Maintaining a clean kitchen is crucial for safety when preparing food, but hidden dangers can still lurk.
A recent study revealed neglecting to wash your dog's food bowl regularly could pose health risks not only to your pet but also to you. The research, conducted by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), delved into dog owners' feeding habits and assessed the impact of FDA's hygiene protocols on contamination in dog food dishes.
Shockingly, only 12% of the 417 dog owners surveyed washed their dog's dish daily, while 22% cleaned it weekly, and a further 18% washed it every three months or not at all. According to the FDA, this lack of cleanliness "poses significant health risks to pets and pet owners" as it creates a breeding ground for harmful bacteria like salmonella and listeria.
Both these bacteria can cause symptoms such as diarrhoea, fever, stomach cramps or pain, and nausea in humans, with more severe symptoms in pregnant women, children, adults over 65, and those with weakened immune systems.
In terms of food storage and preparation, the study found that 43% stored dog food within 1.5 meters of human food, 34% washed their hands after feeding their dogs, and 33% prepared dog food on surfaces intended for human food preparation.
The study reveals a concerning trend: "It was found that the vast majority of study dog owners were not aware of and did not follow FDA pet food handling and storage guidelines." Concerning hygiene practices, it continues: "Response to individual recommendations varied, however hygiene-related handling practices (washing of hands, bowl and utensil) showed overall low levels of compliance."
The report also touches on the potential for over-reporting good hygiene: "Additionally, studies in humans regarding self-reported hand washing show an overestimation of hygiene and similar forces, including the effects of social desirability bias, could be expected in this study."
Highlighting health risks associated with contaminated pet food, the findings noted: "Exposure to contaminated dog food can have implications for canine and human health. For example, there have been multiple outbreaks of both humans and dogs becoming ill after exposure to dog food contaminated with pathogenic bacteria."
It underlines the increased threat for certain households as it added: "These risks may be amplified in households with children and/or immunocompromised individuals, which were over a third of respondents' households." In light of such findings, the FDA provides a series of practices for safer pet food management. According to the FDA's advice: "Proper storage of pet food and treats maintains the products' nutritional value and keeps information handy in case there's a problem."
It also warned: "Proper storage also prevents your pet from getting into his own food and eating too much or getting into your cat's special diet food. Overeating or eating food that is meant for another pet can lead to health problems, such as vomiting, diarrhoea, or more severe conditions."
Sharing how often they clean their dog's bowls, one Reddit user said: "I rinse it before every use. I wash them in the dishwasher like once a week, but we have a few we rotate through." Another user added: "If I wouldn't drink it, my dogs aren't going to drink it either." A third user said: "Couple of times a day. If you feel inside the bowl and it's slippery, that's most likely biofilm, a thin layer of bacteria that have been able to grow since the last cleaning."