>From:    Ann Haager <[log in to unmask]>
>
>Can anyone tell me about Natural Gold ferret food by Pretty Pets?  I had
>heard a little bit about it when it first came out, or at least everyone
>was wanting it at that point.  Where does it rank on the list of best
>food choices for ferret kibble?  Any opinions? ...
 
I am a distributor for Natural Gold and did quite a bit of research
before I decided to be a distributor.  I personally think it's one of
the best ferret foods on the market.  It has a high amount of protein,
which is all from meat sources, and has a very low carb content.  The
early formulation of it was not received very well.  The food had a very
sweet, fruity smell, and caused the ferrets to have very loose and even
runny stools.  That has since been remedied and the new formula is much
better.
 
There has been a lot of talk about carbs recently in both the human diet
and ferret diet.  Carbs are digested rather quickly and causes a spike in
blood glucose levels.  Once the carbs are digested, blood glucose takes a
nose dive.  That's why people tend to get a rush of energy, then bottom
out when a large amount of carbs are consumed.  There has also been
research going on that links high carb diets to insulinoma.  Most ferret
foods contain over 25% carbs, NG has less than 7%.
 
The protein in NG comes from human grade chicken and pork, not from
grain sources like most ferret foods.  There is no corn or rice in NG,
making the food much more digestible than other foods.  Since NG is more
nutritionally complete than most ferret foods, they eat less of the NG
but still maintain or even increase their body weight.
 
Pretty Pets tried to create the same nutritional content contained in a
mouse in kibble form.  Since ferrets are carnivores and cannot digest
fruits, vegetables, or grain products such as rice and corn, NG contains
none of these.
 
I've had my 14 kids on NG for about a year and a half, although I do mix
it with other foods.  However, their kibble diet is 75% NG, plus they
also get chicken gravy.  Since switching over, their kibble consumption
has decreased by about 30%, their coats are much softer, and I've noticed
less flab, more muscle and a lot more energy (which may not be such a
good thing when you have 14!)
 
I recently took in 2 rescue ferrets and am fostering them until our
shelter mom comes back from vacation.  These poor babies were on a diet
of Chef's Blend cat food and had horrible coats.  After only a week of
NG, their coats are much softer and they are eating much less but yet
their weight has increased.
 
Bob Church also did many posts about NG on the FML.  If you search the
archives you'll find them.
 
Please feel free to email me if you have any questions or if you would
like pricing information.  I donate a portion of the proceeds of my sales
to several ferret shelters.
 
Connie
Distributor for Natural Gold Ferret Food
[Posted in FML issue 4961]