2023 Volume 76 Issue 3 Pages e51-e54
The safety of pet food concerns not only animal health but also human health. The Law for Ensuring the Safety of Pet Food was enacted in 2009, and a certain level of safety was assured for dog and cat foods, however, the safety of pet bird foods is not covered by the law. So, the microbial or chemical contamination of pet bird food has not been investigated. In this study, the isolation and identification of fungi was conducted in order to clarify the hygienic conditions of pet bird food. As a result, fungi were isolated from 58 of 72 samples of pet bird food (80.6%). Of the 182 fungal strains isolated, 157 were identified, with Aspergillus spp. being the most common (89 strains, 56.7%). Since pet bird food is often imported from overseas and many Aspergillus strains of subtropical and tropical origin may produce mycotoxin, especially aflatoxin, it is necessary to investigate the mycotoxin producing properties of the isolates in the future.
