Q: "Are there any diseases or illnesses that could make it hard for
ferrets to eat bones?"
 
A: Yet another outstanding question!  Thanks for paying such close
attention to the series.  Any disease or illness that would make a ferret
have a problem with ANY diet would qualify as one that may cause problems
for ferrets eating bones.  The reason it is safe for ferrets to eat bones
is because the ferret's stomach acids dissolve the points and sharp
edges.  Any disease that would reduce the stomach pH could potentially
cause problems.
 
This is a great question, but one similar to the one about feeding bone
to ferrets with damaged teeth.  You should ALWAYS take your ferret to a
vet ANYTIME it is ill.  A ferret should see a vet at least once a year
for an annual checkup and vaccinations REGARDLESS of health.  Even if you
think your ferret is healthy (and it probably is), many diseases work
slowly, making it difficult for owners to recognize the trend until the
condition becomes serious.  The once per year examination gives your vet
the opportunity to KNOW your ferret and to track subtle changes over
time.  The cost of a yearly vet checkup might seem unjustified, but I can
state from experience that catching a disease in its early stages can be
much cheaper than trying to save the life of a ferret once it becomes
gravely ill.  It is worth the money.
 
In a very simplistic sense, there are two types of ferrets; those healthy
enough so dietary change questions are moot (eating bone, changes in
diet, caloric restriction, etc.), and those where the ferret is so ill
ANY change may cause problems.  While the questioner is NOT obtuse (I
read their entire email message and its pretty sharp), there are some
people so dense that ANY suggestion of dietary change in healthy ferrets
is always interpreted as if I advocate such changes in ill ferrets.
While that could be a possibility, it should never be done without the
supervision of a vet.  The bottom line is if your ferret is healthy,
just go slow and easy, and there should be few or no problems.  If your
ferret is ill, you MIGHT be able to make changes; just do it under the
supervision of a veterinarian.
 
Q: "I am STILL worried about bacteria on raw food...."
 
A: Eating bones keep teeth polished, exercise gums and support tissue,
and help wash the oral cavity with saliva, promoting a healthy oral
ecology.  This means chewing bones helps maintain a proper level and
diversity of oral bacteria.  One very interesting hypothesis (with an
increasingly growing body of supporting evidence) suggests oral bacteria
coevolved with mammals for their mutual benefit.  Similar to the
bacterial ecology of the bowel, the bacteria of the healthy mouth have
several functions, one of which is to help PREVENT colonization by
dangerous ("bad") bacteria.  This hypothesis is directly out of invading
species theory, which holds the success rate of an invading species is
extremely high in virgin soil situations, and very poor when trying to
enter regions inhabited by species already environmentally adapted to the
local conditions.  This same hypothesis predicts ferrets probably would
have gone feral in New Zealand (they did, with a little help from their
human friends), BUT would NOT go feral in most of the USA (in 300 years,
they have not).  A similar problem has been widely documented in women
who habitually douche in excess.  Dozens of confirmed studies show
over-douching is tied to bacterial infections, precisely because the
bacterial ecology of the vagina has been compromised allowing the
dangerous bacterial to colonize.  Bowel ecology is another supporting
case; the evidence supporting the importance of a healthy bacteria
ecology in the bowel, and the prevalence of infections and other problems
when that ecology has been upset, is overwhelming.
 
Some people have a very hard time understanding that a body (human,
ferret) is just another environment for invading parasites, bacteria,
and viruses.  The body has an ecology all of its own, which is different
depending on the state of health of the individual.  The oral ecology is
not just some accident of fate; it evolved over millions and millions of
years, and its presence has the ultimate effect of making the invasion
by dangerous bacteria more difficult.  If bone (or raw foods) promotes
oral health, then it--in effect--helps combat the very danger causing
the worry.  For example, just the washing effect of saliva flow can have
great benefit; many bacterial contaminants that would remain in the mouth
of a ferret consuming kibble would tend to be washed into the stomach of
a bone gnawer, where stomach acids could neutralize them.  In contrast,
kibble DOES NOT promote oral health.  It provides a food substrate for
bacteria, creates a place for bacteria to hide and grow, changes oral pH,
increases or decreases saliva flow, and changes dozens of other factors
impacting the oral ecology of an animal that evolved consuming a very
specific diet of animal bodies.  If you want evidence of the negative
impact of kibble on teeth, just consider the modern era problems of tooth
wear, plaque, gingivitis, periodontal disease consistently tied to kibble
diets.
 
Bob C
[Posted in FML issue 4170]