Looks like its time for me to compile the various different ferret show
standards.  I'll try to get that done this weekend...
 
Scott Maitland described his ferret:
Sounds like a Sable Self or Sable Solid, Two ways to describe a ferret that
doesn't have a distinct color difference between the points (legs and tail)
and the torso.  If their is a difference and it isn't a big difference the
pattern is called Standard.  If there is a big difference its a Point, and
if the difference is even bigger it is a Fine Point.  A Siamese pattern is
a Point or Fine Point.
 
Sable is very dark brown to appearing black.  Chocolate is a more medium
brown.  Champagne is a lighter brown to beige.  Cinnamon is a champagne
color with distinct red in it.  Several show standards don't distinguish
between Cinnamon and Champagne however.  In England the Champagne is called
Sandy.
 
In the AFA standard a Black Sable has a white to grey undercoat and a
Sable has a cream to yellow undercoat.  Often really hard to tell on
borderline cases and it really doesn't matter. (As if any of this does...)
 
I'll get into the Silver, Mitts and special patterns later.
 
Not to really contradict Rudy but some Pandas start out as Blazes.  Our
Bodhisattva is a summer time Blaze (Shetland or Badger) and a winter time
Panda.  I've shown you this ferret Rudy but you might not remember which
he was...
 
I'll also do a fuller discussions of foods later this week.  But for now.
We use three foods in our household.  We use a high quality ferret food
(Totally Ferret or you could use 8in1, Mazuri, or Marshalls) for ferrets
that need 'extra' protein and fat like kits, nursing or pregnant jills and
sick ferrets.  We use a high quality kitten food (Iam's or you could use Pro
Plan and probably others) for ferrets that need extra but not as much as
those that need the ferret food.  Finally we use a high quality cat food
(Iams, or you could use Pro Plan or others.  Nutro Max Kitten is in this
category since it more closely matches the ingredients of these cat foods)
for the average adult or older adult ferret.  We sometimes mix the levels
and all so it isn't a hard fast rule on who gets what.  Most people will
attest that we have no problem with weak small ferrets or ferrets with bad
coats :^)
 
bill and diane killian
zen and the art of ferrets
[Posted in FML issue 1388]