Mad Cow Disease:Are Pets at Risk Too?
by Shawn Messonnier, DVM
Author of The Natural Health Bible for Dogs & Cats
A lot has been said about Mad Cow Disease (MCD) in the news in recent months. Until the discovery of an infected cow in the US, this was always considered a “foreign” disease with little chance of developing in our country. Unfortunately, the discovery of the infected cow now shows that this disease is something we need to deal with as well.
I’ve received questions from pet owners who are worried about their pets possibly contracting the disease. Is this possible? Are their fears irrational, or should dog and cat owners be concerned about Mad Cow Disease causing problems for their pets? Should you be concerned about the health of your pet as well as your own?”
First, let me say that I’m not really surprised that Mad Cow Disease (MCD, also called bovine spongioform encephalopathy or BSE) has finally been seen in the US. Our food supply is “generally safe,” as meat intended for human consumption must pass USDA inspection by food health veterinarians who inspect the meat at the point of slaughter. Even though the infected cow came from Canada, it is certainly possible that a US cow could just as well have been the culprit, as our detection systems for this disease is, according to some experts, not as good as it needs to be. Due to the worldwide distribution of this horrible condition, it was only a matter of time regardless of the controls we have on food inspection that MCD would be detected.
Mad Cow Disease is caused by protein particles called prions. These prions are very resistant to destruction and survive anything and everything, including freezing, heating, pressure, and irradiation. They concentrate in the nervous tissue (brain and spinal cord) of infected animals. It seems that there are 2 forms of the disease. The first and most well known is the typical condition usually seen in older people (and may be confused with Alzheimer’s disease) that progresses very slowly. A new variant form affects younger people (usually) and is more rapidly progressive. Unfortunately, there is no reported treatment that is effective, either conventional or alternative. Death comes about over time as “holes” develop in the brain, giving it a spongy appearance (hence the medical term of spongiopathy.)
While it is vitally important that we do all we can to keep MCD out of our country, thankfully the number of people with the disease worldwide is still small. Since it is such a horrible condition with no cure, steps (such as completely banning the practice of feeding any slaughterhouse waste back to livestock, and testing every animal before it is eaten ) must be applied and followed worldwide. A move away from feedlots, while controversial and not politically popular, and towards range or grass feeding of ruminants and other food animals would also be helpful (and improve the fatty acid content of the meat we eat.)
Mad Cow Disease is even more unlikely to affect dogs and cats, although theoretically possible (although so far cats but not dogs appear susceptible to MCD.) To date I’ve never seen any credible reports of this in recent years in pets in the US. However, in my opinion, there is a greater chance of MCD affecting our pets than ourselves. Why? Because most pet foods do not contain the healthiest of ingredients. Many brands of food contain ingredients such as animal by-products, meat by-products, and meat and bone meal (see sidebar.) These are the ingredients most likely to contain nervous tissue (brain and spinal cord) of cattle. And since so many pet foods contain these less-than-healthy ingredients, cattle (and other infected ruminants such as sheep and deer) infected with Mad Cow Disease can easily and quickly infect our pet food supply (earlier this year one Canadian manufacturer recalled dog food that contained rendered parts from an infected cow.)
What’s the solution? Simple. First, whenever possible, pet owners can prepare nutritious homemade recipes for their pets, which will totally prevent MCD in their pets. Second, if preparing food at home is not possible, learning to read the label on the pet’s food will allow the pet owner to choose foods that do not contain potentially infected material. Pet owners who choose natural diets containing whole meats without by-products will minimize chances of the food containing infected ingredients.
If you choose to feed a processed pet food, it's important that you understand the components listed in the label of ingredients on the bag or can of food. There are specific rules about how manufacturers are allowed to list ingredients, but as with everything there are so many definitions and exceptions that it's often impossible to know exactly what's in the food without contacting the manufacturer and asking questions (which I encourage owners to do, especially if they are not familiar with the brand they have chosen.)
Meat: Clean flesh from slaughtered animals (cattle, sheep, goats, pigs) limited to skeletal muscle or muscle found in the tongue, diaphragm, heart or esophagus, with or without accompanying fat, sinew, skin, nerve, and blood vessels. This can be from any animal species such as pigs, goats, rabbits and so forth. If meat is of a descriptive name (example, chicken,) it must correspond to that species (if the label says chicken, the meat should be chicken and not another animal species.)
Meat meal (e.g., lamb meal): Rendered (a process where the fat and water are removed) mammal tissue without added blood, hair, hoof, horn, hide trimmings, manure and stomach contents, except in such amounts as may occur unavoidably in good processing practices. It can contain meat from "4D" animals (dead, dying, diseased, or disabled,) which comes from animals condemned for human consumption. However, meat meal can also come from dehydrated meat (meat without the water content) and can be of high quality (some manufacturers of higher quality natural dog and cat foods make their own meal,) making this designation somewhat nebulous and confusing. As a rule, it should be avoided unless you contact the manufacturer to find out what exactly is in the "meat meal."
Meat and bone meal: Rendered (fat and water removed) mammal tissue including bone without added blood, hair, hoof, horn, hide trimmings, manure and stomach contents, except in such amounts as may occur unavoidably in good processing practices. This is a by-product with variable amounts of meat and bone (differing between batches) and variable protein quality. Like meat meal, it can contain meat from 4D animals (dead, dying, diseased, or disabled,) which comes from animals condemned for human consumption.
Meat by-product: Nonrendered (contains fat and water) clean parts other than meat, including lungs, spleen, kidneys, brain, livers, blood, bone, stomachs and intestines freed of contents. Meat by-products cannot contain hair, horns, teeth, and hoofs. While this protein source may be more wholesome than meat meal or meat and bone meal (since it comes from nonrendered tissue and from slaughtered animals rather than from carcasses of already dead animals,) there is no way to tell by reading the label how much of which "by-products" are included in the food. Once again contacting the manufacturer is needed to determine what is contained in the meat by-product. Sometimes the by-product is healthy organ meat (liver,) and sometimes it might simply be intestines (not so healthy.)
Similar definitions apply to poultry (any type of fowl.)
Animal by-product meal: Rendered mammal tissue without added hair, hoof, horn, hide trimmings, manure and stomach contents, except in such amounts as may occur unavoidably in good processing practices. This definition is used to cover tissue products that do not meet other definitions and is not intended to be used to label a mixture of animal tissue products.
Dr. Shawn Messonnier is the author of 8 Weeks to a Healthy Dog and the award-winning The Natural Health Bible for Dogs & Cats. Please address questions to him at Paws & Claws Animal Hospital, 2145 W. Park Blvd., Plano, Tx, 75075, or email him at naturalvet@juno.com. Visit his website at www.petcarenaturally.com