new ferret owner..

Question
QUESTION: Hi im Haley I am a new ferret owner well am about to be in a total of one hour.. I'm so excited!!so beware all my questions and i hope you can answear them all..I've been reading alot on ferrets but I still haven't found some spusific answears i need.. Well first off I do know i should not feed my ferret vegies or fruit but what about really good and main thing HEALTHY snacks I can give her everyday? Should I go for specalty snacks for ferrets at like PetCo or can I give her something just as healthy for cheeper?And oder problems??I know not given them a bath everyday helps plus that can hurt there skin.. and I know just keeping the litter box clean and the bedding clean but I hear what makes them smell is their ears?? How do I clean them for one and also how often and what should i use?Also is the deoderriser sake and good to use on her?
Daily food is another quistion the pet store my getting my baby from has some deal.. I buying Marshlle or w/e ferret so the Marshell food is like half off I hear its one of the best foods for them and thats what shes been eating at the pet store.. But is it as healthy as Totally Ferret? And I hear you can buy Iams kitten food (in the purple bag) but is it as good..?Also is there any protein things I can ut in her water daily that wont hurt her and is recomended?Oh and play toys and games what is he best games to play with my ferret and the best toys for her?Also Any GREAT deals on large cages? Because I want to get a really good one for her!! I found one on Ebay thats a decent size and is all together with shipping includeded its 110$ all togeather and thats the best and cheapest one ive found..
well thats all the questions ive got today and thank you so much for your help!!!

ANSWER: Hi Haley,

I know that you didn't get your questions answered in a timely manner so I was just wondering if you got the answers you were looking for.



Let me know if you need anything.

Sincerely,

Emilee Andrews

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi Emilee,
No I haven't got many of my questions answered.
I'm still wondering about cheap food that is the safest and healthiest for (my now named baby Rogue). Right now I am feeding him 8in1 Premium healthy chicken blend but it seems that his (poop) is alot lighter colored then when I was feeding him Marshall food and it seems to be runny and not very healthy looking most of the time so I'm thinking I should throw out this food.
I was wondering about treats I'm a spoiler and would give him anything that is not bad or his health.. i here like lunch meat? If so what kind what brand?
also my pour little guy is still stuck in a very small cage and I need to find a cheap larger cage fast!also I was wondering about baths..? how often should I give him one and whats the best way to get give of the odor from his ears besides cleaning the cage and such and cleaning his ears?
well thats about all I have left to find out thank you.
Haley

Answer
Hi Haley,

I'm so glad you decided to come back and ask questions! I hope I can help you. Congratulations to you and Rogue! I hope you are enjoying being a new ferret mommy.

You mentioned in your original question that you were feeding Marshall food and now you said that you are feeding 8 in 1. The reason Rogue's poop may look a little runny is because you switched his food. Diet change affects their little tummy's for a few days. If his stool doesn't firm up within (AT MAXIMUM) 7 days, then it would be a good idea to take Rogue to the vet for a check up, which is good practice anyway because brand new kits need a health check up and their follow up canine distemper.

Here is a chart that details all the foods that people feed ferrets and it also lists the first six ingredients of the food, protein, fat and fiber content, and a few other things you should know about your food.

http://www.mdferretpaws.org/care/food_treats.html

When looking at food, you want to make sure that corn, soy and wheat (or any similar products) aren't listed in the first three ingredients. Ferrets can't digest these products so having them as part of the normal diet is not a good idea. It is also better to feed a food that has no by-products in it because by-products don't have as much nutrition as meat products do. It is also good practice to mix a few high quality foods together and give that to Rogue because if one ever goes off the market, you won't have to worry about having to get him switched to a new food.

Treats are a good bonding idea for you and Rogue, but if their diet is well balanced enough, treats aren't actually needed. When thinking about treats, you want to stick with things that have very high protein. Packaged lunch meat is not a good idea because it has additives and lots of sodium in it; not good fo`r little fuzzy tummies. Eggs are a good treat. You could hard boil an egg and feed him the yolk; the yolk is very good for them. If you don' t want to hard boil them, you could give him scrambled eggs, over easy eggs, poached eggs. You could give them raw if you like, as well.

Meats are a very good treat. You can feed them raw or cooked. Ferrets tend to enjoy chicken livers and hearts. If you have access to a dehydrator, you can make your own unseasoned jerky for Rogue to enjoy. Insects can be a good source of protein for ferrets. Small animals (such as mice, chicks, and rats) can also be fed as a treat or a normal diet. Some people advocate a more natural diet for ferrets and others still love the kibble; it is up to you. Do some research into it and see what you find. It may be a good idea to supplement your kibble diet with some feeder mice or chicks once in a while, at least, to give them a treat, extra nutrients, and to give them a little variety. Meat baby food can be given as a treat as well. If you get Rogue used to meat baby food now, then if he ever becomes ill, you can give that to him to help keep his strength up. Finally, if Rogue likes his kibble, he might see it as a treat if you feed it to him by hand!

In a lot of ferret care manuals, they will tell you that soft fruits and raisins are good for you fuzzy to eat. This isn't necessarily true. Fruits have sugars in them and sugars aren't good for ferrets at all. Feeding sugar to your ferret can lead to insulinoma, which is similar to diabetes. Also, ferrets really can't digest fruits, or vegetables for that matter. Both of these things should be avoided. As for raisins, people give them to their ferrets as a treat, but they really shouldn't. Raisins have a lot of sugar in them as well. Stick to meats and proteins. You can also give Ferretone as a treat and it can also be used when you are clipping Rogue's nails. It is an amazing distraction. Try putting a little on his belly and sticking his nose in it. Most ferrets take right to it.

As for a cage - you can check craigslist.com. They should have a city listed in your area on that site. It is like an online classified ad. You can also check on ebay or ferret.com. They have everything you need to care for a ferret at reasonable prices. Ferrets really need a big cage with lots of room to play. If they don't have a big cage, and don't have any toys, you will start to see cage stress (in the form of clawing and biting at the bars) which is not good at all. The minimum you should have is three feet wide, two feet deep and two feet high. If Rogue's cage is smaller than this, I would suggest getting a bigger one as soon as you can and keeping him out of the cage a lot to play. They need AT LEAST 2-3 hours to play outside of their cage as it is.

Baths seem like they would be the solution to that unique ferret musk, but bathing just makes it worse. Bathing strips their skin of its natural oils, so, to compensate, the skin produces more oils, thus making the musk stronger. I would only suggest bathing when you really need to, like when they get into something messy. Other than that, you can maybe bathe them once a month if you really feel the need to. No more than once a month, though.

Getting rid of the odor in his ears is as easy as grooming him. You can clean his ears once every two or three months, but not more than that. If there is a significant odor coming from his ears, something isn't right to begin with and he should see a vet to have a check up. And you should only worry about cleaning his ears if the earwax is abundant. If not, just leave it be. It is a good idea to check his ears while you are trimming his nails or giving him a bath just to make sure it is a reddish brown color. If it is a light color, don't panic, that is okay too. You just need to worry about the really dark colored wax. Check with your vet and see if he will show you the proper way to do it. It takes some getting used to and can be scary for beginners.

Well, I hope I answered all your questions. If you need anything else, just let me know and I'd be happy to help. As a new ferret owner, I would suggest you pick up Ferrets for Dummies by Kim Schilling. It is a great resource and it will help you out a lot.


Sincerely,
Emilee Andrews


P.S.
You may have noticed that Rogue has a fetish for feet and shoes. Ferrets usually do. If he likes chewing on your shoes, you should put a stop to it. He couldl get the insoles out of shoes and eat them, which will cause an intestinal blockage which could (if it isn't caught in time) lead to a very bad end for your fuzzy. At the very least, it would mean a surgery to remove the ingested insoles, so that is just another thing to keep in mind!


Hi again Haley,

In my personal opinion, I'm not sure I would give a ferret raw venison. Are you talking raw meat right off the deer or processed meat that you would get after having a deer butchered? If you want to do just raw venison right off the deer, I would suggest otherwise. You never know where a deer has been and I wouldn't suggest just giving that to a ferret. Also, I've heard that venison is sometimes difficult for humans to digest, let alone a little fuzzy tummy. This could be totally wrong so I would do your own research in it first. I know that there is a type of Totally Ferret that has venison in it, so it may be just fine for you to give it, but I would read up on it first.

About giving mice to a ferret, you can buy frozen mice that were already humanely killed. That is the only option I have ever considered.

Here is a list of veterinarians from across the country (and the world):

http://www.ferret.org/links/vets.html

Hopefully that will help you in your search to find a veterinarian.

And I'm confused about this oil you put in his ears? There are cleaners out there that you can put in ferret's ears, but they aren't necessary on a weekly basis.

If you have any more questions, please don't hesitate to ask.


Sincerely,
Emilee Andrews