I'm the worst.  My group has a special cereal bowl I add a bit to each
morning and evening.  They happily munch their sweet treat, eyes closed,
head slowly rocking from side to side, utter contentment.  They eat their
recipe that way too.
 
When Bob first posted his chicken gravy recipe I eagerly prepared it.
One batch lasted one day.  The simple fact was I couldn't afford to feed
chicken gravy to the entire group, not financially, time-wise or energy
in making it.  I'm not lazy, but I am very busy with other aspects of
ferret care.
 
I've experienced how difficult it is for a ferret to change foods or to
find one that they will willingly eat, hence I feed a wide variety of
foods, including ferret, cat, kitten, one kind of dog food (in moderation
but it helps to entice them to eat other foods), and the recipes I make -
one with baby food and the other with SD A/D, ground kibble and
supplements.
 
Do I feel guilty or does this make me a bad caretaker because I don't
feed a more natural diet?  I don't think so though others thoughts on the
subject may differ and each of us is rightly entitled to our own thoughts
and beliefs.
 
The picture on my webpage shows older ferrets in 1995.  I look at those
in that picture and see that they don't look as good as the oldsters I
have now.  Since that time I've added new foods, the recipes, and more
ferret diets have come on the market.
 
In my observations (not scientific by far) in our home it isn't only the
diet that is involved in ferret health, it's tlc, exercise,
socialization, stimulation, love and proper vet and supportive care.
 
hugs. tle
Troy Lynn Eckart, F.B.S.
Ferret Family Services
http://www.ferretfamilyservices.org
http://www-personal.ksu.edu/~sprite/ffs.html
http://www.geocities.com/Petsburgh/Haven/5481/
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[Posted in FML issue 3945]