Cooked Meat?

[Hoovershounds]

Why is it suggested that the meat be cooked?
Amy

[paris26]

Meat should be cooked to kill the bacteria. Raw meat is going to make a mess and encourage bacterial growth on the meat itself and in the cage.

I only offer mine hogs and gliders cooked meats when they are up for the night so I know it will be eaten right away. Anything left after 30 mins. is removed and thrown away. Unseasoned baked chicken breast, turkey and salmon are big hits in my house.

[Hoovershounds]

I know it is like compairing apples to oranges but with my ferrets it was suggested to feed meat raw so i was just curious about why the meat needed to be cooked for the hedgies. Make sense. I can get ground turkey cheap. Would this make a good food (cooked of course)? :)
Amy

[HamorHollow]

Hedgehogs can get salmanella and other diseases from raw meats. If you do feed *ANY* meat to your hedgehogs, make sure it is properly cooked and be sure to remove the uneaten portion (and the shavings around it) within a few hours because the uneaten meats will encourage bacteria growth.

I just had someone return a hedgehog that had gotten salmonella. The hedgehog was away from me for over a month, but I tested my heard just in case and all the cultures came up clean.

My advice to everyone is not to take a chance. The lab cost for the fecal test from IDEXX was $86. The cost of a vet appointment and medications if necessary would be additional (I believe the lady paid upward of $200 for everything)