New research by scientists in England suggests a link between antibiotic-resistant bacteria in dogs and their consumption of raw meat.

In a study published yesterday in the Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy, a team from the University of Bristol found third-generation cephalosporin-resistant (3GC-R) Escherichia coli in roughly 8% of fecal samples from rural and urban dogs in southwest England. Using molecular data and information from questionnaires filled out by dog owners, they found that resistant E coli in the rural dogs was associated with a raw meat diet.

The study was part of a wider effort by the researchers to investigate transmission of antibiotic-resistant E coli through a One Health lens, focusing on the intersection of the environment, farms, animal species, and specific cohorts of animals and humans in southwest England. Previous research by the team had found that plasmid-mediated 3GC-R E coli—which is increasingly being found in humans and animals and is considered a pathogen of major concern for humans—was common on dairy farms in the area, both in cattle and humans.

While E coli is commonly found in human and animal intestines, it can cause more severe infections if it spreads to other parts of the body. Resistance to third-generation cephalosporin antibiotics is a concern because they are considered critically important for human medicine.