Best Ferret Food?

[Hawkmaster]

Some people feed meat others pellets, what is the best and why?

[North East Harris Hawker]

oh, and do them star shaped ferret buscuits really stop your ferrets from reeking?

[Gaz]

I feed fur and feather,with soaked dry food as a change & catfood as treat.(try a raw egg,whole with shell on if you want a laugh!!) :mrgreen:

[Hawkmaster]

I have noticed the ones that eat meat, bite when they smell chick on your hands.

[North East Harris Hawker]

heheh, hawkmaster you must have the same luck as me, even the ones that "dont bite" seem to take a chunk out of me! my last one used to hiss at me, i got hacked off trying to handle it all the time cos of its biting, funny thing it was fine with anyone else! :oops:

[Jiff]

you"ve always got to be carefull when feeding,my two are becoming very tame now but if there"s food on my finger,it"s dinner as far as they"re concerned,i never try and chastise the ferret for this as its my own fault,
as far as food goes i feed cat food almost all the time its easy and you can buy a six pack for two quid,if they start to get a bit loose in theire motions i"ll make a small change may be some mixer or as was mentioned a bit of dry complete food,i dont like to feed quary species,some do and im not knocking it but once hunting i dont like the quary/food association.as for the smell,i use cat litter in the toilet area,i clean out daily which is a five minute job with cat litter,and if somthing happens preventing you from cleaning out for a day theres no smell with cat litter,ferrets have a musky smell 24/7 as they"re equiped with musk glands,and if you seriously upset one you"ll know how it feels,however my sister kept a ferret in the house with her cats for a lot of years,she bathed them on a regular basis and there was never a musky smell left on you"re hands or cloths,gaz i used to feed eggs but they take some cleaning out after eggs,some people have fed bread and milk,cows milk isnt good for ferrets and you"ll see it in the toilet mess that you end up with,to just end like all things i dont think its important what you feed but a ballanced diet is,thats why i like cat food,some company has payed some bloke to make a ballanced food and put it in a tin.

[Mary Quite Contrary]

Hi
Personally my ferrets are fed on a dry food diet with the odd piece of liver, baby chick and steak. My ferrets do not bite even when my hands are covered in blood from a piece of fresh, warm rabbit liver. This stems from the handling they have recieved when they where Kits. If you spend a bit of time getting them used to you by letting them lick cream or milk from your fingers when they are young they will be 100% and will never bite you when they are older.

[North East Harris Hawker]

i used to feed my last ferret on dog food (meat and mix) with the odd bit of bunny and the odd chick, he seemeed happy enough

[Jiff]

ferrets have strange constitutions and will eat just about anything but its up to the handler to give them the right stuff,my mate mark dunn sounds like he knows he"s stuff,and a varied diet is a good idea,i"m glad we have another experianced ferreter on line as we dont all do it the same way and varying opinions add up to multiple options for varying problems. :wink:

[Darren]

what is the healthest diet for them dry food or fur & feather?

[North East Harris Hawker]

if they are related to cats cant you just feed them whiskers?

[Sparrow Hawker]

One thing that is very noticeable is that when ferrets are fed on a dry food diet the amount of water they need to drink is very high, I have had problems in the past with ferrets suffering from Kidney problems and am wondering whether dry diets are causing problems!

Recently my line of thought is to provide my ferrets a meat-based diet as much as possible after all they are carnivorous!

A ferret’s protein requirement after 3 years of age dramatically reduces after all they need a maintenance diet. I believe the dry diets especially designed for ferrets are too high in protein for older ferrets and the oil content in the diet is too low.

I have also found that my ferrets, which were fed on a dry diet, had discoloured teeth etc.

May just be a coincidence!

Regards,

HH

[Jiff]

some good points there,especialy the water,it's very important to make sure there's plenty of water available to ferrets fed a dry diet,and not just ferrets,dogs,cats or anyother animal fed a dry diet will dehidrate through the digestion of the food,never experienced any problems that i could relate directly to dry food.having said that,i feed a variety of foods,usualy all aimed at cats,N.E.wiskas,felix any will do.about the protein content,i've found in the past that a protein rich diet even to hard working young ferrets causes loose motions it's not an easy subject to nail down,my own preferance is to vary the food,my position at the moment means that monday to friday i can give the ferrets alot of attention so ill feed little and often using tined cat food,or bits and bobs from the butcher, sat and sun i'm tied up all day so i'll fill a bowl with dry food fill two drinkers and leave them knowing they'r fed and watered,i have no problem with fly blown food as the dry stuff doesnt attract them.

[Ian Wileman]

I firmly believe that I (along with anyone else who is not an animal nutritionalist), should leave it to the experts! After all, they are payed vast amounts of money to do what they do, and generally not only have a better idea about it than me, but also, generally get it right! The ferrets digestive system is very active and works quickly. The dried diets on the market for ferrets are made with this in mind, whereas dried (and standard) cat foods are not. The cats digestive system is slower working and the dried diets made for cats are passed from the ferrets gut before they can be used to their best, only partially digested (or used up). Dried cat foods are made for......you guessed it.....cats! Ferrets are no more closely related to cats than they are dogs. All are carnivores. Thats about as close as it gets. To put it into perspective, how many of you have ferrets that even slightly resemble say.......a tiger!

[Bill]

Afraid my cynical side says manufacturers of dried food will tell that that is the only way to fully meet your ferrets needs.

They do need a varied diet though and the old bread and milk diet was definitely ****.

[Ian Wileman]

Not listening to the manufacturers matey. Two good friends...one works in Univertsity with rats and mice (but used to work in Royal Liverpool Hospital with ferrets). Another is a government vet (writes for Dog World magazine as well - would rather cut off left hand than give bad advice). Both say what I have said above....as I said, I know very little.....they know very lot!

[Jiff]

i've always had in the back of my mind that the ferret was of the same genus as the cat don't know how it got there must have been somthing i read many moons ago,never the less i didnt think that the digestive system would be greatly different as cats eat little and often which would indicate a quick passage of food,don't want a debate these are things i've based other ideas on in the past and if i stand corrected then i appreciate the input.

[Ian Wileman]

Cats are feline (i.e. Felix sylvestrus for Scotish Wildcat if I remeber right) and ferrets are Mustalid (Mustella putoriuos for polecat I think?). No more related than say a rat and a rabbit I guess.

[Darren]

areny ferrets related to badgers?

[Ian Wileman]

Ferrets, weasels, mink, badger, otter, martin, sable, wolverine. All mustalid, and related, some closer than others.

[Sighthound]

I always try and feed mine fresh meat, after all they are carnivores.
Dry food is ok for emergencies and for use in hot weather (reduces flies).
Dry food IMHO is bad for the kidneys you only have to look at the water bottle level go down when feeding it! If I have to feed it moisten it first.
Feeding good food to ferrets is often overlooked you can tell the difference in the coat and vitality of the ferret.
Good ferrets worked hard deserve better than dry food and besides if worked regular they should bolt enough to feed themselves as well as providing food for yourself...rabbit curry...mmmmm

[Bill]

Not listening to the manufacturers matey. Two good friends...one works in Univertsity with rats and mice (but used to work in Royal Liverpool Hospital with ferrets). Another is a government vet (writes for Dog World magazine as well - would rather cut off left hand than give bad advice). Both say what I have said above....as I said, I know very little.....they know very lot!

INDEPENDANT ADVICE! I'll go for that, thanks Ian

Feeding meat - yes ferrets are carnivores but they don't go shopping at the local butcher. A natural diet would be whole small rodents, birds, insects maybe and the odd rabbit.

[Sighthound]

lol...i know they don't go shopping at the local butcher.
Indeed feeding lean beef is bad for the ferret. Ferrets need roughage,skin bone, eggs etc.
I'm not knocking dry food it's handy as a standby, all I'm saying is you can see the difference in the ferrets when fed a varied flesh based diet.
Also pet food manufactures are running a business they need a healthy profit margin, cheap food will mean cheap ingredients.

[Ian Wileman]

Must beg to differ sighthound, you have not seen my polecats. I defy you to find fitter, more active animals. There main diet is a scientifically prepared dried food. These diets stem from millions of pounds worth of scientific research, primarily begun for use on rare species kept in captivity in zoological and private collections (for example the black-footed ferret). They are most definately not cheap! I can buy mince, chicks, cat food etc for a quarter of the price. Sorry mate, just think I dont know best and therefore leave important decisions to the experts.

[Sighthound]

We must agree to differ then Ian, the main thing is your looking after your ferrets well.
Although I'm reminded of a quote from the radio tonight about the late Brian Clough, 'if we disagree we can discuss the matter like adults and then decide that I am right'.
Only kidding! :lol:

[Ian Wileman]

Well, you took the words right out of my mouth kiddo!

[Sparrow Hawker]

Hi Ian,

What diet do you feed your ferrets on?

Regards,

HH

[Ian Wileman]

Hi HH. To be honest I feed them on 'Frankie Ferret'. I know, a very sad name for ferret food, but I did not name it. THe thing is, if you look at the nutritional analysis on the slip attached to a bulk bag, you will find they are all about the same. Similar protein, fiber, calcium contents etc. so I dont suppose it really matters too much. The thing is, they are all about the same, BECAUSE they work! If they didnt, they would not sell and therefore would be changed. Try some FF. Dont buy James Wellbeloved, you are buying the same stuff in a fancy bag.

[North East Harris Hawker]

Ferrets, weasels, mink, badger, otter, martin, sable, wolverine. All mustalid, and related, some closer than others.
if there is a relationship here then perhaps it would pay off to look up the dietry habits of these creatures for comparison?

[Ian Wileman]

In the wild or in captivity? In the wild most are carnivores (but some are a little more opportunistic and will eat other food types (such as berries etc). In captivity (particularly in zoological establishments) the bulk of their diets is pelleted. This is convenient for the keepers, clean, and there is very little waste. The stuff you see (in dishes or around the cages) is there for YOU! The general public have it in their heads that certain animals eat certain foods, so to avoid constant questions about the pellets to keepers (taking up valuable time), the animals are given daily 'treats' of chicks, mince etc. which is fine, as I have said, but there BALANCED diet, held behind the scenes for when YOU are not there, is PELLET!!!!!

[Sighthound]

http://www.api4animals.org/79.htm

Interesting

[Fox]

Yes, sounds the same as the sausages we eat, every sausage has an intestine round it, pork pies, cornish pasties.

I have some ferrets that will only eat dryed food even if they are given both dry and meat at the same time. On the other hand i have some that will only eat meat and not dryed.

They are all differant, but they all work as good as each other.

[North East Harris Hawker]

seems every ferret that i pick up has been fed on fingers! AND they are hungry! good job i have a sense of humour!

[Ian Wileman]

Sighthound, I have looked at the sight above. VERY interesting indeed. Do you belive everything you read? If so, why not visit the league against cruel sports web sight, then I will buy your birds off you when you sell up.

[Sighthound]

........a bit touchy are we not Ian?
I did not comment about the website.
Surely it is no different from believing everything the manufacturers tell us?

[Ian Wileman]

I dont. I believe the opinion of one of the countries top vets ( afriend who has no reason to make things up), and a man who worked with ferrets in a hospital research lab for ten years (also a friend, again with no reason to make things up and nothing but the health of my animals to gain from). Sorry, not touchy, just making sure that anyone else who goes to the site you posted is aware of the fact that my information comes from very knowledgable individuals with no grip, nothing to sell, and no reason to make things up. I cannot be so sure of anyone else.

[Hawkmaster]

One of the countries top vets? HE IS THE TOP RAPTOR VET! lol

[LanczSpringer]

Hi

I feed mine on james wellbeloved ferret dry food!
I do see the points about the water level but if you keep the bottle always toped up I dont see much of a problem.

I do also give them the occasinal meat treat and 1/3 of a rabbit or some mince meat but they love chicken carcasses! they eat the lot.

The good thing with dry food is in the summer its much longer life than meat

I also leave them to eat as much dry food as they want with the bowl topped up daily. I think doing this means that when they do get a meat treat it stops them hiding it in their bed for it to get hiden and not cleaned out if not eaten!

as someone said they are the experts in animal food so they must know more than i do!

[Miguel Gomez]

Re Feeding ferrets,
A varied diet is a must! and the comments about water are very important, also keeping ferrets out of strong sunlight and drafts is essential. Cat biscuits with a small amount (1 teaspoon) of sunflower oil mixed in helps to improve their coats, and once a week, I slice up a banana and mix it with the cat biscuits.
A bowl of cool tea (a pinch of sugar) also gets consumed very quickly. and anything in the raw vegetable/salad line that the good lady would normally throw away can be tried.
If it gets consumed, you know they like it.
Rabbit/occasional raw egg, day old chicks(skinned) pheasant carcass,are good, but the cat biscuits are a favorite, as they don't go off like raw meat.
I use stone dog bowls for food and water, using two bowls for water, as these bowls are heavy, and don't get tipped over.

[CastleFalconry]

I tend to feed James Wellbeloved dried food as the main, with some raw meat and veggies as treats. They tend to love the dried fruits (apricots and bananas in particular!

Foor food bowls I use new London Bricks (the ones with the big groove in). I've never had a ferret turn one over yet!! Bottles for water, keeps it cleam and fresh. If I put a bowl of water in with them it soon turns into a paddling pool and I have a collection of hysterical ferrets. Good for entertainment value!!