By Dr Krista Halling
After learning of a heartbreaking story this week of a cat who contracted fatal avian flu (H5N1) from eating a turkey-based raw cat food, as a veterinarian, I wanted to reemphasize the concerns of feeding a raw meat diet to pets. While this tragic event involved a cat, the concerns apply to dogs as well.
In short, there are no evidence-based health advantages to feeding a raw or frozen-raw meat diet, and the disadvantages are substantial: bacteria, parasites and viruses in the food source have not been killed. This can expose our pets to live infectious disease agents, result in them becoming very ill from the microorganisms (as occurred to the above cat), or cause them to shed harmful intestinal bacteria into our immediate environment via their stool (which poses a greater concern if any children or elderly people are in the house). These are all the same reasons that we as humans are cautioned against eating raw meat or using the same cutting board for raw chicken and salad.
Here are two science-backed articles for a deeper dive on dog food: one is on raw meat diets and the other is on how to read dog food packaging and not get fooled by marketing words:
The Healthy and Safety Concerns of Raw Dog Food: What Every Dog Owner Should Know
How to Read Packaging and Choose Your Dog’s Dry Kibble
Regardless of your choice of diet for your own dog, we just want you to be able to come to your decision from an educated place. Please forward this article to any dog-owning friends or family who might benefit from this information. 🐶💕
About the author
Krista Halling is a veterinarian board-certified with the American College of Veterinary Surgeons and co-founder of Dogpacking.com. She is certified in canine rehabilitation and has a strong interest in the merits of outdoor activities on the human-dog bond. Krista enjoys adventuring and travelling with her sidekick mini goldendoodle, River.
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