Me again.
 
I have been involved in a debate with a really nice guy on the Anatolian
Shepherd mailing list.  He works in a zoo in California, and which maintains
a group of ferrets (I assume domestic ones).  We've been talking about why
ferrets are unlikely to establish breeding populations in California.  I've
been sharing what I've learned lately on this list, plus my opinion about
why ferrets make good pets.  But he disagreed with my statement that ferrets
are carnivores, saying:
 
>Actually that is far from true. They are omnivores and thrive on finely
>chopped fruits and vegetables and really like meat. They can survive in
>the wild which is why California banned them.
 
Well, he seems to have come around on the question of establishing breeding
populations in the US, but in regard to diet, he says:
 
>I can only go by what the ferrets at the Folsom Zoo and San Fransisco Zoo
>eat and by the recomended diet of Matsura (sp) and Spectrum.  They are
>producers of professional animal feeds and supplements.  Ours daily eat a
>variety of two fruits and two vegetables with aproximately 1/10 pound meat
>(for four ferrets).  They do have free access to cat food for midnight
>snacks, etc.  but they eat very little of it.  These ferrets came from a
>variety of places so there was no "family fetish" for natural foods.
 
Well, we all know our ferrets love raisins, and some like a bit of potato or
mushroom, but "thriving" on fruits and vegetables? What do you all think?
 
Sue Kocher
[Posted in FML issue 1517]