>I understand the health benefits, etc.  The problem that I have found is
>that I can't seem to find any "pre-killed" mice....
>My ferrets are all completely happy with eating meat.  They get the canned
>ferret or cat foods combined with meat baby foods in addition to their
>regular kibble.  Chicken bones, cooked chicken and other meat is offered
>when it is cooked...
 
If your ferrets can't figure out how to kill the mouse, the most humane way
to kill one that I've found is to put it in a sock and swing the sock into
something.  This stuns or kills the mouse.  Many people also use freezers,
but that bothers me.  If nothing else, find a cat.  :-)
 
Mice that are being sold for snake food are certified healthy by the
supplier (if they're any good, anyway), and any serious diseases should
be rare.  Very few are zoonotic between ferrets and mice.  Maybe someone
else has more information on this one than I do?
 
Depending on where you live, it would probably be more humane to kill the
mouse than to release it.
[Posted in FML issue 2756]