Food Makes Ferret Stinky?

Question
Do u operate the farret rescue in Phoenix? And if so than what would u suggest be the best kind of food for mine so that he would not smell so bad?

Answer
Hi Danita:

No, I don't live in Phoenix, nor do I operate a shelter. I'm just a ferret mom who loves her kids dearly trying to help other ferret moms who may learn from my experience, so they don't have to learn the hard way, like some of my lessons were :-)

Some folks say that Marshalls and Mazuri foods or any that contain high quantities of fish can make a ferret's litterbox stinkier than a high quality food that is chicken based.  I never noticed much of a difference myself, but my kids prefer chicken foods.

I would encourage you to make sure that your ferret is eating a top quality, premium ferret food such as Totally Ferret, Path Valley Farms (get it on their website), Zupreem, and even Marshalls and Mazuri. Some ferrets will only eat what they have had since they were babies because they "imprint" on their food as kits (babies) and it's really hard to change them over to a new food.  

Here's a great food list so you can see the various ingredients in them.

         http://www.ohioferret.org/INFO/nutri.asp

Ferrets are "obligate carnivores", which means they MUST eat meat and anything other than meat is wasted and they do not get ANY nutrition from.   So, animal nutritionists who specialize in ferrets suggest that FOUR out of the FIRST FIVE INGREDIENTS listed on the label be chicken, turkey, liver, fish (any meat), even 'meat byproducts' and 'chicken digest' and things like that count as a meat because they are various parts of animals, not the 'prime' parts, but lots of nutrition regardless.

If you see by the chart that your ferret is not on a good diet, you CAN change them over, but it takes a little work.  Get a bag of the food you want to change your ferret over to (in your case, one where fish is down far or NOT on the list at all - ingredients are listed as the first ingredient is the one that the kibble is mostly comprised of, the second one listed is the second highest amount, and so on.....so if it has fish, but it is waaaay down on the list, it may not give a fishy smell - but there ARE foods without fish in them too that you just may want to stick since your nose is sensitive :-)

Once you've gotten the new bag of new food. Fill your ferret's bowl with his regular and put just a few kibbles of the new food in the bowl - even try giving him a few by hand...maybe he will think it is a new 'treat'. Each time you refill the bowl, put just a few less pieces of the old food and a few more pieces of the new food.

You can also take some of each food and mix them together in a bag and shake really well - maybe even put some in the blender until it is in tiny pieces and mix this in with regular food - that way the smells/tastes kind of blend together and the ferret can't tell one from the other after a while.  Usually with time (sometimes it takes six months, so don't give up), you can change them over and if your ferret hasn't been on a premium food (the "4 out of 5 rule"), it is *definitely* worthwhile to change them over - the ferret WILL have a healthier, most likely longer life.  Over time, spending the extra money on better food instead of vet bills really IS worthwhile.

Now, the other thing you were asking about - there is a family in the Phoenix area that are very helpful, and it would be a great idea to get in touch with them, maybe even volunteer if you have an occasional hour or two. You will learn more hanging around a shelter than any other place, so consider the time you spend there as being in 'ferret college' :-).

The best folks to contact in the Phoenix area Julie and Kevin here:

http://www.wuzzles.com/ferrets/wuzzle_cam/wuzzle_cam1/320x240_streaming.htm

You can even watch their 24 hour ferret cam! They have quite a setup.   They would be the folks to ask about other current shelters in the Phoenix areas. Other lists I checked seemed to be sadly short of Phoenix listings :-(  Maybe you can work with Julie and Kevin and get a shelter going of your own eventually!  We just never know - these furry little critters sure do steal hearts!!

If there is anything at all I can do to further assist you, please don't hesitate to write again, Danita!

Best of luck with that litle one! Sounds like she is in great hands!

Sincerely,
Jacquie Rodgers

Chere Gruver
454 No. 95th Pl.
Mesa
AZ
85207
480-986-3212