A warning

Mugi · A warning

I know some of you raw feed - at least a portion of their dogs diet and I feel the need to share Laughing

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I do raw feed although now I have 5 I tend to mix raw and commercial so the guys have a canned food for one meal and chicken wings or similar RMB's for the other (storage issues have dictated this as much as anything). I won't be changing as I have one dog that won't eat kibble (to the point of literally starving himself and having veterinary intervention), one that is allergic to rice and wheat and I can't be doing with mixing how I feed too much - this is not about the health of my dogs but ironically it is about me.

As some of you know I have been unwell now for well over a week - it started with fever, became a very dodgy stomach and that is how things stayed...........what went in came out PDQ and eating has not been high on my priority list. Now I have dropped a dress size in under a fortnight but this is a drastic way of doing things!!

My GP sent speicmens off for testing and I was phoned with the results today.............I have Campylobacter which can be a nasty stomach issue. as it is in my case. Tomorrow I start treatment and within a week or so of some pretty strong antibiotics I will be fine.

Now Campylobacter most commonly comes from poultry and so the mostly likely cause is that I have got it from handling raw chicken wings for the guys. None of the dogs have any form of problem but still this is most likely - I have always been careful with kitchen and hand hygiene when handling the meat but from now on I will be even more careful.

So if you do feed raw in any form make sure you are careful and look after yourself.

sallie

Hi Sue,

Sorry to hear you are ill... if you are on shoots etc, this campylobacter is carried in the droppings of birds too. Take some of that alcohol gel with you and when you handle a bird use it. Sound advice that was given to me years ago when i first started beating and shooting. You'll be surprised how much dropping residue is attached to a shot bird.

Hope that you get well soon, Sallie x

Mugi

Fair point Sallie - could be that as well.

The Plum

Very sorry to read you haven't been well Sue. I knew birds can carry various bugs but I've never heard of that one in more than 40 years of handling pheasants and many other species of birds. I never take any precautions at all and commonly eat my lunch with my hands covered in goodness knows what !!!

Get well and enjoy yourself.

Bill T.

doganjo

Like Bill I can be a bit careless too - I guess we all think 'it can't happen to me' don't we? However, forewarned is etc so I will take more care now - I have the special hand gel too - just hadn't used it - and I should know better as Sandy(Donald and Sarah's Dad) was a bacteriologist - I lived and breathed aseptic for about 25 years.
One of Sandy's tricks was to wipe a finger along a cupboard door when he came in - it was automatic, he didn't even realise he was doing it, but boy, did it annoy me! On the last occasion a look of horror and amazement came over his face - "you've been speaking to my sister", and he doubled up laughing, full of apologies!!! On Sheila's instructions I had coated the top of the cupboard with syrup just as she had done with her husband Wink

So thanks fro the heads up Sue - I'll take more care when i come in from seeing to the poultry now.

Patricia

Sue, I hope you get well soon...Especially so near Xmas... Confused

We had covered this issue on another thread before. Because feeding chicken wings is not something I do or would consider ( though I give tripe and raw bones to my dogs) I queried it with a Nutritionist vet... who warned me because of salmonella and and other "nasties" in abbatoirs and obviously on poultry.
So it comes as to no surprise to me. Like Bill, my husband has been shooting all his life and has had no problems.
Maybe you will have to wear gloves before you handle bits of chickens...?

johnhod

Sorry to hear you're not well Sue. I'm one of those who blame lots of the illnessses we seem to suffer now on the sterile environments we seem to spend so much time in. We don't give our bodies the opportunity to develop immunity.

Like Bill, I'd dread to think what I've eaten, along with my sandwiched on a shoot day.

eddieh

I dread to think of the things that have ended up in my body as a result of the things I’ve done all my life since childhood! How I’ve survived to this age when we’ve only just been able to get little wipes to clean the toilet seat is absolutely beyond me Rolling Eyes

Seriously, I hope your treatment gets you feeling ok asap and in time to enjoy Christmas.

With regard to hygiene, even if you wash your hands and any food preparation surfaces and utensils, isn’t it the case that traces of any bacteria on food fed to dogs will be present on/in the dog’s mouth for some time after feeding. Just a thought. I know I don’t immediately wash any part of my hands, arms or face which has been licked by my dogs and I wouldn’t think any other sane person does either.

Again, get well soon and enjoy Christmas with your pack and whoever else you decide to share the time with santa

The Plum

gundoglover

I've been feeding raw for over 20 years in Australia and never had any problems. My heart goes out to you though with your stomach bug - I had food poisoning from a tortellini boscaiola once and thought I was going to die! Your experience is a caution to us all.

I tend to feed lamb necks, lamb flaps, veal brisket, pig trotters in the cooler months when the dogs need more energy for warmth and active winter sports. If I feed these through the summer, they can get a bit porky, so that's when I feed chicken (which has fewer calories for the same protein).

But I freeze the chicken first and they get it only partially thawed. This probably means that salmonella and other bugs don't get a chance to grow very much. And the dogs seem to enjoy their chicken popsicles at the end of a hot summer's day.

Victoria

oh Sue, my thoughts are with you...I have had that as well (truckstop salmon salad Western Australia) and it is a dreadful malady...it seemed to take ages to get back on top form again...take care, free fluids!!!!