Anyone who has a pet knows how important it is to keep the animal's hygiene up to date, for its own protection and for the protection of the humans around it.
However, even though they are attentive to all the necessary care, many pet owners forget an extremely important factor: cleaning the animals' food and water bowls.
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according to one study conducted by the FDA (Food and Drug Administration), an entity equivalent to Anvisa in the United States, most dog owners in the country do not clean the dog bowl as they should.
Sampling showed that only about 22% of owners clean their dogs' bowls at least twice a week.
Also according to the study, this bad habit can be harmful both to the health of the animals and to the health of their owners, as it favors the proliferation of harmful bacteria, such as Salmonella It is listeria.
These microorganisms can cause a number of diseases that cause symptoms such as diarrhea, vomiting, headaches, heartburn, poor digestion and others.
Type infections can be more serious in children, the elderly and pregnant women, as well as in immunosuppressed people.
Going in the direction of the subject discussed by the FDA study, the British veterinarian Sean McCormark, who specializes in food canina, made important alerts.
In an interview given to the British newspaper The Mirror, which also released the FDA study, McCormark reinforced the risk of leaving the dog bowl without proper cleaning.
“Waste food can lead to bacterial growth over time, and some of these bacteria are potentially harmful not only to our pets, but to ourselves as well.”, stated.
The Doctor. Sean, as he is also known, explained better why it is necessary to clean the dog's bowl periodically.
“Our pets don't tend to have the best oral hygiene unless we brush our teeth daily. So allowing food and water bowls to go days without washing can create some pretty unsightly and unhealthy surfaces for them to eat and drink from.”
In addition to recommending daily cleaning of the bowls, which should be done with soap and water, the veterinarian warned that cleaning utensils for pet bowls (brushes, sponges, cloths, etc.) separated.
“Another good idea is to separate animal washing utensils from our own, again due to the risk of bacterial cross-contamination.”
“Our pets can handle most bacteria very well, but some of these bacteria can cause disease in humans.”
Graduated in History and Human Resources Technology. Passionate about writing, today he lives the dream of acting professionally as a Content Writer for the Web, writing articles in different niches and different formats.