Our darling little pet dog Joey eats like there’s no tomorrow. Such an appetite in that little frame of his. We also like to bring him to our trips, which mean he gets to eat whatever we eat. And sometimes, we get to eat something that doesn’t agree with our stomachs. Food poisoning can affect both dogs and their hoomans. It’s something that we should take seriously, considering 5,000 people in the United States die from diseases related to food.
While it seems like dogs will eat anything, that doesn’t mean they’re immune to food poisoning. In fact, early this year, a popular dog food brand in Australia was recalled after a number of dogs, including police dogs, suffered from megaespophagus after dining on that particular brand. Some of them later died or were euthanized.
Because it’s the season of giving and eating lots of Christmas feasts, it’s as good as any time to learn more about food poisoning. Let’s start off with tips on how to prevent food poisoning before we continue with different ways to treat the condition.
How to Avoid Food Poisoning
The most obvious way to avoid food poisoning is not to eat spoiled food. However, even if you manage to keep yourself from gobbled down contaminate grub, there are other ways you can get food poisoning.
Wash Your Hands
Many people like to eat with their hands. In some cultures, eating with their hands is the norm. Here, people like to use their hands when chomping down on a burger or a giant slice of pizza. And don’t get me started on chips and popcorn.
Eating with your hands is not bad at all. You have every right to do so. However, the problem arises when you eat with dirty hands.
Remember to always wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water, especially before and after handling raw food. Use a hands-free soap dispenser to avoid spreading bacteria. You should also dry your hands well after washing.
Keep Countertops Clean
Even if your hands are clean, our food can still get contaminated if the worktop is dirty. Clean your worktop thoroughly with hot soapy water before and after handling food, especially raw ones.
Wash and Dry Dishcloths
Germs love damp things such as dishcloths, hand towels and Pennywise’s favorite hangouts. Keep the germs away from your home and your food by washing the dishcloths regularly and drying them before using them once again. It’s a good idea to dry them under direct sunlight so the germs will die.
Wash Fruits and Vegetables Well
If you’re buying your produce from the grocery store, you’re no completely sure how these were grown. Before eating them apples and other fruits and vegetables, wash them thoroughly to remove unwanted substances such as pesticides.
You can soak them in water with 1 to 2 teaspoons of salt for 5 minutes. Washing produce in a solution of water and vinegar has been proven effective in removing pesticide residue.
Keep Raw Meat Separate
Raw meat and ready-to-eat food don’t mix. If you’re having a slice of grilled pork to go with your bread, salad, and fruit for dinner, make sure they don’t touch while preparing the meat. Raw meat is notorious for containing bacteria. When it touches your leafy greens and other foods that will not be cooked, you’re risking contamination. When you eat fresh fruits that touched raw meat, you may also be consuming the bacteria from the meat. Keep raw meat away from other foods. One good way of preventing this is to prepare all your ready-to-eat food first before handling meat.
Use Different Chopping Boards
Similar to the above food poisoning tip, you must have a separate chopping board for your raw meat. Don’t use the same one you use for your vegetables and other ingredients. Also, wash your chopping boards regularly and dry them under the sun.
Cook Food Well
Cook raw meat thoroughly to kill any germ or bacteria taking up residence in it. Ideally, there shouldn’t be any pink meat left when you cook pork and poultry meat, as well as burger patties, sausages and kebabs.
Ideally, you should cook fresh raw meat immediately. In real-life, however, people don’t cook all the meat they buy at one go. Many keep raw meat in the freezer until it’s time to cook them. When it comes to chicken meat, freezing will not thoroughly get rid of campylobacter bacteria. The only way to kill them is by cooking the meat thoroughly.
How To Treat Food Poisoning
If you managed to do the exact opposite of all the tips to avoid food poisoning mentioned above, then you will suffer the consequences. And by consequences, we mean abdominal pain, diarrhea, loss of appetite, vomiting, nausea fever, weakness and fatigue. And those are just for mild cases of food poisoning.
For severe cases, you may end up much worse if you’re not treated early. A trip to the hospital is likely if the condition does not cure on its own after a few days.
Prevent Dehydration
For mild cases of food poisoning, you just need to focus on is staying hydrated as you’ll get better on your own in a few days. You will lose fluids and electrolytes in your body during this time because vomiting and diarrhea. If you don’t watch your fluid intake, you may end up in the hospital with an IV stuck in you. Drink water or have some broth. You also should have some electrolyte solution in you.
Things to Avoid
First of all, you should avoid food right after you’re stricken with food poisoning. Let your stomach settle down before eating anything. Once you’re able to eat, avoid spicy and fatty food. Stick to bland food in the meantime.
Don’t drink alcoholic beverages, coffee, milk (avoid other dairy products, as well), and bubbly drinks.
You should also avoid over-the-counter drugs for the symptoms. Diarrhea is actually helping your body flush out the bad stuff. The sooner they’re out of your system, the sooner you’ll get better. As they say, let nature run its course.
Watch for the Signs
If you think you’re dehydrated, visit your doctor immediately. If your mouth has dried up and you feel extremely thirsty, there’s a good chance you’re dehydrated. You should also watch out for other signs such as low blood pressure, rapid heartbeat, weakness, light-headedness, dizziness, and confusion. If you’re dehydrated, you also find it difficult to pee. And if you do pee, your urine looks dark and concentrated.
Other symptoms to be wary of include double or blurry vision, trouble breathing and swallowing, extreme stomach pain and cramps, continuous vomiting, and blood in vomit or feces. If your food poisoning is from eating shellfish or mushrooms, go to your doctor immediately.
Food Poisoning In Dogs
For Joey and his fellow mangy mutts (and I say that with much love), we can avoid food poisoning by following the simple tips below.
Keep Your Medicines Safely Hidden
Remember what we said about dogs eating anything? When they eat medicines meant for humans, they may experience vomiting, intestinal and kidney failure, seizures and coma. Antidepressants, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), and the tuberculosis drug Isoniazod are notorious for causing harm on dogs.
Keep Garbage Out of Reach
Again, we go back to dogs eating (or chewing) anything they fancy. If you leave your garbage just lying around, they may end up in your furry friend’s belly. Dogs may suffer from “garbage gut” or food poisoning from eating spoiled food, table scraps, or kitchen garbage.
Dangerous Human Foods
As cute as dogs get begging you to feed them, you can’t just give them anything. There are foods that us hoomans love that are not safe for dogs to consume. Don’t give dogs chocolate, onion, garlic, avocado, macadamia nuts, grapes, raisins, currants, and unbaked dough. Xylitol is also bad for them as it lowers their blood sugar level rapidly causing them to feel weak and possibly have seizures. Alcohol is an obvious no-no. Too much alcohol is bad for humans and can be fatal for animals.
If you know other ways to prevent and treat the symptoms of food poisoning, please tell us in the comment section below! You can also go to The Gentleman Pirate and find more tips on how to overcome other medical issues and emergency situations.
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