Raw Food Safety?

[dsue]

Hi Cat lovers! Question: Re: Safety: It makes sense to feed raw food, am considering it, but what about parasites or any dangers to humans? I understand the meat should be frozen 3 days? Should organic chicken be ok? I read the wings clean teeth? I am new to this. Any comments or suggestions appreciated! Take care.

 

[ritz]

Welcome to The Raw Side

Here is an article about raw food and parasites and the like.  http://www.thecatsite.com/t/248317/raw-feeding-and-parasites-questions

And one about salmonella.  Did you know there have been more cases of salmonella illnesses  from kibble than from chicken.   http://feline-nutrition.org/nutrition/spooked-by-salmonella-raw-food

Here is a link to an article about how pet food (not raw) causes illnesses.

http://www.mousabilities.com/nutrition/research.html

And unless you hunt your own meat, then you don't have to worry about freezing meat for three days.

Chicken wings do a  good job of cleaning teeth, as so any small bones.  Bones should ALWAYS ALWAYS be fed raw.

There are a lot more articles in the stickies at the top of the Raw & Home Cooked Cat Food forum.

 

[cprcheetah]

I have been feeding raw to my dogs for 3 years, my cats 2 weeks.  I am not the most hygienic about cleaning up after myself with the raw and my hubby and I both have what the doctors consider compromised immune systems because of all our ailments.  I have never contracted anything from feeding raw.  I usually don't freeze any of my meat unless it's wild game except for pork for a certain amount of time.  My chihuahua has regular fecals done and has never had any problems with parasites.  Dog and cats systems are designed to handle raw.

 

[peaches08]

I have been feeding raw to my dogs for 3 years, my cats 2 weeks.  I am not the most hygienic about cleaning up after myself with the raw and my hubby and I both have what the doctors consider compromised immune systems because of all our ailments.  I have never contracted anything from feeding raw.  I usually don't freeze any of my meat unless it's wild game except for pork for a certain amount of time.  My chihuahua has regular fecals done and has never had any problems with parasites.  Dog and cats systems are designed to handle raw.

I agree and very similar situation here!

My cats have been on homemade raw for 2 years now, I have lupus (SLE), and I'm in nursing school which means my house is a wreck and I am around heaven-knows-what for germs. Neither me nor my cats have had problems with their raw. But I can certainly understand why one would ask!

 

[burm guy]

Basically, the healthier the meat was raised, the less parasites and the lower the risk of contamination. Think cattle raised in those feedlots, tiny, badly cleaned, open wounds. No wonder the meat is frequently contaminated with all kinds of nasties. On the other end of the spectrum, your organic meats will have significantly less bad bacteria and parasites. If you can afford organic meats, then you should not really have to worry about contaminated meat. Rule of thumb for feeding raw - freeze all meat for about 1 week in the freezer at -17C. Avoid wild pig. For pork, freeze for around 3 weeks before preparing. For raw salmon, always cook it because freezing cannot kill these particular nasties.  When preparing raw, make sure you make the meals quickly, then freeze immediately for later serving.

 

[lindamh]

I've fed homemade raw food for 25+ yrs and can say I've never had a problem with parasites.  I do not freeze the meat, which comes from a local grocery store and is not organic, until I have made the food -- then I freeze part of the batches.  (I grind about 12lbs at a time.)  In terms of handling it, I used to be VERY careful with the food because I had heard all the horror stories about contamination and bacteria.  Over time, I got busier, I got more cats, and I got sloppy.  I now defrost the food over night in a cold oven, I clean plates once a week, and if I drop a piece on the floor, I would put it in the food, but usually a cat has already eaten it.  Maybe I'm to cavalier about meat-handling, but then again I have never had a raw food problem.

Now, the one case of food poisoning I have had in a cat came from a canned food.