Five hospitalized in Siberia after eating barbequed dog

Five residents of Chita, in the Transbaikal area of southeastern Siberia, have been hospitalized with trichinosis, a month after they barbequed and ate a stray dog together, Mednovosti.ru reports. Experts say the episode is part of a growing problem with the disease.

Regional health official Svetlana Lapa told the website that the five victims are young men who hold jobs and have no associations with “asocial elements.” “It seems they wanted to try an exotic dish,” Lapa explained. The five are reported to be in stable condition and are undergoing treatment.

While only two cases of trichinosis were recorded in the region in 2007, that figure jumped to 33 last year. Bear meat was responsible for 26 of the infections. Nine cases have been reported so far this year, all of them associated with eating dog meat.

Trichinosis can occur in outbreaks, striking dozens of people at a time, as happened in Russia in 2002 and 2008. It is caused by a microscopic worm that is ingested in undercooked meat. Trichinosis infection is quite painful and potentially fatal.