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Recently, there have been a number of recalls of popular commercial dog food because of contamination by Salmonella bacteria. The same thing happened in 2011, and occurs almost every year. Should this worry us?

I have to admit that on and off I have wondered about just how dangerous these bacteria in dog food are for our pets. After all, my dog, like most others, eats a variety of rather nasty and often contaminated or otherwise dangerous things - like socks, cell phones, oriental rugs, wild mushrooms (that could be poisonous), a variety of plants - and occasionally, poop. Luckily, it doesn't chew on gravel or rocks, as do a friend of mine's dogs. So what's a little contaminated food compared to all this? My guess is that risks would be much higher for indoor dogs who live protected existances and a more restricted exposure to bacteria on a daily basis.

What I do know is that pet owners, and particularly children, can become ill from Salmonella contaminated dog food. No, not eating it, but touching it and then, without washing their hands, touching their mouth or their own food. Pet treats are the riskiest in those terms. Remember this when feeding your pets.

Posted by TSF at 1:51 PM Labels: bacteria in food, contaminated dog food, dog food recalls, risks of pets for children, Salmonella bacteria



