>My only question is, can any harm come from him eating seaweed?  I know
>it's a good source of iodine, but I'm unsure how much iodine a ferret
>needs.  I am hesitant to give him more than a few pieces of seaweed a
>day for fear he might get sick or the seaweed might stick in his throat.
>Anyone have any thoughts?
 
Dear Crystal:
 
A couple of small pieces daily won't hurt - realize however, that it is
mostly fiber and has little nutritive value for a ferret, so if it starts
to interfere with his normal diet, we turn off the supply.
 
Some forms of seaweed are excellent forms of iodine.  As long as he is a
healthy ferret with no kidney disease, and no thyroid disease (which is
extremely rare in ferrets) he should easily handle the iodine load.
 
With kidnest regards,
Bruce Williams, DVM
[Posted in FML issue 3197]