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Ask the vet

Did you know

In Association with Vet Help Direct - an interactive website designed and run by qualified vets. Step-by-step questions help you to decide if you need to take your pet to the vets, and if so how urgently. If your dog isn't insured yet, find out what vets recommend you look into when choosing a policy. There is a directory of pet insurers so that you can then find the best policy for you and your dog. If you aren't already registered with a vet in your area there is a directory of local vet practices. Visit www.vethelpdirect.com

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Ask The Vet - Q&A Question Are raw chicken wings safe for my 3 Jack Russell Terriers to eat? Tina Brown - Essex, UK Answering questions: Susie Samuel MA VetMB MRCVS from Vet Help Direct Answer Hi Tina, Thanks very much for raising this issue. I meet many dog owners who have been advised to feed raw chicken to their pet. This is bad advice and can be dangerous for several reasons. Raw chicken can harbour harmful bacteria, particularly Salmonella. Unfortunately dogs can catch this, just like us humans. There are some alarming sites on the internet about feeding raw meat to dogs, with very misleading and incorrect information on them. These sites, not backed up by proper research, claim that Salmonella can not harm a healthy dog. This just not true. Dogs can catch Salmonella and it can make them very ill. Equally worryingly, dogs can sometimes excrete Salmonella in their faeces without showing any signs of illness. This means that an apparently healthy dog fed raw chicken could potentially infect humans with Salmonella, especially young children, old or ill people. Chicken bones are not safe for dogs to eat. Although some owners ‘get away with it’, chicken bones can cause life threatening damage to the stomach and intestines. This damage can happen in dogs that have been fed raw chicken bones for years with no previous problems. I have also seen chicken bones wedged in the roof of the mouth, requiring a general anaesthetic to remove them. Finally, chicken meat is not a balanced diet for a dog. It is possible to make a balanced home made diet incorporating cooked chicken but you need to get specialist advice on this. The reputable pet food companies do extensive research to get exactly the right nutritional balance. They have dieticians and vets to advise them and it is difficult to do a better job at home with a home made diet. If you would like to feed chicken to your dog cook it thoroughly first, just as though you were going to eat it yourself, and remove the bones. Kind regards, Susie Samuel MA VetMB MRCVS www.vethelpdirect.com  © D for Dog www.dfordog.com Back to Questions Previous Next   Only one question per week will be answered. Unanswered questions will be retained and may be selected at a later date at the vet's discretion. Disclaimer: 'Ask The Vet' is not intended to be used for as a substitute for visiting your vet. If your dog is showing any sign of poor health or discomfort please contact your own veterinary surgeon. If you are not sure how urgent the condition is use www.vethelpdirect.com to help you decide. Any opinions given in the answers to these questions are Ms Samuel's, they may not necessarily reflect the views of the veterinary profession in general or any other individual veterinary surgeon.   Joint Support for Dogs Nervous Support for Dogs Herbal Throat Syrup for Dogs

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