Simple fact is, if you cook it properly, it kills most, if not all, of harmful bacteria and parasites.

To quote our vet, she is seeing a marked rise in intestine parasite infections, including a recent case of hookworm and several cases of illness that she attributes to raw feeding including two deaths from salmonella.

She believes that raw feeding is bad (M'kay) when I think of all the many dogs that frequent the field that we excercise our dogs in, as well as all the children that use same said field then I shudder to think what maybe lurking thereon, and there is no doubt in my mind that some raw feeders are passing on their 'fad' in the form of parasites and infections that could be avoided

The OP was linked to highlighting some of the dangers of feeding a raw diet, its a fad which to date has not really been substantiated as being actually good for your dog and may well prove to be actually harmful in the long term, further more it may well be putting the owners and their families at risk as well as other people and pets. I think its only the tip of the iceberg and it may very well follow that this trend could result in some major outbreaks in the future of avoidable disease.

Whilst kibble is probably not the best thing for your dog it surely must be safer for all concerned.

There are many questions that remain unanswered, one that spring to mind is why do cats not shave?

Cos 9/10 cats prefer whiskas.

salmonella is present in kibble and kibble fed dogs **** too. Sorry but I like to go by facts not just loose opinions...can your vet prove her assumptions?

Anyone raw feeding can choose to worm their dog if they feel it a problem.

Yes there are dangers...but things happen to dogs no matter what they are fed on...What made my dog sick when she had never had raw food before then?...No one was blamming that on 'dog food' why should we do the same with raw feeding?

I'm sure if Keena had of gotten so sick but while she was on raw food (instead of 'dog food') people could have told me she nearly died because of raw meat but the same people wouldn't probably even think to mention her diet when she was on 'dog food'. Then it must have been something else huh?...Maybe just that I was thinking about one day switching to raw did it?

But go back and take a look at the picture I included. That happened while being fed kibble and nothing else so **** sometimes just happens. If I posted that pic and said I was feeding raw at the time I bet I could put countless people off feeding raw or thinking it was a good thing, so why not the other way round? because I choose not to!

People just need to stop scaremongering...I don't do it about 'dog food' yet plenty of dogs get sick when they eat nothing else. Dogs just sometimes get sick - it happens.

Funny what suits some dogs eh, I feed Eukanuba to the pups but when they have done the bulk of there growing I change them to DJ now, my lot thrive on it, some folk have had terrible results though, there coats are gleaming, they have enough energy without being fizzy. that said they do get cooked meat and whatever else, rotts are kinda garbage disposal experts, lol, meat alone would not fill my lot, they do seem more content with a bulking agent (DJ) I dont know what I would class the way I feed as, its not barf but has around 40% barf( but the raw is cooked) so more bacf lol, 50% bulk meal, and 10% utter rubish oh and treats, lol, cheese, hot dogs and rubbish,

this is a very valid point, one I have thought of in the past, artic breeds (correct me if im wrong) are able to turn small amounts of food into vast amounts of energy, eg throw a mal a fish and it will pull a sled all day, throw a rotty a fish and he will look for the second one, lol,

You make to many assumptions. One dog might do well on this another might do much better on that. My dogs had upset tummies every week on 'dog food'. When Keena was a pup we were in and out the vets. What would your vets say about that?

We came home with lots of prescription foods and not much else. I just figured this wasn't the answer and went my own way...I'm glad. I would have been broke the rate things were going. Takoda constantly had gas and generally smelt from his rear end, they never once had a proper **** and the amount they were producing as waste was . Reverse all those statments and that is what we have now I'm pleased and guess I will have to take the risks involved.

Lots of dogs will be happy on different amounts...Your rottie probably wouldn't eat much different than my NI but a good point is that because they get so much more out of being raw fed what you are feeding is utilized where as on commercial dog food so much goes to waste and that is with any type of breed.

Anyway this isn't a raw food V other food debate?

Can bacteria make raw fed dogs sick? yep...just as it can with 'dog food' fed dogs.

I don't know of any diet research to back this up Mys. As I'm sure you know, most of the diet trials are conducted by the big dog food companies. I'm sure we would have heard if there was anything.

It's just something I've noticed in my own dogs and heard a lot of on forums, that coat quality suffers if cereal percentage is reduced too much. And no, not saying this is across the board. some of the Arctic breeds, Siberians for instance would probably have developed on a diet of raw fish and seal carcass and precious little else.

No scare mongering intended from here, generally sharing my experience with feeding raw, each to there own, I personally feel this situation with Kain could've been avoided if he were'nt being fed raw...I walk him where I always walked my Shar Pei, never had any probs with her, she was fed pedigree chum and small bite mixer. The only thing I have done different with Inka and Kain is to feed raw... and as I said unless the meat they were having is analysed proof that it was in the meat will be inconclusive...This said it does'nt change the fact that raw fed dogs are harder to treat for bacterial and parasitic infections, I have now witnessed this...I did get a scare, I thought I was gonna loose him over the weekend, so I am taking no more chances.

Yes Shona, I believe that's true.... but I don't know any more about it than you