Quote:
Originally Posted by yorkiemini  My pup and I are in and out of several hospitals due to my seeing patients there often. And, of course, the patients are delighted to see my pup, more so than to see me! However, I have noted that the a number of the hospitals are not allowing therapy dogs that are fed raw. This is due to the concerns that many of the patients are very ill and immune compromised and they feel they cannot risk any possible problems.
When I talk ed the the infection control folks they could not outnthere hands on any very solid research that would tip the scale in a significant way, but continue to fall back on the risk/benefit data they have.
I personally have not used raw diet. We travel so much and refrigeration etc. just is not realistic for use. |
The article I cited has a section that relates to the reason why animals fed raw food diets *might* be a danger to people with compromised immune systems. Evidently, there is limited data to suggest that dogs fed raw diets are more likely to shed Salmonella in their stool than dogs fed commercial diets. I'll quote the whole section of the article below, and put the relevant section in bold type. (This article also notes that there used to be problems with Salmonella contamination of dry foods, but the dry food industry is improving over time.)
"This study showed that raw pet foods and jerky-type treats may harbor food safety pathogens, such as
L. monocytogenes,
Salmonella, and non-O157 STECs, and consumers should take appropriate precautions when handling these products. Numerous cases of human salmonellosis have been linked to contaminated dry dog and cat foods. From 2006 to 2008, an outbreak of
Salmonella Schwarzengrund, which included 79 illnesses over 21 states, resulted in the recall of 105 brands of dry pet food and the permanent closure of the manufacturing plant (Behravesh
et al., 2010). In 2012, there was an outbreak of human
Salmonella enterica serotype Infantis infections related to exposure to dry dog food (CDC,
2012; Imanishi
et al., 2014). With the dog and cat population in the United States estimated at 65 million and 78 million animals, respectively, according to the 2002 American Pet Product Manufacturers Association National Pet Survey (Finley
et al., 2006), a significant human population is exposed to pet food and treats. Surveys, between 2002 and 2009, for the presence of
Salmonella in animal feeds, feed ingredients, pet foods, treats, and supplements showed that
Salmonella prevalence decreased (especially in feed ingredients and pet foods and treats); however, outbreaks continue (Li
et al., 2012). Our study supports the conclusion that
Salmonella prevalence in dry feeds has decreased, since we found only one
Salmonella positive out of 480 dry and semimoist cat and dog food samples tested. Pet owners still need to take appropriate hygiene precautions, such as thorough hand washing, after handling pet food and treats.
In recent years, various groups have advocated feeding raw food diets to companion animals. This practice poses health risks to both animals and owners.
A limited study, completed in Canada, showed that dogs fed a BARF (bones and raw food) diet were more likely to shed Salmonella in their stool than dogs fed commercial diets (Joffe and Schlesinger, 2002). There is an increasing trend of feeding raw meat diets in the United States, and these raw diets pose a risk to pet owners due to an increased risk of bacterial contamination from handling these products (Freeman and Michel,
2001). The results from our investigation show that these raw pet food products can contain pathogenic bacteria. In 2011, a study in California evaluated raw horsemeat diets in zoo settings and screened for
Salmonella and E
. coli, but not
Listeria (Singleton
et al., 2012). This study found one sample positive for
Salmonella out of 54 samples that were screened using a sandwich ELISA test. The data show fewer positives than previous studies from zoos, which reported up to 60% positive findings for raw diets (Richter and al-Sheddy,
1990; Singleton
et al., 2012). The Singleton study tested a small number of samples (54) and did not use standard microbial culture methods, which may have resulted in underreporting of positives from the raw meat diet. Our study used standard culture methods, tested more samples, and screened for a wider range of bacteria, including
Listeria. We found that the raw pet food products could be contaminated with either
Salmonella,
Listeria monocytogenes, or both pathogens.
Ours is the first report of
Listeria monocytogenes contamination of commercial pet foods. There is one case report of an abortion in a dog consuming a raw food diet, although the source of the infection was not confirmed (LeJeune and Hancock,
2001).
L. monocytogenes was isolated from dog and cat fecal samples in a study that looked at the occurrence of the pathogen in domestic and companion animals (Weber
et al., 1995). Thus, dogs and cats harbor, and sometimes can be adversely affected by, this pathogen. Due to the serious health consequences of
L. monocytogenes infections, especially in pregnant women (Mylonakis
et al., 2002; Jackson
et al., 2010), it is important for veterinarians, public health experts, and consumers to be made aware of the potential presence of
L. monocytogenes in raw pet foods. Owners who decide to feed these products should take strict precautions to avoid infection by thoroughly washing hands and disinfecting all surfaces and objects that come in contact with raw pet foods. Public health experts also need to consider the potential for exposure from raw pet foods when trying to determine the source of an infection. Finally, producers of these products should take steps to reduce the potential for contamination with food safety pathogens."