How Can a Cat Get E. coli?

Video Transcript

"Hello, I'm Dr. Carrie Burhenn. I'm a veterinarian at the Feline Medical Clinic in Vancouver, Washington and I'm here today to tell you about how a cat can get E. coli. The most common way for a cat to pick up an E. coli infection is actually the same way as a human being would and that is to eat undercooked or raw sources of meat. The most common way that cats contact raw meat, of course, is by being fed a raw diet, sometimes even ones that are commercially available. Owners may treat their cats with raw meat straight from a package, but the rule is if you wouldn't eat it raw yourself, you shouldn't be feeding it to your cat that way. It may be a very good grade of meat, meant for humans, but we would cook our food to eliminate this bacterial organism and so it, your cats food should be cooked as well. There's a lot of hype in the media lately about feeding raw diets to our pets, but they can pick up salmonella and E. coli from raw diets just like we can. So it's important to check with your veterinarian on what they feel an appropriate food and diet for your pet would be rather than just relying on what the media says because the media is not always right. If you have any additional questions, do contact your veterinarian about what you feel would be an appropriate diet for your pet."