Julie Brown wrote:
>This looks great on paper- I can hardly wait to try it. Buying some
>tonight!

After looking over all the information on it, it may not be as good as
it sounds. While the first formula has meat sources as its first 3
ingredients, the fourth item is vegetable protein. Vegetable protein is
every bit as bad for ferrets as starches. Vegetable protein is a known
cause of some types of bladder and kidney stones in ferrets. Before
trying this food, I would definitely want to know what percentage of
the 60% protein comes from vegetable protein.

The ferret's digestive tract is not built to digest plant matter well.
So, if even 20% of that 60% protein is from plant matter, the available
protein content for a ferret is actually much lower.

Also, the fat content is only 11%. That may be fine for cats and dogs,
but ferrets need a much higher fat content. I try to use foods where
the fat content is 20% or higher.

Here is an excerpt from Dr. Susan Brown's online article, Rethinking
the Ferret Diet.
http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&A=479&S=1&SourceID=43

>Because of the short GI tract and the poor absorption of nutrients,
>ferrets require a diet that is highly concentrated with FAT as the
>main source of calories (energy) and highly digestible MEAT-BASED
>PROTEIN. This would match the basic composition of a prey animal not
>excluding the essential vitamins and minerals it also contains.
>Ferrets should never be fed carbohydrates (such as vegetable, fruit
>or grains) as the main source of energy in the diet. Ferrets cannot
>digest fiber, as is found in some vegetable and fruit sources. If
>there is a significant amount of fiber in the diet it serves to lower
>the nutritional value of the food. As mentioned, ferrets need a highly
>digestible meat-based protein in the diet. Vegetable protein is poorly
>utilized. In the presence of excess vegetable protein the ferret can
>suffer from such diseases as bladder stones, poor coat and skin
>quality, eosinophilic gastroenteritis (wasting, diarrhea, ulcerations
>of the skin and ear tips and swollen feet) poor growth of kits and
>decreased reproduction. Dog food and vegetarian-type pet foods are
>completely inappropriate for use in ferrets because of the high level
>of vegetable protein and fiber. The bottom line is that ferrets use
>fat for energy not carbohydrates and they need a highly digestible
>meat-based protein not vegetable protein.

Finally, if the protein content is 60%, and the fat content is 11%,
what is the missing 29%. Could it be carbohydrates? Starch is a
carbohydrate, but not the only carbohydrate. If the missing 29% is
carbohydrate, that is pretty high.

Given this, I (personally) would opt for a food like EVO Ferret or Cat,
where the protein level is only 50.2% and the fat is 22.53%. This will
actually have a slightly lower carbohydrate percentage, Plus, EVO
claims that 95% of the protein comes from animal sources - and so is
a much healthier food for an obligate carnivore like a ferret.

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 6770]