Raw Pet Food Diets: Healthy alternative or Dangerous?

Raw pet food diets are the newest fad. People are touting the benefits to their pets because raw is what wolves ate in the wild.  Buts its not exactly what they ate. Wolves would eat freshly killed animals. And they would eat the skin, internal organs, muscle, bones, etc which provided an array of nutrients. Raw food of today you get mostly muscle meat and not the rest of the animal so these diets are often deficient in nutrients and can cause a calcium phosphorus imbalance. The meat also was processed many miles away, mixed with other animals and contaminated with bacteria. As the time passes between slaughter and consumption there is more bacterial growth. Plus we live in an age of stronger bacteria from all of the antibiotic use over the years. So a dog doesn’t get quite the same as what a wild wolf would have ingested.

There are also dangerous salmonella and listeria bacteria that can cause illness to not only your pet but to your family as well. Young children,the elderly, and immunocompromised people are at risk. Food handling at home can be a source of contamination. Even if pets don’t get sick they can become subclinical carriers and harbor these harmful bacteria and infect human housemates. Studies by the FDA illustrate the level of contamination of raw pet foods. Think twice before feeding raw.

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