[neilep (OP)]

Dear All,

Certain foods like chicken,turkey, pork, shellfish really need to be cooked else we stand a good chance of getting sicky tummy wummys !!..

...but does this mean that non human animals that consume raw foods also acquire the same sicknesses ?

if not .....can we learn from them why ?

Fortunately, beef and lamb is fine for us to eat semi cooked.....why is this ?

[Alandriel]

well - what about sushi then?

(have I mentioned I L*O*V*E sushi???)  []

Actually, as long as your chicken / turkey etc. is fresh, and I mean REALLY fresh, then there is no reason why you can't eat it raw. As long as there has not been time or occasion for bacterias to contaminate the meet, raw is fine  [] - and, according to some, actually healther for you than cooked. Raw chicken livers is a delicacy in some parts and so is beef tartare though I personally would not exactly be brave enough to try the former  []

If meat is contaminated then I guess you will get a really bad tummy unless your taste buds and nose is finely honed and prevent you to ingest it in the first place- a skill that has gone somewhat lost I believe, much to our detriment.

Semi cooked food is often ok as you're searing the surface of the meat and therefore are killing off any bacterias that have accumulated on that surface through e.g. handling, storage, transport etc. For bacterias to get all the way through to the centre takes a lot more and by that time I'd say the meat will start to smell or show that it's off.

[lyner]

Let's face it, animals have no choice.
They have to rely on certain inhibitions about the smell of food that has really gone off.
In the end, though, they just have to risk it or go hungry.
They have to accept a much higher mortality rate from dodgy food than we do.

[another_someone]

There are many sicknesses you can get from raw meat (particularly if the animal you are eating was itself ill - e.g. was suffering TB) - and this is a risk factor for most animals (bear in mind that in nature, no animal would normally live to what we regard as old age, and there is a high infant mortality rate).

The risks with farmed animals is different - not least in that these days we try and prevent ill animals from entering the food chain (although this is not always as effective in some countries with less developed food safety laws).  On the other hand, the close confines in which many animals are kept on farms can increase the risk of contamination (and the use of large abituars also increases the risks of cross contamination of meat after slaughter).

As for meat starting to smell - hanging meat is often part of the natural processing of meat (I believe this may be different in Europe) - but the bacteria are used to tenderise meat (particularly game).  On the other hand, the bacteria that accumulate may actually help kill off other bacteria that may be more dangerous.

[neilep (OP)]

THANK EWE ALL for your answers and comments.

I would never eat a raw shellfish.

I Love sushi too !!...I luff it immensely.....but is raw prawns, crabs and lobsters consumed by humans ?....all of these animal are ' bottom ' dwellers..eating the crud that falls there.

There are some birds that I believe can be eaten pink....but the prevalence of salmonella invites cooking most poultry thoroughly.


George makes  a good point (in addition to Alandriels and sophiecentaurs excellent posts)...that hanging meat...even pork is readily consumed......I love parma ham.....but in a way...it is cooked !!...just not radioactively !! []

[another_someone]

I Love sushi too !!...I luff it immensely.....but is raw prawns, crabs and lobsters consumed by humans ?....all of these animal are ' bottom ' dwellers..eating the crud that falls there.

But 'bottom' can mean lots of things, and for some, the sea shore is 'bottom'.

But in any case, I am not sure that this itself is really a problem.  What an animal eats is rarely going to have a direct impact on how unhealthy it is (excepting if it is consuming toxins from its environment), and if it does matter, it is often is those at the top of the food chain that are the bigger risk (i.e. the carnivores, such as sharks or tuna - hence the health scare about mercury in tuna).

There are some birds that I believe can be eaten pink....but the prevalence of salmonella invites cooking most poultry thoroughly.

Salmonella is a problem with farmed animals, and is not really a problem with wild animals (not something we normally worry about with game birds).

[Alandriel]

but is raw prawns, crabs and lobsters consumed by humans ?

Most definitely!  []

Freshness though is the key. With everything, especially seafood. Also consider of oysters, scallops, mussels....
I've got to stop now before I start drooling.......

You're quite right though in being vary. Seefood does spoil extremely quickly and you've got to be careful.

As to bottom  [] [], yep, I echo George, it can mean a lot of things and in my experience at least it's
vastly dependent on the state of just that bottom..... erm...the environment I mean of course.

I'd not go for mussles from a busy shipping lane that's for sure
or shrimp from an intensive farm pretty much anywhere in the world.
I do know what their environment can look like and just what they get fed....... (once upon a time we managed the only shrimp farm in the Red Sea...)

Bottom line is.....  []..... when in doubt, burn it!

(....or so my hubby would say. But then he likes his burgers seriously well done) []

[ukmicky]

The bacteria which decompose and breakdown raw meat are not the same as the bacteria that cause food poisoning this plus the fact that many animals have highly acidic stomachs that destroy most of the harmful bacteria prevents them getting sick most of the time.
Animals also usually have a better sense of smell than humans so can probably can tell very quickly if something is edible.

[Carolyn]

but is raw prawns, crabs and lobsters consumed by humans ?

Most definitely!  []

Freshness though is the key. With everything, especially seafood. Also consider of oysters, scallops, mussels....
I've got to stop now before I start drooling.......

You're quite right though in being vary. Seefood does spoil extremely quickly and you've got to be careful.

In Florida, and probably every state that serves raw oysters, any restaurant serving raw oysters has to post warning signs about the dangers of consuming raw oysters.

I cannot understand why anyone would want to eat a raw oyster since they carry a nasty bacteria called vibrio vulnificus.

People with certain health conditions such as cancer, diabetes or liver disease are considered high risk for serious illness or death from this bacteria.  According to the FDA this bacteria has a 50% fatality rate in high risk individuals.

Some people don't even know they're high risk, so why take chances.  Cooked & steamed oysters taste fantastic and are a lot less slimy.

[Alandriel]

I cannot understand why anyone would want to eat a raw oyster since they carry a nasty bacteria called vibrio vulnificus.

EVERY oyster?

 [] now that would be news to me.....

I've eaten many oysters in the past in various places (not in the US mind you) and certainly never had a problem. Have I just been very lucky?

Oysters are very tasty - and full of zinc and other good stuff. Of course you can eat them cooked too, a la Rockefeller, but I still prefer them 'au natural' (maybe no longer..... [] )

[Carolyn]

I cannot understand why anyone would want to eat a raw oyster since they carry a nasty bacteria called vibrio vulnificus.

EVERY oyster?

 [] now that would be news to me.....

I've eaten many oysters in the past in various places (not in the US mind you) and certainly never had a problem. Have I just been very lucky?

Oysters are very tasty - and full of zinc and other good stuff. Of course you can eat them cooked too, a la Rockefeller, but I still prefer them 'au natural' (maybe no longer..... [] )

Sorry, I should have specified oysters in the U.S.  As I understand it, it's oysters that come from warm coastal waters.  We're on the Gulf of Mexico and the oysters that are harvested here account for about 10% of the country's oysters supply, so I would say if you're in the US and you're not sure if you fall into a high risk category, eat them cooked.

I've eaten them raw many, many, many times, and enjoyed them immensely.  Sometimes I still crave a raw one on a saltine cracker with hot sauce, but.....I'm a chicken now, so I'll just continue to have them my favorite way......a la Rockefeller. []

[another_someone]

I've eaten them raw many, many, many times, and enjoyed them immensely.  Sometimes I still crave a raw one on a saltine cracker with hot sauce, but.....I'm a chicken now, so I'll just continue to have them my favorite way......a la Rockefeller. []

If you are a chicken, then it is salmonella you need to concern yourself with []

The only fish I eat are tinned tuna, and roll mops (marinaded herrings), so crabs and alike, cooked or raw, are not on my table.

I did have steak american once in Belgium - which is raw hamburger - but did not realise what it was until it arrived, and could not bring myself to finish it.

[Alandriel]

Phew ***** that's a relief, thanks  []

.. and here's to


                                   

[Carolyn]

I've eaten them raw many, many, many times, and enjoyed them immensely.  Sometimes I still crave a raw one on a saltine cracker with hot sauce, but.....I'm a chicken now, so I'll just continue to have them my favorite way......a la Rockefeller. []

If you are a chicken, then it is salmonella you need to concern yourself with []

The only fish I eat are tinned tuna, and roll mops (marinaded herrings), so crabs and alike, cooked or raw, are not on my table.

I did have steak american once in Belgium - which is raw hamburger - but did not realise what it was until it arrived, and could not bring myself to finish it.

LOL...cute, George. []

[kdlynn]

my grandma eats raw ground beef sometimes. it's gross..