

The only dogs I know of that have suffered from such poisoning were from well known brands of canned food, losing multiple dogs

Dogs are carvivores plain & simple, they are meant to eat raw meat & bones, they thrive on it, shed less, dont get illnesses like commercially fed dogs get, they dont smell, have small chalky faeces, and they simply love it.

The only way your going to get salmonella poisoning is if you dont use basic hygeine methods of washing up utensils, chopping boards, food bowls etc.......that has nothing to do with the dog anyway as it is just basic common sense when feeding your human family too......

[Bubbly]

As long as no one is eating the dog poo does it really matter that there is salmonella in it all poo is full of bacteria anyhow.

In all seriousness though, there is bacteria everywhere, including all over kibble. Cavandra is right, there have been multiple food poisoning outbreaks that can be traced back to commercial food. If you practice safe meat handling skills you will be just fine

[Guest Willow]

As long as no one is eating the dog poo does it really matter that there is salmonella in it

Great, ruin all my fun why doncha?????

Thanks guys, makes perfect sense.....have also been chatting with Crysti_Lei, who is my nutrition guru, and she says I'm being a wally too, and explained some other stuff that I hadn't thought of before (like how raw is digested quicker, and how dogs stomach acids are different to our etc)

I'm a vet nurse, so we are pretty much indoctrinated that dry is the only way to go (and only a few select brands at that) so this is all a bit new to me........

I have a newly tightened budget for various reasons, so was looking for a really cost effective way to feed them the best I can.

[Nekhbet]

every dog will clean itself ... down there. So if not one bacteria then another.

If you store the meat properly and dont feed your dog spoiled food (which could make them sick anyway) then I dont see what there is to worry about.

[poodlefan]

Yep, sensible food storage and handling practices and regular hand washing should see you right - no matter what diet you feed.

Having seen what most dogs will willingly scavenge on walks, what they get from their bowls is nothing!

I have read about BARF feeders who bleach everything within an inch of its life after food prep but decent hygiene practices should keep your family and your pooches safe.

[stormie]

Once you change over, you'll never go back to commercial!!!

[Bully]

Dogs eat poo and all manner of disgusting things and lick their bums too. Why worry about a raw diet

Dogs have a much shorter digestive tract than humans for this reason

As others have mentioned sensible storage and washing of utensils and hands and there shouldn't be a problem.

I've been feeding BARF for about 13 years now.

Don't worry, jump in and feed your dogs a raw diet and they'll love you for it

[Crysti_Lei]

you might not want to know this Willow, but your poo probably has salmonella in it too! LOL

[Guest Willow]

you might not want to know this Willow, but your poo probably has salmonella in it too! LOL

luv ya crysti!

[Crysti_Lei]

you might not want to know this Willow, but your poo probably has salmonella in it too! LOL

luv ya crysti!

[greytdog]

Going a bit more general... I know my mother always pooh poohed people who were worried about catching things from their dogs (yes, I know it CAN happen, but how common is it really?). We've had dogs (and cats and cows and sheep and pigs and ducks and .... ) for years, and been licked, had contact with poo, wee, vomit etc etc etc. When I was a kid I used to hose out the cowyard in my bare feet in summer (nice and squishy!). Maybe it built up our immunity.

I know the only nasty that transferred btw the dog and myself as a child was a ringworm - and I gave it to the dog after catching it at school

[Jed]

Too easy -- don't let the dog lick your face. No licking allowed here. I'm not worried about their diet, I worry about the other things they do with their tongues!!

[StaceyB]

My vet told me that the only raw food I need to be careful with was Roo meat, but I can't remember the reason she gave... She said that raw chicken, beef & lamb was fine but to cook and roo meat.

Gypsy has never gotten sick from it and neither has any of my family or friends.

[Crysti_Lei]

My vet told me that the only raw food I need to be careful with was Roo meat, but I can't remember the reason she gave... She said that raw chicken, beef & lamb was fine but to cook and roo meat.

Gypsy has never gotten sick from it and neither has any of my family or friends.

That would be due to Hyditid Tape worm. while i know a little about this, i still have some huge blanks spots that don't really add up so i am hesitant to advise.

personally, with what i know, i feed raw roo, but only RMB (tails and back bone). never offal. and i worm my dogs regularly.

[Guest Willow]

Dogs can get hydatids from the offal of any type of infected animal. Grazing animals ingest the hydatid larvae/eggs from contaminated ground (ie where a carnivore with hydatids had pood) and they migrate to the organs & live there, causing huge cysts.

If you get roo meat (or any meat) from a quality place, you should be right. I would advise against getting your own stuff from the bush!!!

Offal for human consumption should also be fine, as abbatoirs check carcasses for evidence of hydatid cysts.

I beleve that technically hydatid cysts onl form i the organs, so muscle meat should be fine.

Cooking also kills them.

If you think your dog is at risk of hydatids, you need to worm every 6 weeks, not every three months too, because of the life cycle of the hydatid tapeworm. Not all wormers are effective against them so it's important to check the package.

We live in a rural spot, so my dogs get allwormed every three months, and a tapewormer every 6 weeks.

[Vixn00]

I know itsslightly of topic but I have been reading a few threads on the BARf diet and have a couple of questions to those in the know. does BARf mean Bones and raw food or Biscuits and raw food?

I have been feeding my pup on a puppy loaf and Supacoat dry since i got him and have been thinking of changing to raw meat but still mixing it with the supacoat. this being so cause i was alwasy told that the dry foods helps keep their teeth gums and jaw muscles healthy as they need to crunch and chew it.

Am I wrong in thinking this?

I already give him bones from on a semi regualr basis too. The only prob there so far is he tends to either dig to china burying them or insists on bringing them into the house

*edited cause i cant spell*

Edited September 7, 2008 by Sabre's Mum

[madredeperros]

BARF can either mean Bones And Raw Food or Biologically Appropriate Raw Food but means the same thing. If you decide to go with raw AND kibble, do not mix it together because they both are digested diferently.

With the raw diet, the chicken carcasses, knuckle bones, chicken wings, necks etc, help to clean the teeth & help jaws stay stong & dogs love them :wink:

[Crysti_Lei]

I have been feeding my pup on a puppy loaf and Supacoat dry since i got him and have been thinking of changing to raw meat but still mixing it with the supacoat. this being so cause i was alwasy told that the dry foods helps keep their teeth gums and jaw muscles healthy as they need to crunch and chew it.

Am I wrong in thinking this?

yep, wrong. dry foods have sugar in them, will cause tooth decay more then their chewing them with prevent it.

bones are far better for their tooth and jaw health.

and as CDM said, it is important not to ever mix Dry and raw in the same meal.