Sukie wrote:  
>The risk for stones connected to grains is specifically when the
>amount of plant matter is very high, not for lower levels. Moderation
>in all things.

It is true that small amount of grains in a food may not pose a
problem. But, because meat products are usually weighed wet, and grains
dry, even if grains are the third ingredient in the list, by volume
they may comprise 50% of the ingredients. And, because by volume grains
have about the same amount of protein as meat, the protein may be
coming as much from grains as from the meat.

Some people worry about protein levels being too high, and actually
contributing to kidney failure. But, in cats they have found it is not
the protein level, but the source of proteins that is the problem. Cat
foods that contain a large percentage of plant protein are far more
likely to cause renal problems that foods that have higher protein
levels, but the majority of the protein comes from meat and meat
products.

There is another potential problem with grains in food. Grains are
known to be one of the items causing the highest percentage in cats,
dogs and humans. I do not know of any studies on ferrets and food
allergies, but it stands to reason that grains may also be a high
contributor to food allergies.

I used to think I had a lot of ferrets with chicken allergies, because
I had ferrets that had poop problems eating foods that contained
chicken. I switched those ferrets to turkey baby food, and the problems
cleared up. Later, when some of the grain free foods came out, I found
those ferrets could eat those kibbles without problems, even though
they were primarily chicken based.

The bottom line is, ferrets are not omnivores, they are carnivores, and
in particular, they are obligate carnivores. Their digestive system
is not made to handle plant matter efficiently. The ideal diet would
contain little or no plant matter. Unfortunately, in order to make a
kibbled food, some kind of plant matter is required. So, choosing a
kibble that contains plant matter that has lower protein levels will
ensure that the ferret is getting more of their protein from meat based
products, rather than from plants, and grains tend to have more protein
that many other plant matter found in kibbles.

And, there are now a number of kibbled foods that are grain free,
and although some of them are labeled for cats, they work fine with
ferrets. The ones I generally recommend and use myself are:

Orijen - Cat & Kitten
<http://www.orijen.ca/orijen/products/catkitten.aspx>

Nature's Variety Instinct - Nature's Variety Instinct:
Grain-Free Kibble Diets for Cats | Nature's Variety
<http://www.naturesvariety.com/Instinct/cat/kibble/all> 

Wellness CORE - WellnessR CORER Fish & Fowl for Adult Cats & Kittens
<http://www.wellnesspetfood.com/product-details.aspx?pet=cat&pid=23> 

EVO (either cat or ferret variety) - Meat-Based Pet Food - Premium Dog
Food, Cat Food, Ferret Food, Dog Treats - EVO Pet Products
<http://www.evopet.com/products/default.asp?id=1502> 

Wysong Archetypal 1 - Wysong Archetypal-1T - Natural, Raw Ferret Food
<http://www.wysong.net/products/archetypal-1-natural-healthy-ferret-food.php>
     
There are 3 foods that I do not currently use, but also recommend as
healthy:
Pretty Pets Natural Gold - Pretty Bird Shopping Cart
<http://prettybird.com.ashopcart.com/catalogue.php?exp=7|28|&cat=42&shop=1> 

Ziwi Peak - Natural Range Of Premium Pet-food Products - Ziwipeak -
Natural New Zealand Pet Nutrition
<http://www.ziwipeak.com/nzl/cuisinefamily.shtml> 

There are also a number of canned foods that can be used. At one time
it was thought that feeding a canned food was bad for the teeth, and
that feeding kibble would clean teeth. This has since been proven to
be incorrect. Kibble can cause unnatural wear patterns of the teeth,
and can also scratch the enamel, causing the formation of tartar. So
regardless of what type of food is fed, proper dental hygiene should
be followed.

Some of the better canned foods I recommend are:
Wysong canned meats - Wysong Au JusT Diets - Natural Dog, Cat, Ferret
Food
<http://www.wysong.net/products/aujus-natural-healthy-dog-cat-ferret-food.php>

Merrick Before Grains cat foods - Merrick Pet Foods - Dry Dog Food
<http://www.merrickpetcare.com/store/bg_canned_cat_food_32.php>

EVO canned meats - Meat-Based Pet Food - Premium Dog Food, Cat Food,
Ferret Food, Dog Treats - EVO Pet Products
<http://www.evopet.com/products/default.asp?id=1662>

Wellness CORE canned - WellnessR CORER Chicken Turkey & Chicken Liver
Recipe
<http://www.wellnesspetfood.com/product-details.aspx?pet=cat&pid=16&dm=grainfree>

Nature's Variety canned meats - Nature's Variety Instinct:
Grain-Free Canned Diets for Cats | Nature's Variety
<http://www.naturesvariety.com/Instinct/cat/can/all>

With the wide variety of grain free foods available, there is really no
reason to feed a food that contains grains.

As for Totally Ferret, as I said, I respect them as a company for all
they do. However, until they catch up with the times and start offering
a grain free kibble, I will not be using their products.

Danee DeVore
ADV - If your ferret hasn't been tested, you don't know!
For more information visit:
http://www.ferretadv.com
ADV - Find out how you can help:
http://help4adv.terrabox.com/

[Posted in FML 6840]