Hospital may not allow Daxter to become a therapy dog because he's fed raw.......
I don't even know where to begin with this..........okay, so I've been waiting since last October for my application to be approved so that I can take the next step towards Daxter become a therapy dog. He comes with me to work at least 2-3 times a week and is basically known as "the front-door greeter". He's always been extremely friendly and outgoing and absolutely LOVES people, so becoming a therapy dog was an easy decision for me to make. I've gone through all the processes and filled out all the paperwork. The next step was an introductory meeting and a Q & A with the directors of the program we were applying to. Everything started off great, they went through all of the requirements and made sure everyone was on the same page. Then they said something that I couldn't believe. Any dog that is fed a raw diet needs to discontinue it for 3 months prior to visiting patients........WHAT?! I was in shock... I wanted to argue with the director...sure, I understand their concern about dogs passing harmful bacteria and illness onto patients, but c'mon....how many dogs that eat kibble have been tested for harmful bacteria?..I listened the rest of the meeting to the director talking about different toothpastes and ear cleaners (things that a dog on a raw diet never need). I meant to talk to the director after the meeting ended, but never got a chance to, so the next day I sent her this email:
Hi Leonora.
I had a quick question about something you mentioned at the meeting last night. You mentioned that dogs that eat a raw diet need to stop immediately and cannot start visiting patients for 3 months after the fact. I didn't react to your statement because I was a bit surprised. I saw in the information booklet you gave us that it is only "highly recommended" that the dogs not be fed a raw diet. Daxter is fed raw. I wanted to let you know after the meeting last night, but everyone dispersed so quickly, i didn't get a chance to. When I first got Dax he was a very sick little guy. He had digestive problems, his skin and coat were in poor shape and he was very underweight. I tried every kibble/canned food under the sun to try and give him releif, especially from his allergy ridden skin, but I couldn't find anything that helped. I started him on numerous supplements and vet recommended medications, but nothing except massive doses of steroids seemed to help. When I started working at my current place of employment, I learned about the different types of commercial raw diets that we sell. I was always hesitant about feeding my dog raw meat. But then I started doing intense research and realized raw is the most natural way to feed a dog (or cat). As you said last night, "dogs are carnivores and thats how they've been fed for years"....or something like that (i'm paraphrasing a bit...haha). I decided as a last resort to try Dax on raw....I wish I started him on it sooner. He is completely healthy, and apart from his seasonal allergies, his skin is completely healthy and he's off all medication. I thought about it for a long time last night after the meeting, if I wanted to switch him back to kibble and risk having his previous illnesses come back, and I don't think I can do it. I understand the concerns you guys have about the bacteria and illnesses that can spread to people through raw meat, and I have the same concerns for my own home, which is why I do everything I can to ensure that he is completely clean after he eats his meals (wipe him down with a hot towel w/antibacterial soap). He also gets bathed at least once a week or so, especially if his allergies have been particularly bad. I know you all have probably heard this story before, and I understand if you guys have made it a rule to not allow dogs that eat raw meat to become therapy dogs, however, I feel like Daxter has a lot to give, and I'm hopeful that our application won't be reconsidered because of what he eats. I look forward to hearing from you, and hopefully I'll talk to you in person again soon. ~Samantha Day.
I'm hopeful that the email may at leat allow Daxter to be seen by the hospital's volunteer vet, who checks each dog's health and temperment prior to them doing any visits. I hope he will see how healthy he is and how I keep his hygeine above-average. I know Daxter would make a great therapy dog and hopefully the fact that he eats raw food won't hinder that in any way.........it's just a waiting game, now.
Has anyone else had issues with this? I know certain Therapy Dog Organizations don't allow raw fed dogs to become therapy dogs (aka- one program has someone that speaks for Purina on their board of directors- and i wonder why raw fed dogs aren't allowed?)
Comment
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Comment by Jane Christensen on April 16, 2011 at 9:36pm
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@ Beth...absolutely right Beth with the soap it's the scrubbing for at least 20 seconds and the friction that works and even other cleaners that kill all the germs...if your home has NO germs it is harder to fight off some of the germs you get elsewhere.
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Comment by Geri & Sidney on April 16, 2011 at 8:15pm
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We are with Love on a Leash, and no mention of what the dogs are fed has ever come up.
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Comment by Beth on April 16, 2011 at 7:48pm
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Here, two different sources saying organic meat is just as likely to be contaminated with bacteria, but IS less likely to have antibiotic-resistant bacteria:
http://www.ota.com/organic/foodsafety/antimicrobials.html
http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2010/02/organic-meat-dairy-safer/
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Comment by Jane on April 16, 2011 at 7:40pm
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I believe this has been in place with the Delta Society for a while now, although I think there are other therapy dog organizations that don't have this requirement. It's impossible for an organization to monitor exactly how every dog is being cleaned or fed at home, so I can see why they would take the precaution.
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I hope you have opportunities to visit and TDI does not have dietary restrictions.
Yes I was my hands after handling raw meat, but my hands are not covered in fur so it's a bit different. Antibacterial cleansers actually contribute to the increase in resistant bacteria and are not recommended; plain soap and water is. The first article speculates that antibiotic feeding is the cause; it does not state that it is. Personally I think antibiotics are overused. However, raw meat generally is contaminated with bacteria. You are more than welcome to feed raw, but please understand that lots and lots of people have very legitimate concerns about the safety of feeding raw and while you yourself are comfortable that there are not risks, the fact is others are not comfortable and I think that it's not unreasonable for raw feeders to respect that. Raw meat, even organic raw meat, tends to be contaminated with bacteria. There are reasons why humans started cooking food. Someone on here who feeds raw just recently had a dog get sick and the vet said the likely cause was the raw meat, since it was food poisoning that sickened the dog.
If you feel Delta Society has ulterior motives, you are welcome to that view. What I find unusual, myself, is that is the general consensus of raw feeders. Personally I'm not much of a believer in conspiracy theories. Nor do I find it suspicious that someone who works for a dog food company actually likes, you know, dogs and stuff and would be involved with a therapy dog organization. Therapy dogs are such a tiny fraction of the pet-dog population, and raw feeders such a small subset of that group, that I highly doubt Purina (who I think is owned by Nestle) is running around trying to find a way to re-capture the raw-fed therapy-dog market. Moreover, I doubt anyone who now feeds raw would switch to Purina if they went back to kibble, and I'm pretty sure anyone clever enough to be a Purina executive is well aware of that. I tend to believe that Delta pretty much made this decision for the reasons they listed and not because someone from Purina paid them off.
So you can certify through TDI and visit where you like. Again, I hope you have the opportunity to visit.
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I also use organic meat and we grow our own chickens/eggs. Pesticides etc are not used in our gardens. Let us know when you hear from them. If people only knew all the "junk" they were getting from the antibiotics:(
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Comment by Samantha, Daxter and Seeka! on April 16, 2011 at 7:02pm
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@Beth: You wash your hands after you handle raw meat don't you?...why is what I do so different. His face and paws are sanitized after every meal. Daxter only eats organic naturally raised meats/poultry that are free of antibiotics and hormones (as do i, and everyone else should for that matter!). As for the first article, it states that that particular strain of bacteria is found in the meat of animals that have been given excessive amounts of antibiotics, but can be controlled with proper sanitation, ie. using antibacterial cleansers when finished handling raw meat. As for Delta, they even state on the page you recommended that commercial dog foods have bacteria on them as well. Salmonella is on every surface of every home, and dogs have a much higher tolerance for ingesting it than humans. So, a dog could have ingested it from their kibble or even from licking a surface in the house, and started shedding it and their owner wouldn't even notice. And also, what struck me as odd is the fact that they say if your dog accidentally ingests a dead bird or mouse, that it's okay for the dog to continue visiting patients....so they're saying it's okay for your dog to eat a dead, possibly diseased wild animal laying in the road, but not human grade healthful raw proteins??? i think there may be something else going on, as to why they don't allow raw fed dogs to be a part of their organization.....
@Jane: Thanks for the support! I heard about the bacteria strains in both the animals and in the hospitals. I still haven't received an email back from the director of the program, but we'll see what she has to say.
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Comment by Nicola Porter on April 16, 2011 at 6:42pm
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oh sweetie I can totally understand your disappointment. I just don't think they are going to change that requirement though. I think that you and Daxter are awesome to want to help and I have no doubt Daxter is a sweetheart. I hope you find something you can do to help your community.
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Good luck to you and Dexter...just last night on the news they had a BIG item on raw meats and bacteria due to all the antibiotics given to animals causing antibiotic resistant bacteria in the meats. I do know that hospitals do have MRSA in many of them so....I hope this isn't why?????
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If you check out Delta Society's web page, they list their reasons. I just saw in today's paper that half of all meat sold at grocery stores contains multi-drug resistant staph, for instance.
http://www.latimes.com/health/boostershots/la-heb-meat-bacteria-201...
Keep in mind that if your dog eats raw, it WILL have raw food particles on the fur on its face. Coming into contact with these particles, which are more-often-than-not contaminated with bacteria, can be theoretically harmful to immune-compromised patients.
Here's Delta Society's reasoning:
http://www.deltasociety.org/Page.aspx?pid=638
Yes they DO have someone from Purina on their board, but they DON'T insist on feeding kibble. In fact their page gives a link to tips on feeding a home-cooked diet to your pet. They are not pushing kibble!
I hope the situation is resolved to your satisfaction. I must say that as someone who takes immune-modifying medication, on the one occasion when I met and pet a raw-fed dog I immediately went for the hand sanitizer. I ALSO wash carefully after cleaning up after or grooming my own dogs. But the fact that the facial fur is most likely contaminated with bits of raw food, which in turn is likely contaminated with bacteria, makes me extra-special careful.
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