Isn't raw food a source of disease?

[taty caty]

Hello,

Is it safe for an indoor cat to eat raw food? I know cats in the wild do that, this is their "default" food.

But having a cat indoors, won't raw food bring bacteria and ilnesses to the cat that it can transfer to humans?

And do cats on raw food need de-worming?

Thank you.

 

[vball91]

As long as you are not feeding animal guts, cats fed raw meat will not need deworming. In the US, meat supplies are pretty safe from parasite concerns. Bacteria such as salmonella can be a slight concern to the human, so safe handling procedures should ALWAYS be used when handling raw meat. However, there have been many bacterial contamination cases from raw vegetables as well. In addition, human salmonella cases have been reported in over a hundred cases where dry kibble was the culprit. To date there have been no reported cases of a human getting salmonella contamination from feeding their cats raw meat. Healthy cats can shed salmonella in their feces, so proper washing after handling litter is also a good idea whether your cat is fed raw or not.

And if bacteria is your main concern with feeding raw, there are commercial raw foods that are high pressure pasteurized to ensure it is bacteria free.

If you would like to read more about feeding raw, there is a lot of great information here:
http://www.thecatsite.com/t/264154/raw-feeding-resources

 

[furmonster mom]

This is a pretty common question, so I just want to re-assure....

My cats are indoor only, except for one that goes out on the back patio for a few minutes a day.

I've been feeding a raw food diet for nearly 7 years now. 

No problems as far as bacteria or contamination goes.

I handle their raw meats the same way I would handle steaks or chicken for myself. 

I have specific knives and cutting boards for meat only, and wash everything after each use (that's twice a day).

I also find myself rinsing my hands frequently while handling the meats, and finishing up with a good soapy wash at the end.

These are habits that I actually developed while working in the restaurant and houscleaning industries, looooong before I began feeding a raw diet. 

 

[stephanie42]

great answers already!  the biggest concern when handing raw food is for humans!  cat's digestive tracts can handle types of bacteria that may affect us differently.  feeding the guts (stomach, intestines, etc) of another animal raw may be less than safe for your cats.  as long as you use proper safety procedures for preparing and cleaning up after meal time, everyone should be fine.

there are other options too - you could partially cook some or all of the meat.  yes, many of the enzymes are lost but you would still be in control of everything your cat is eating.  you could also turn to commercially prepared raw foods.  freeze dried raw foods like from stella & chewy's go through a special process to improve safety (http://www.stellaandchewys.com/safety.php).  and nature's variety has frozen raw food that you just thaw and serve - they also use a special process to make their food safe (http://www.naturesvariety.com/learning/questions/5).  i have an immune disorder and am on immunosuppresive drugs and contacted both companies with questions.  i have had no issues feeding anything from stella & chewy's or nature's variety.

 

[tammyp]

We feed raw - it's the same as making your own meal in terms of handling/cutting raw meat hygiene wise.  People also immuno-suppressed in our home, but no issues whatsoever with our homemade raw.

As for the cats, ensure the meat is fresh, don't use anything pre-cut (strips for example) or ground as this increases the surface area for bacteria, and the places that grind are not concerned with cleanliness as the humans will cook anything out...but as we will feed it raw, then we should do any cutting or grinding ourselves to control  cleanliness.  Always feed human quality meat/organs/bones.  If you are in a country affected by mad cow's disease, then you probably don't want to feed (or eat yourselves) brains or eyes.  We also prepare 2weeks of food tubs at a time and freeze - freezing for 3 days with kill off any parasites (if there are any in Australian standard food - standards are high), so there is no worries about worms.  And that's pretty much it!  Very safe, and the most healthy type of food you can ever feed a feline.

 

[tammyp]

PS.  As a matter of health for our cats, we use a flea treatment that also covers ticks and worms - has nothing to do with their diet, but preventative good health.  Ours go outside for 1 hr a day on a supervised walk.

 

[autumnrose74]

Healthy cats can shed salmonella in their feces

And when you consider that they all lick their behinds afterwards... when you think about it the fuss over salmonella is rather overblown IMO. Use the freshest cuts available, and follow safe-handling practices, and there should be no risk to anyone, human or cat.

The very first time I watched one of Mercola.com's videos with Dr. Karen Becker talking about the concerns over raw-fed pets I learned, because she mentions, that cats have salmonella in their gut flora. So now when I read or hear hand-wringing over the subject I just SMH.

 

[taty caty]

Wow, that was instructive. Thank you guys.

I've always felt that cats should eat raw because that's how they do it in the wild, don't don't cook their preys.

But I was always concerned about our safety because my cat in an indoor one.

Just wondering:

1. Can I feed by cat raw chicken with the bones? My vet advised me against feeding cooked bones.

2. What temperature should the food be?

I mean If I get a chicken thigh from my freezer, what's next?

Do I defrost it in the microwave and serve it? Or put it in the fridge for a few hours or what?

Thank you all.

 

[tammyp]

1.  Yes, you can feed raw with bones - it's important for the calcium (unless you use an alternative calcium source).  Make sure you understand what a 'balanced' diet is...you can't just feed chicken (check the raw feeding area for more info).  But to answer your q, yes, raw bones are fine.  Chicken, quail, and rabbit all have smaller, softer bones - don't expect a cat to get through the bone of a turkey thigh bone or leg of lamb!  To help transition our cat, we cut chicken necks up into smaller chunks, as they didn't quite 'get' what to do with a whole neck.  But they are now perfectly happy with a 1/14th chunk of rabbit.

2. Defrost in the fridge.  I put my frozen meals in the fridge at bedtime, and they are good for the next day.  In terms of what the CAT likes, many like their meals 'mouse temperature', so at serving time, you can do a little warm-up.  If you do in a microwave, it is like 8 secs, or a lower temp, as you don't want the edge pieces to start to cook (kinda depends on quantity).  Others put in a plastic baggie and plop into warm water to warm it best.

 

[roguethecat]

your vet is right - stay away from cooked bones. They are brittle, can break and do all sorts of danger. Raw bones are quite another thing! You want to listen to the cracking sound of Cat breaking a mouse's skull... it will help cleanse teeth. As I found out the hard way, if you can cut a bone with kitchen scissors, it's ok for cats to eat (so things like beef bones are no good). I personally don't trust my microwave for fear of accidentally cooking any bones (or destroying some nutrients), so I thaw in the fridge the day before or on the kitchen counter if it can wait a couple hours.

Since I started raw feeding I'm having fun running into all those odd butcher shops looking for offal 

 although I haven't been been brave enough to ask the butcher types if they happen to have testicles, any kind

 

[ritz]

You can get interesting organs at many international supermarkets; I've seen testicles at one store. But haven't had the nerve to buy them.
And tongue, very tough to cheew but Ritz liked it well enough.
Your local farmer's market might also carry unusual organs, but note that some states/cities/etc. may prohibit the selling of the more unusual organs. For example, I can *buy* chicken heads and chicken feet at my local farmer's market, but can only "donate" some money for a bags worth of chicken lungs or a carton of other organs. The vendor feeds her cat raw and she butchers her own chickens so she knows where I'm coming from. Though I do get some weird looks from other people when I ask the vendor if she has any lungs!

 

[taty caty]

Thank you everyone.