>They can eat a high quality ferret or kitten food, be trained to use a
>litter box and can be kept in a cage.
 
Ferrets are not cats.  Cats are not ferrets.  Cats have a more advanced
digestive system containing a caecum, ferrets do not.  Cats have a slower
digestive process than do ferrets.  Cat food is specifically designed to
meet the nutritional needs of cats.  It is not designed to meet the unique
nutritional needs of ferrets.  Knowing all of that, it is foolish to
continue to maintain that ferrets can eat cat food and remain healthy.
When ferrets originally became popular as pets, there weren't many
reliable ferret foods commercially available and cat food was the closest
substitute.  That is not true anymore.  There are good commercial ferret
foods designed specifically to meet the unique digestive and nutritional
needs and ferrets available, and it should be fed to ferrets over cat food.
 
It is time to end the myth that ferrets can be fed cat food and remain
nutritionally healthy.  Poor nutrition can directly lead to poor health.
It is that simple.
[Posted in FML issue 3087]