FERRET FOOD BRANDS Young & Old

Question
I am so confused about the right food to give an adult ferret. one website says high in protein ans fat the other says lower protein and higher fat. One will say not to buy a food that contains corn or other grains then one will say that thats o.k. A breeder told me to make some chicken gravy which I am but now Im afraid that the protein is too much. My little girl is 8 years old and I want to make sure she is getting the right kind if food. thanks for your hel.

Answer
Hi Dennis:

Probably the one MOST IMPORTANT thing we can do to ensure long lives for our ferrest (of course right after ensuring a safe environment for them to play in, of course) is a healthy diet!  I'm so happy to see ferret owners starting to take a serious look into what manufacturers and, unfortunately 'hucksters' (don't pardon the word, I won't be offended :-), are tossing out to ferret owners who often walk away more confused than anything else!  It's just too hard for the *normal* ferret owner to decide just WHO is the authority on what's good for our ferrets and WHO is the huckster?

For my purposes, I always look to the folks who either do NOT have a product to sell, OR are doing their testing in ways so the outcome isn't geared to be already partial to their product.  If the testers don't have a product to sell, they aren't going to keep testing and testing once basic standards are established that allow some relatively consistent and positive health results and no real obvious negative side effects over a period of time. Since they aren't selling ferret food, the funding just isn't there to continue to test. Then we look to the larger food companies like Totally Ferret, Path Valley and Marshall's (to a small degree) who do consistently test and continually try to improve their products with the sole purpose of marketing that improved food to informed ferret owners AND improving the life expectancy of ferrets in general.

Marshalls and Path Valley Farms both are breeders, so their interests are quite obvious; regardless, I think it's great that they take what no doubt is not a huge money-making operation for them and invest back into that by coming up with things like softer pellets, poultry mixes (Path Valley) and other options for variety and to meet specific needs of some ferrets.

Totally Ferret, in comparison, to my knowledge, doesn't raise ferrets to sell per se, but they do have quite a team of top notch nutritionists headed by Dr Tom Willard, who spends his days testing and trying new additives, new ways to process, new products - so many things that most of us never do even know about because it's done behind the scenes - but it is done so Performance Foods (Totally Ferret) can provide our ferrets with the very best foods, treats and products possible. I've spoken to Dr Willard personally and he loves ferrets and has his own, which to me speaks highly of his commitment to his profession.

Other food makers like Kaytee (God forbid) and many many other very very poor excuses for nutrition for our ferrets continue to be seen on the shelves of our pet stores and even in grocery stores (usually if it's for sale in a grocery store, it's NOT a good ferret food) NO cheap cat or kitten foods in a grocery store are sufficient for a ferret's high protein (ONLY from animal sources), high fat (ONLY from animal sources), low ash and moisture.  Ash and other fillers are hard on their kidneys; moisture allows foods to spoil easier, although it does make foods softer for older pets, so there is a trade-off there, IF your pet is older, just be sure it's kept refrigerated after opened, purchased in small packages and used quickly.

The trick to buying ferret food is to READ THE LABEL. The ingredients are listed from first to last - from the ingredient that MOSTLY comprises the contents to the ingredient that LEAST comprises the food....just as in people food (start reading labels there too; it's a good idea to get used to the idea of how that works. The FIRST FOUR INGREDIENTS IN FERRET FOOD SHOULD BE CHICKEN OR CHICKEN BYPRODUCTS like 'chicken broth' or 'chicken byproducts'. Rice, corn, and other "filler" ingredients are just that - FILLERS....ferrets get NO nutrition from them. They are simply to help hold the kibble together and/or appeal to the taste of the ferret.

The best diet for your ferret - if you had time and wanted to do it - is probably one called the "B.A.R.F." diet - "bones and raw flesh". This is comprised of ALL RAW MEAT.  (**IMPORTANT NOTE: NEVER FEED FERRETS COOKED BONES because it makes them brittle and can splinter and cut the inside of the ferret's mouth/throat/stomach/intestines.) It's difficult to feed in the beginning because you do need to learn HOW to feed properly - how to prepare, how much to feed, how long to leave the raw food in the cage before removing it and it starts stinking or drawing flies, etc. There are MANY websites online, mostly about feeding dogs and some about feeding cats and even some about feeding ferrets the BARF diet.I will not go into all the particulars here, but please don't do this without studying it FULLY - Bacteria and other harmful pathogens and can be transferred by feeding raw meat. These can include tapeworms, salmonella, and e-coli. These can affect, sicken and KILL not only your ferret but your family if not done properly. This is NOT something to be taken upon lightly. Personally I don't recommend it, but I do know folks who swear by it, so thought I'd toss it in there.  

My personal note on this: (The closest I come to it is feeding my kids some Hill's A/D feline prescription "soup" - get the canned food from your vet, scoop out a tablespoon or two and cover with water, microwave, stir to gravy consistency, stir with finger to be sure it's not too hot, then touch your finger into it, then in the ferret's mouth a few times till he gets a good taste a few times. They all hate it at first, but if you keep trying, after half a dozen times, he will chase you around begging for 'soup'. It's PERFECT to serve when they are not eating right, are sick, elderly or post surgically. ALL ferrets should be familiar with this BEFORE they need it - it is absolutely a lifesaver and every ferret family should have a few cans in their pantry just 'in case' of emergency and the ferret isn't eating right for any reason. This can literally save their lives.

To keep from writing a whole book here, I will just say that I feed my kids Path Valley Chicken (hard) food. They hate the new Poultry Mix (soft) no matter what I did with it LOL. I have tried other foods and I do also mix three foods together so that IF any of the foods happen to change their formula (and it DOES happen) suddenly the ferret won't eat - yes, they CAN detect such a tiny change in formula and they WILL stop eating because ferrets "imprint" on their food early in life and immediately become suspicious if it changes. If you mix three different foods together and one changes, the ferret can continue to eat the other two and hardly miss a beat; but if you are feeding only ONE food and it changes - suddenly you have a ferret who is fasting ....and an emergency in less than 24 hours. Ferrets MUST eat at least every four hours or so or they start to decline rapidly (this is where the A/D soup comes in IF you've introduced it to them AND keep them familiar with it by feeding it at least once a week as a 'treat'). Otherwise, you will find yourself scrambling for *anything* the ferret will eat,which often is nothing and many times ends up at the vets office with SubQ feedings to keep it alive until you can finally get something down the ferret.

I use Totally Ferret - they have a Baby Mix - a mix for Active Ferrets and a Mixture for slower Mature Ferrets. That's my number one choice - read the labels, you will understand why. You can check here:  http://www.mdferretpaws.org/care/food_treats.html to choose other foods in your area that meet high standards (the highest numbers are the best foods) that your ferrets will eat. Sometimes trial and error are necessary. Almost every ferret I've ever seen takes to Totally Ferret immediately, which is why I don't hesitate to recommend it.  Other well-liked foods are 8 in 1 Ultimate (the ONLY 8 in 1 food I think is o.k.), and Path Valley Chicken - the hard crunchy one - although I've read a lot lately about crunchy food being bad for their teeth. Can't imagine that ferrets can chew bones from animals, yet worry about them crunching a kibble of food - go figure that one.  Foods that are really good, but not so easily taken to by ferrets: Zupreem, Mazuri, Sheppard & Greene....at least from my experiences.

At 8 years old, probably the best thing for your little girl is some Totally Ferret for older ferrets (low cal) IF she's normal weight - IF NOT NORMAL WEIGHT YET - keep her on Totally Ferret NORMAL and feed her Hill's A/D Feline canned (from your vet's office) prescription diet made into a warm soup - anywhere from once a week to four times a day until she puts on enough weight.  A little light at her age is good. When they get too heavy, it's hard for them to get around. Do keep a good eye on her and watch because she could lose weight fast if she should miss just a few meals.Keep that soup handy - it's easy and it's lifesaving.  

Here's hoping she has a few more wonderful HAPPY, HEALTHY years with you !! Please give her a big hug from me - eight years old is a very very respectable age for a young lady nowadays - you must be doing something very very right! :-)  Congratulations to both of you! Please don't hesitate to write again any time!

Sincerely,

Jacquie Rodgers