# Deer Meat - Lymes Disease



## Diesel and Lace (Apr 15, 2013)

So I have been really considering put my dogs on a raw diet. One thing that I though would be really cost effective is that I have a family of hunters and I can just buy an extra doe tag for each of them and they can hunt for a majority of my needs. While out meeting with the trainers this weekend, one of them also does raw feeding. He said that he cooks the deer before feeding because he doesnt want to run the risk of contracting lymes disease. I cant really find any direct info or comments about this.... I know freezing will get rid of parasites but lymes is not a parasite and it is scares the bejesus out of me, we had to put a horse down that contracted lymes disease this past year.


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## wolfy dog (Aug 1, 2012)

As far as I know Lyme is transmitted through the bite of a mosquito and goes into the blood stream, not through the digestive track. How else would we be safe to eat venison? I would think that Lyme would be killed in the stomach acids. Better ask your vet.


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## Diesel and Lace (Apr 15, 2013)

Where I am from Lymes comes from ticks specifically most often deer ticks. Humans cook the food which kills it so we do not contract the disease. Its a blood on blood disease. My fear is what if he has a cut in his mouth I dont see? Blood from deer meat + cut in mouth does that mean he could contract? Just like parasites, it is not typical to contract from eating raw but it has and can happen, which is why they recommend freezing it. I never even thought of it until the trainer brought it up. He cooks his in a crock pot for his dogs, but doesn't that kind of go against the whole raw theory where the nutrients are cooked out of it, and makes bones brittle / splinter... 

Does anyone here feed raw Venison on a regular basis? If so what area are you from I am from the NE where lymes disease is an issue and a lot of ticks carry it.


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

Lyme disease is transmitted by ticks, not mosquito's. 

OP - I would not worry about it. I feed raw venison. First, it's frozen and second, the amount of time the bacteria can live outside the body is minimal.

And I'm in Northeast PA in the middle of an endemic area. It's bad up here.


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## kbella999 (Jan 6, 2012)

I agree with Michelle. It is my understanding that it is only transmitted via tick bite and you can't get it from eating food. I've been feeding venison since November and I live in Oklahoma.



Jax08 said:


> Lyme disease is transmitted by ticks, not mosquito's.
> 
> OP - I would not worry about it. I feed raw venison. First, it's frozen and second, the amount of time the bacteria can live outside the body is minimal.
> 
> And I'm in Northeast PA in the middle of an endemic area. It's bad up here.


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## Diesel and Lace (Apr 15, 2013)

Jax08 said:


> Lyme disease is transmitted by ticks, not mosquito's.
> 
> OP - I would not worry about it. I feed raw venison. First, it's frozen and second, the amount of time the bacteria can live outside the body is minimal.
> 
> And I'm in Northeast PA in the middle of an endemic area. It's bad up here.


Thanks good to know, I am from NW PA, moving to Ohio just over the PA line, and all the hunting my family does is in PA where it is really bad (Im sure its bad in Ohio too since deer / ticks dont stand at the edge of a state line and say nope, not going over there... I dont like Ohio haha!) Good to know you have not had any issues, just seems to make sense to feed venison when I can get if for next to nothing and at the end of the day it will be really good for them (no hormone injections / chemicals you would get with grocery store foods) We also fish a lot and I can alternate feeding fish and venison. I think this is my new mission... Now to find a deep freeze to put it all in this winter


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## Liesje (Mar 4, 2007)

I've fed my dogs quite a bit of raw venison and I eat venison myself (cooked VERY rare) and we haven't had any issues. We don't eat it until it's been frozen for several weeks.


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## Lilie (Feb 3, 2010)

I feed my dogs raw venison and have never had a problem. Actually, as digusting as it sounds, when hubby gets home from a hunting trip, I'll alow my dogs to chew on the doe head before taking it out for the coyotes. I won't go into great detail as to what their favorite parts are. 

Everything else is fed raw after it has been frozen. 

In January of this year, I contracted Lymes from a tick bite. Luckily, we caught it very early. It is possible that it was from a Lonestar Tick, which tests the same as Lymes, but the side effects are much less. At any rate I was on Doxy for nearly 60 days. And all is well.


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## wolfy dog (Aug 1, 2012)

Jax08 said:


> Lyme disease is transmitted by ticks, not mosquito's.


Of course! :hammer:


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