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• Tapeworms, Roundworms, and Hookworms
  
  Intestinal parasites are a part of life. They form a symbiosis with a host on which their life depends. Seldom is their intent to harm the host as this would jeopardize their own existence. Sometimes however, young or weak animals may succumb to the side effects of an infection - a part of natural selection.
  Ingestion of raw meat may be a possible source of infection, predominantly from wild, whole prey, and game meats, but infection through the environment, e.g. an intermediate host such as insects, or accidental ingestion of faeces or soil, is equally likely.
  Should an infection occur, it is easily treated with the advice of a Veterinarian. We want to stress however, in the many years of feeding cats raw meat and whole prey, we have never had to deal with intestinal parasites. Despite medical references, we find the ingestion of raw meat from captive livestock and captive raised prey to represent a small, if any, risk of parasite contraction.



• Salmonella and E. coli are bacteria that originate in faecal material. Animals and humans fall sick when contracting the organism through contact with faeces, or by ingestion of food stuffs which thusly have become contaminated. The later commonly happens when raising livestock in conventional factory settings where animals are kept in small stalls or cages and are typically soiled with faeces. When butchered, the meat can easily come in contact with faecal material and modern conveyer belt work environments do not typically allow sufficient time to ensure that all soiled portions of meat are discarded.
  Livestock raised in large open enclosures (free-run) or allowed to free-range are far less likely to come in contact with faecal material during their life. When brought to market these animals are typically dressed locally by independent butchers who allow sufficient time for proper hygiene.

  According to Veterinary literature such as 'The Cornell Book of Cats' or 'Feline and Canine Infectious Diseases' cats are
  "...extremely resistant to experimental infection with salmonella spp. and clinical salmonellosis is uncommon in cats".
  "...few references [to salmonellosis in cats] exist in the scientific literature".
  "Contamination can arise from rodent and bird faeces, raw or under-cooked contaminated meat and table scraps, or commercially prepared foods that are contaminated during processing". The likelihood of cats contracting salmonella through their environment or commercially prepared foods is equivalent to contraction through raw meat.

  E. coli (Escherichia coli) is not mentioned when referencing feline clinical pathology in either the 'Merck Veterinary Manual' or the 'Cornell Book of Cats' and 'Feline and Canine Infectious Diseases' briefly notes that "Little is known about the role of Escherichia coli in canine and feline enteric disease. E. coli is part of the normal flora of the gut...". Although some studies suggest that it may be implicated in certain cases of acute diarrhoea, it is not recognised as a feline disease.




• Trichinella
  
  Of the possible parasites cats may encounter when consuming raw meat, the only one of potential concern is Trichinella spiralis - a small nematode approx. 1 mm long. The disease state, if infected with this nematode, is caused by the larvae encysting in muscle tissue causing possible loss of muscular function. 'The Cornell Book of Cats' notes that "Cats probably become infected during predation, because rodents harbour a background level of infection". This is expanded upon by 'The Merck Veterinary Manual' which notes that "...infections are established by consumption of insufficiently cooked infected meat, usually pork or bear..." and that "...the most common species [of Trichinella spiralis] infecting man and domestic animals in most temperate regions...has...low resistance to freezing". 'The Well Cat Book' notes: "Prevent Trichinosis by not feeding raw or under-cooked pork and by restricting hunting".



• Toxoplasma gondii
  
  is indisputably a valid concern to cat owners, considering the implications which toxoplasmosis can have on the human fetuses during pregnancy, if a woman becomes infected.
  It was discovered only recently, that the cat, domestic or wild, is the definitive host for this parasite. Cats become infected by ingestion of T.gondii oocysts or cysts when eating infected prey, or ingesting contaminated soil. The parasite then undergoes sexual reproduction within the cat's intestine, who will then shed oocysts, which will appear in the cat's faeces within a few days to weeks. Depending on environmental conditions, the oocysts take 24 hours up to 4 days, after leaving the cat, before becoming infective, at which point they are infective to humans and other animals by accidental ingestion of cat faeces or soil contaminated with such. Cats will shed infective oocysts for one to two weeks after which they are generally immune to the parasites and only seldom shed oocysts again after repeated infection.
  People are infected with T.gondii in the same manner as the cat, e.g. ingestion of infected raw meat, usually pork, or ingestion of oocysts. Healthy adults seldom develop disease from infection with T.gondii and it is estimated that 50% of the North American population have been infected with the parasite and are carriers of the symptomless, chronic state.
  Danger to the fetus only exists if the previously uninfected mother becomes infected with T.gondii during pregnancy. Women with a high anti-toxoplasma antibody level from a previous infection have little to fear from toxoplasmosis during pregnancy. Healthy adult cats seldom show a disease state upon infection with T.gondii and it is predominately kittens who may suffer from fever and diarrhoea, which sometimes leads to death.