Raw meat feeding revisited: what are the risks and benefits of raw diets for dogs?
Feeding raw meat diets to dogs is a very controversial issue. Some proponents passionately advocate these diets (e.g. the BARF diet) based on vague and unproven recommendations. Opponents cite various studies showing that pets fed raw meat (not surprisingly) have high carriage rates of potentially harmful bacteria such as Salmonella, and reports of diarrhea or nutritional imbalances in these animals. However, there have been only a few good studies looking at the true health benefits and risks of feeding these diets to dogs.
A recent study in the journal Zoonoses and Public Health described the risks of therapy dogs shedding Salmonella and other potentially harmful bacteria. The authors tested 200 dogs over a 1 year period, 20% of which were fed raw meat as part of their normal diet. Dogs fed raw meat were 23 times more likely to shed Salmonella compared to other dogs. They were also 17 times as likely to be shedding extended spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL) Escherichia coli (a highly drug-resistant form of E. coli).
The study concluded that, because of the risk of Salmonella shedding and the high-risk nature of the patients and other people that therapy dogs interact with, dogs that are involved with hospital/patient visitation programs should not be fed raw meat.
What does this tell us about feeding raw meat to pets?
Although this study doesn't answer all of the questions about the risks of raw meat diets, it reinforces the fact that pets fed raw meat have significantly higher rates of shedding of potentially harmful bacterial such as Salmonella and antibiotic-resistant E. coli. Eating pig ear treats has also been associated with Salmonella shedding. However, there was no association between a dog being fed raw meat and the animal itself developing diarrhea. In fact, raw-fed dogs had a lower incidence of extra-intestinal infections (combination of eye, ear, skin and urinary tract infections).
In general, raw meat diets should be avoided. While adverse health effects were not reported in this study, disease (including deaths) from Salmonella has been reported in dogs in other studies. While the overall risk may be low, feeding raw meat is an avoidable risk. However, it would be inappropriate to completely ignore the finding that raw-fed dogs had lower rates of certain infections. It is possible that there can be health benefits from feeding raw meat in certain dogs, but the potential benefits must be weighed against the potential risks to the animals and people with which the has contact. Raw meat diets should never be fed to pets that have contact with immunocompromised people (in the household or as part of visitation program), infants or the elderly.
If you are going to feed raw meat to your pet, make sure you take precautions to reduce the risk of infecting yourself or someone else. We'll post more on that aspect soon.
Coroner blames cat in owner's death from E. coli
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The inquest was told that there were three main possible sources of E. coli: food, travel and animals. The coroner determined that the owner most likely acquired E. coli from handling the cat or cleaning its litter box.There is no indication why this conclusion was reached, and it seems to be a rather strange conclusion based on the reported information. There is no reported evidence that the same strain of E. coli was even present in the cat. I suspect that they are blaming the cat because there is no other obvious source (e.g. an identified foodborne outbreak of E. coli). I doubt the cat played any role in this person's illness.
The risk of contracting E. coli from contact with a cat is very low. However, common sense should be used when handling cats and particularly cat stool. The most important measures are avoiding contact with stool and appropriate hand washing after handling a cat or its litter. More information about litter box management is available on the Worms & Germs Resources page.
E. coli and dogs
While E. coli can be a serious problem in people and some animals, it is usually not a major problem in dogs. E. coli can cause diarrhea in dogs - it is most often linked to a disease called granulomatous colitis that is classically found in Boxer dogs. However, it is not a common cause of disease nor is it often associated with hemolytic-uremic syndrome in dogs. The O157:H7 strain of E. coli is rarely found in dogs, although transmission to people from the small number of dogs it has been found in has been reported. Almost all of the dogs that were found to be carrying E. coli O157:H7 were from farms, where they were probably exposed to the bacteria by eating cattle manure. The risk of transmission of E. coli O157:H7 from dogs to humans is very low.
- Even though E. coli O157:H7 is very rare in dogs, a number of other kinds of bacteria that can infect people can be present in the stool of both diarrheic and healthy dogs.
- All dog stool should be considered potentially infectious. Avoid contact with dog stool, and always wash your hands thoroughly if you have direct or indirect contact with dog stool.
- Because E. coli O157:H7 can be found in raw meat, it is reasonable to suspect feeding raw meat to a dog may increase the risk that it will have E. coli O157:H7 in its stool.
- The most important things you can do to avoid E. coli O157:H7 are:
- Handle raw meat properly to avoid contamination of other foods and surfaces.
- Make sure you cook meat at an appropriate temperature and for an adequate amount of time.
- Handle raw meat properly to avoid contamination of other foods and surfaces.
Dog stool and garbage
For approximately 20 years I have been involved in waste collection for the Parks Division. A considerable amount of the waste which I collect on a daily basis is dog excrement. This is usually, but not always contained in a plastic bag and thrown into a large garbage barrel which I man-handle and dump in a waste truck. Years ago I contacted the local Health Unit and asked if there was any special health risks associated with this job. They advised me at that time the main danger to health would be with E.coli contamination. I use neoprene gloves while carrying out my duties and of course try to ensure that I do not come in contact with any debris. This is not always possible.
There are 3 main risks with handling dog stool: exposure to bacteria that cause diarrhea, exposure to intestinal parasites and infection of wounds.
Various bacteria that can cause diarrhea can be present in dog stool. These include Salmonella and Campylobacter. E. coli is not a major concern because strains found in dogs are not typically those that cause disease in people. A few intestinal parasites are also of concern, including Giardia and roundworms. The risk of exposure to these is hard to say because you don't know anything about the health status of the dogs, but it's wise to treat all stool as infectious. However, for these to cause disease, they must go from the garbage and into your mouth. The risk of this should be minimal with basic common-sense precautions.
A large number of bacteria present in stool can cause infections of wounds like cuts and scratches, or other skin lesions such as eczema. Direct contact of these lesions with stool would be required to cause infection. The risks of this can also be greatly reduced with basic preventative measures.
Some basic precautions (many of which you are doing) include:
- Wear gloves when handling bags containing stool.
- Change your gloves if they become contaminated with stool.
- Have your gloves cleaned periodically, and whenever they become contaminated. Otherwise, use disposable gloves.
- Promptly wash or disinfect your hands if they become contaminated. Carrying an alcohol-based hand sanitizer in your truck would be useful.
- Wear coveralls or some other sort of outerwear that can be removed easily if contaminated. If your clothing becomes contaminated, change it (and wash your hands after).
- Wash your hands after removing your gloves (and especially before eating).
Overall, the risks to you should be very low.
