Is raw fish okay?

[Tank's Grandma]

I know they can have salmon or fish oil, I know many of you feed BARF diets, but I'm not familiar with it, but do sometimes give the boys pieces of raw meat...so here's my silly question....can they have raw tuna?
A friend has given me so much albacore and yellow tail, if I don't share with them, I don't know what I'll do with it all. I'm the only one in the house who eats fish. No bones, all beautiful filets.

[Patty1231]

I give my dogs tuna (from the can in oil) and mackeral all the time. Good source of protein and omegas, and hopefully the extra oil will help Skye put on a few pounds (I give her all the extra oil).

[Judi W]

There are liver flukes and a number of other rather nasty parasites carried in the raw fish. I'd have to do more research for the particular ones, but - to be safe I'd recommending cooking

[Tank's Grandma]

Originally Posted by Judi W

There are liver flukes and a number of other rather nasty parasites carried in the raw fish. I'd have to do more research for the particular ones, but - to be safe I'd recommending cooking

The humans ate it as sushi (albacore and the yellow tail, but NOT ME!!!) but good point. The main reason I don't do sashimi is a direct result of a very dramatic demonstration the first day of a parasitology class in college in Santa Barbara involving fish. I'll do some research on parasites in tuna. Their noses were working overtime though!

[Judi W]

there is no reason why you can't make a doggy fish chowder. A couple of years ago I did the research on raw fish and there were too many things that made it not the best decision. No particular benfits and too darn many risks so why do it? The sushi that is served to humans is inspected a million times over before it can be used. I doubt if that would apply to your free fish.

[Tank's Grandma]

Originally Posted by Judi W

there is no reason why you can't make a doggy fish chowder. A couple of years ago I did the research on raw fish and there were too many things that made it not the best decision. No particular benfits and too darn many risks so why do it? The sushi that is served to humans is inspected a million times over before it can be used. I doubt if that would apply to your free fish.

There's certainly enough of it .
What I've found so far, is that actually, tuna is the safest of the fish, and freezing it kills roundworm spores, which seemed to be the only major risk if there was one..... but still, if I'm cooking it for me, no big deal to throw some on for them. And the last time I cooked some, they even liked it blackened. My idiot cats, however, turned their noses up at the tuna
Surprisingly, salmon, because it spends time in fresh water, is a riskier fish...I have edumacated myself today.

[spidey]

Just remember not to overfeed tuna, since it has high levels of mercury in it. They recommend humans not eat more than a couple of servings a week (one per week for pregnant women), so I wouldn't give it to a dog much more often than that.

[angel girl]

What about fresh water fish? Walleye, Northern Pike, Perch and the like. I always wondered about those ones.

[Judi W]

Why not simply steam a bunch in a big pot, shred it with a fork, and freeze in serviing sized baggies?

[StephanieandToby]

I'm with Judi on this one.....too many horror stories of worms and flukes and parasites, etc.....I don't know how the Japanese stay so healthy with all the raw fish they eat!!!
The dog I am boarding at the moment has pre-packaged frozen ziplock bags of Halibut that I mix with her kibble. All I have to do is take a bag out of the freezer a day ahead of time.
To wash and re-use the bag I fill it with hot soapy water...zip it shut and shake it really hard ...then I turn it inside out to dry.

[Tank's Grandma]

Originally Posted by Judi W

Why not simply steam a bunch in a big pot, shred it with a fork, and freeze in serviing sized baggies?

I don't have any problem cooking it for them, was just wondering because they were so interested in it while I was cutting it into steaks and packaging it up.