Can Dogs Eat Raw Chicken? – Things You Need to Know If Your Dog Eats It

Consuming raw chicken is unhealthy for humans, but is it the same for dogs? Is it safe for dogs to eat raw chicken meat and bones, or does it pose a health risk? The response to this inquiry may catch you off guard.

Apparently, consuming uncooked chicken isn’t a good idea, even for your canine companion. This is particularly true if your dog has been a house pet throughout its life.

Uncooked or chicken has tons of bacteria which can cause nasty gut and blood infections. Chicken bones, if not cooked or boiled properly, may cause obstruction at any point in your dog’s GIT (gastrointestinal tract).

But just how unsafe is it if your dog ate raw chicken? Read below to find out how bad eating uncooked meat is, what are the symptoms, and what to do if your dog ate raw chicken.

Can Dogs Eat Raw Chicken? Is Raw Chicken Safe?

As explained before, eating raw chicken might not be good for your dog. In fact, consuming any form of uncooked meat can be really dangerous for your canine. Here’s how.

Raw chicken, like any other form of raw meat, contains a lot of dangerous bacteria.

Unlike cooked chicken, where the bacteria are heated to death during the cooking process, raw chicken can and will give your dog multiple nasty infections.

Uncooked meat, be it raw chicken or raw beef, has Salmonella as the predominant bacteria. Salmonella infections can lead to bloody diarrheal episodes in both dogs and humans.

This infection can then progress to involve the blood, leading to sepsis, shock, and ultimately death.

Dog owners sometimes give their dogs raw food thinking that a dog’s stomach acid might be able to handle it better than that of a human.

But guess what? dogs that have been domesticated all their life don’t do well with raw diet. In fact, raw diet can actually hurt your dog beyond measure if you’re not careful.

Can Dogs Eat Raw Chicken Bones?

Domesticated dogs enjoy cooked chicken bones. In fact, it’s one of their favorite snacks. However, is it safe to feed your dog raw chicken bones? Most probably not!

Raw chicken bones have the same problem as raw chicken, they are uncooked and, therefore, carry a lot of disease-causing bacteria.

But raw chicken bones can also cause obstruction. Eating bones, like raw chicken necks, can be dangerous as they can get stuck in your dog’s throat.

This can lead to airway obstruction which might lead to choking!

Raw chicken bones can also hurt the insides of your dog as they pass through the gut, causing ulcers, abrasions, and frank bleeding.

Other Dangers of Eating Raw Chicken

If your dogs eat raw chicken, you might have more than one problem at hand. Aside from making your dog sick, a raw chicken diet can become a problem for your entire family.

We know that raw chicken carries a lot of unwanted bacteria.

This bacteria can shed in your dog’s poop, which can lead to disease transmission to your entire family, especially the young, the old, and the immunosuppressed.

Salmonella is one example of a foodborne illness that may spread through your entire household if your dog eats raw or undercooked chicken.

It can lead to intestinal distress, which might lead to a severe illness causing major concern if you are not careful.

What Are The Symptoms of Eating Raw Chicken Meat?

It’s best to know the symptoms of eating raw meat if your dog has a bad case of curiosity in the pantry.

Here are all the signs and symptoms you need to be on the lookout for if your dog consumes raw chicken.

1. Vomiting

Vomiting is a natural response of the body to get rid of unwanted, possibly dangerous foods.

These foods are either spoiled or uncooked, so the body tries to yank them out itself before they can pose any serious health risks.

Take your dog to the vet immediately if you see him vomiting more than once in a single day. Even if your dog is not vomiting huge quantities of food, simple retching motions throughout the day should be concerning as well.

2. Upset Intestinal Tract

The digestive tract is very selective in what it wants to keep and what it doesn’t, and raw food is not it’s favorite. When dogs eat raw chicken, it can upset the entire intestinal tract leading to diarrhea.

If your dog is pooping more than usual, looks sick, and does not want to eat anything, you should be concerned about a serious illness.

Severe diarrhea can even cause stomach cramps which are very painful for the dog.

Taking your dog to the vet should be your very next step.

3. Dehydration

excessive vomiting and diarrhea can lead to dehydration. Dehydration is bad news, especially for your dog’s health because dogs cannot tell you when they are thirsty, at least not all of them.

Dehydration can lead to lethargy, loss of appetite, and even coma. Severe dehydration, if not treated can often be fatal.

4. Fever, and Other Ill Effects

any type of infection can lead to a fever. Gastrointestinal infections are no exception.

Keep an eye out if you dog starts to act lethargic, is uninterested in eating anything, and wants to sleep all day. All these can be an indication of a fever.

How Can You Prevent Your Dog from Eating Raw Chicken?

As is evident, raw foods in your dog’s diet do not bode well for either the dog or your entire family. To prevent your dog from eating raw chicken, or other forms of raw meat, here are a few steps that you can take:

• Only feed your dog good quality dog food that you buy from the store. Homemade dog food is also a good option but it does not carry the same nutritional benefits as marketed dog food brands do.
• Do not feed raw chicken to your dog, not even once. Feeding raw chicken to your canine is just a waste of perfectly good meat and also your dog’s health.
• If your dog frequently eats raw foods from the fridge or your pantry, make sure to lock these areas securely.
• You can also invest in your dog’s training to make sure they don’t go near any raw chicken ever again.
• If your dog like bones, make sure to give him only cooked bones and not the raw ones.
• Instead of raw poultry, give your dog frequent organic dog treats to prevent them from craving raw birds.

FAQs:

Should Dogs Eat Chicken Raw or Cooked?

A dog’s diet should always contain cooked food. Raw chicken is not good for your dog no matter how much the dog wants it. Make sure to only give your pet cooked food for their own wellbeing.

Can I Feed My Dog Raw Chicken Breast?

Any part of a chicken that is undercooked or raw is harmful for your pet. Try to avoid giving your dog any sort of raw food.

How Much Raw Chicken Should I Feed My Dog?

None, you should not feed any raw chicken to your dog. Feeding raw chicken to your dog may lead to bacterial infections which can be devastating.

What Raw Meats Can Dogs Eat?

Ideally, dogs should only eat cooked meat. No form of raw meat is an beneficial for your dog as a proper cooked meal.

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