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Study finds raw pet food is NOT the risk FDA makes it to be

A new worldwide study of raw pet food opposes what FDA tries to tell pet owners.

A new worldwide study of raw pet food opposes what FDA tries to tell pet owners.

The FDA has – for years – told pet owners that raw pet food is dangerous.

Veterinary organizations have spoken out against raw pet food, some practicing veterinarians have refused to treat pets fed a raw diet.

So…a group of scientists in Finland decided to get to the bottom of all the raw pet food risk suspicions. Is raw pet food a human health risk? Do raw fed dogs and cats spread dangerous bacteria to their humans?

The scientists surveyed more than 16,000 pet owners worldwide, specifically pet owners that provided their pet with at least some raw pet food. Of 16,412 pet owners in 81 countries (most of the data from 11 countries) surveyed…

…there were only 39 reports of human illness linked to a raw pet food. That’s 0.2%.

Of the 39 pet owners that confirmed a human illness linked to raw pet food, only 3 of the 39 reported that laboratory analysis confirmed the same bacteria that caused human illness was in the pet food.

This quote of the study says it all:

The results indicate that foodborne pathogens are seldom transmitted to humans through raw pet food.

To read the full study Click Here.

The raw pet food risk study was sent to FDA, asking for a comment. Should the FDA respond, it will be shared.

Wishing you and your pet(s) the best,

Susan Thixton
Pet Food Safety Advocate
Author Buyer Beware, Co-Author Dinner PAWsible
TruthaboutPetFood.com
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13 Comments

13 Comments

  1. David Boothman

    September 10, 2019 at 11:14 am

    Interesting how easy it is to lead professionals into baloney science and have them adopt it and spread it.
    Now for something different, something the FDA and USDA should be confronting.
    The masses of habituated Canada Geese you see rapidly growing in numbers are an apprehended health threat. On average each bird deposits two pounds of feces daily in close proximity to people. The guts of these birds harbor the pathogens the FDA claims to be concerned about in raw pet food in the feces of these birds. Data indicates Pathogens, such as E-Coli, Listeria and Salmonella, are ubiquitous in the feces and recent studies indicate that a percentage of them have already acquired antibiotic resistance. so its little wonder with no effort to limit the habituated populations the contamination of growing feed-stuffs such as lettuce will become increasingly contaminated. Many farmers already describe the invasions of their land by plagues of “flying rats”, meanwhile the FDA is involved in an issue unsupported by the data, a hoax.

  2. thatzsatzPK Shader

    September 10, 2019 at 11:43 am

    Exactly what did everyone think we fed our dogs before the advent of the multibillion dollar kibble industry told us we must feed their garbage (which is a relatively new concept)? Incidentally, want to know what the original feeding instructions on kibble were? Put kibble in bowl. Mix with MEAT!

  3. markokopp

    September 10, 2019 at 1:13 pm

    Good for Finland!! All of us fresh food feeders knew this. How many people and dogs got salmanella from commercial pigs ears? Where was the FDA on protecting all of us from this scourge? Instead they focus on “dangerous fresh food” !!! The numbers from the Finnish study show how safe fresh food is for pets and their owners.. Also, It doesn’t take into account how the few “problem” foods were stored or where they were acquired (dead animals, etc). What was the process to confirm illnesses? Was it just self reported?

    Wonder how comfortable it is for the FDA to live in the pockets of Big Pet Food?

  4. vanityferret

    September 11, 2019 at 12:04 am

    As one who has fed raw meaty bones AND whole prey to my ferrets since 2006, have run a rescue for ferrets since 2006 and transitioned more than 60 ferrets to a raw diet; I have fed tens of thousands of raw meals to these ferrets and NEVER gotten sick!

    I use simple, common sense practices. Wash my hands before and after handling the raw meats and whole prey.I do NOT put my fingers in my mouth while cutting the meats! I wash the cutting boards and utensils every time they get used with soapy water and allow to air dry.

    I store my raw items in the fridge, not left out in a cupboard. I can smell if meat has gone off and choose not to feed it, although it would not harm the ferrets if they did eat it. Their systems are designed to handle carrion.

    What needs to be done to wake people up is swab a kibble bowl, the bag and kibble itself to reveal the dangerous bacteria living there! Sitting there where your kids play in it, where your pets scatter it about, where it sits for days and days and people simply add more kibble on top of old! Often the last thing people do before leaving for work is fill the pet bowl with kibble. They grab their keys and go. Stop and get breakfast on the run and never washed their hands! Same thing coming home, they fill the pet bowl with kibble and begin fixing dinner and didn’t bother to wash their hands! They think because kibble is dry it is bacteria free.

    Feed your carnivores the forms of food they evolved to eat and they get healthy and stay healthy! Wash your own hands and you stay healthy too!

    • markokopp

      September 11, 2019 at 11:20 am

      Thank you for your insight and information

  5. watchdahaoles19Virginia Chapson

    September 11, 2019 at 5:22 am

    It would take a progressive country with the ability to think critically to have the confidence to do a survey like this!
    Hooray for Finland. I applaud you!

  6. Hannie

    September 11, 2019 at 7:01 pm

    I don’t think this comes as a surprise to anyone who has done any reading at all about the ingredients in kibble manufactured by the large pet food companies. How the FDA allows them to put that crap into a food meant for a living thing to consume just blows my mind……& to allow them to put pictures of all that healthy fresh food on the package, everything that is NOT contained in the food in the package…..oh please. Then they go after the manufacturers of raw food. What did wild dogs eat? Were they hanging around the corn & wheat fields for their meals or were they out looking for fresh raw meat? I wonder why somebody at the FDA hasn’t taken a stand against all the baloney they are throwing out there. I just wonder who they are in bed with……duh!

  7. Silverwynde

    September 11, 2019 at 8:03 pm

    Uh, that’s a survey, not a study.

    • Susan Thixton

      September 12, 2019 at 10:52 am

      Quoting the document: “The purpose of this study was…”

    • markokopp

      September 12, 2019 at 11:31 pm

      Silverwynde, are you saying that the results of the study are not to be believed? Is this the only way you can find to discredit the study? No facts, just symantics?

  8. Jacquelline Marshall

    September 13, 2019 at 1:13 pm

    Is there a similar tally of pathogens in kibble?

    • vanityferret

      September 15, 2019 at 12:10 am

      Just google search ” CDC bacteria kibble dry pet food”

      You will find salmonella infections from 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2018 2019 and more.

  9. Keith Mosley

    September 24, 2019 at 6:09 pm

    My rule of thumb has always been if the FDA says it’s good, then it’s probably bad, and vice versa.

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