I'm no expert nutritionist here, I'm admitting that up front.  I feed my
ferrets nutriphase ferret food, it has banana chips in it.  I pick out
most of the larger pieces because I know now, that the sugar in fruit is
not good for them.  My ferrets are a picture of health.  Their fur is
very soft shiny and glossy.  It has the sparkle I told you about.  Their
weight is well maintained to the ounce.  Their teeth are in excellent
condition, but I attribute that to Cheweasels.  www.hyperfur.com .  I
rarely supplement with Ferretvite, only as an occasional treat when I
think about it.  I feel that a good quality food, should not need to be
supplemented.  I have tried a couple of other foods and here are my
limited findings:
 
Marshall: Nothing but crap!  I know this probably shocks those of you who
feed it.  I bought a Marshall kit and the food I was told to feed him for
one year.  It had given him gastric problems which had to be treated by a
vet.  I knew something was wrong with him when I first brought him home.
He was constantly eating and pooping every 10-15 minuets.  His stomach
was all bloated and the rest of his body was all thin and bony; the other
kits were in the same condition, so it wasn't just him.  It was as if he
was not getting any nutrition out of the food and was acting like he was
starving on it.  I have raised ferrets in the past and I know this is NOT
normal for a ferret kit.  I noticed the food floated when I soaked it and
it made the water all foamy at the top.  I immediately threw out the food
along with the one year guarantee and switched him to Nutriphase.  He
started to improve almost right away.  I think Marshall puts a lot of
fillers in the food.  Maybe to sell more food and make more money?
 
Kaytee Forti-Diet: I think the food is comparable to Nutriphase (minus
the Banana chips).  It's more expensive than the Nutri so that is why I
don't buy it.
 
Kaytee Fiesta Blend: Nothing but crap.  I never bought it, but I have
seen ferrets that were fed it.  They were obese and their fur was dull
and greasy looking.  It felt rough, stiff, and wiry to the hand.  I have
seen also seen this condition in ferrets being fed low quality cat food.
 
8 in 1 Ultra blend: It looks to be nothing but crap too.  So I admit I
have never even tried it.
 
Totally Ferret: My ferrets totally wouldn't touch it, so I can't say if
it was any good or not.
 
Zupreem: Probably good, but my Baby got an intestinal blockage from the
defective plastic jug it came in.  She almost died, so I cannot bring
myself to buy it again.
 
Well I'm sure there are a lot of other good quality foods out there, I
would go broke buying them.  I think Nutriphase is the best in terms of
quality and price.  I just wish they would stop putting in the banana
chips.
 
Pam
Baby n Bandit
[Posted in FML issue 4653]