We mix our linatone with canola oil to cut down on the vit a & D content.
Olive oil can be used in place of the canola oil The concern with the pet
oil supplements is too much vit a.  We go through a lot of linatone, even
with mixing.  I buy it by the gallon and keep it in the fridge.
 
Both Flax Seed and Wheat Germ Oil can be purchased at health food stores.
A little bit goes a long way.
 
When Doc came to me the nylon collar he had on was permanent.  It had been
placed around his neck when he was younger and as he grew the collar became
so tight that he had difficulty swallowing so he wasn't able to eat
normally.  He was strangling from the tightness of the collar.  I've heard
of cases where the flesh had grown over collars that had been put on kits
and never loosened.  It's good to check collar sizes frequently,
particularly on growing kits.  Also, nylon collars will shrink when they
get wet.
 
Some ferrets do prefer different food shapes.  Our Coco Puff likes the
small flat oval shapes, some like nuggets and some like other shapes.
Ferret preference.  :-)
 
Scooby weighed in at 15 oz.  For his size that was underweight.  His head
and feet indicate he'll be a large boy.  454 grams = 1 lb, 28.36 grams = 1
ounce (actually 453.6 grams), 1 kilogram is 2.2 lbs (actually 2.205 lbs)
 
Just looking at Scooby we could tell he was malnutritioned.  His what
should have been a beautiful overcoat was sparse with broken hair, his coat
was dull, he had not energy, and we saw the outline of his ribs.  Kits
should be fat and sassy, not skinny and lethargic.  To the general public
most of this would go unnnoticed as it did by the petstore personnel.  Our
vet has since contacted the store manager, made a store visit, and had a
letter faxed to the home office.  The store manager has faxed a letter to
Marshall Farms about sending out the too young kits.  This was a mixed
batch of kits of which 3 were too young.
 
I'm happy to report that Scooby is doing well.  His deafness bothers me
though.  I want him to hear the birds chirping, squirrels chattering,
and other ferrets dooking.  But that will never be.  He doesn't know
any different but I do.  He gets tons of extra affection because of his
disability.  He has grown already and is happily exploring our home.  He's
discovered the prime sleeping quarters (under the tv stand, beside the big
cage in the carpeted cabin condo), did his first ferret dance promptly
falling over only to get up and do it again and again and again until one
of the big guys came over to see what that silly little thing was doing.
:-) He hops over the others and zooms into the tubes of safety.  He whips
around and faces them off.  They intern come at him from both ends of the
tube and he pushes past one only to run out that tube and into another.  He
is testing his climbing skill.  Only gets a couple inches off the floor and
then falls back down.  Clumsy as can be and a bit handicapped in the
agility field but he'll come around.  He's been put away, carried away and
put in his place by the others.  He's still not up to full strength for an
8 week old but he'll get there.  He is so very smart.  When he gets tired
he'll take himself into the front bedroom and put himself away in one of
the always open cages.  :-)
 
Warm hugs to all. tle
Troy Lynn Eckart
Ferret Family Services
http://www-personal.ksu.edu/~sprite/ffs.html
http://www.geocities.com/Petsburgh/Haven/5481/
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[Posted in FML issue 2991]