>From:    Kerri Sher <[log in to unmask]>
>
>I have some friends who are currently doing their vet. internships.
>They recently attended a seminar on exotic animals where the person
>instructed them that ferrets should never be fed cat or kitten food.
>They were told that ferrets can develop crystals in their urinary tract
>from it just as cats can... I wondered what the rest of the ferret
>community thinks of this...
 
Hi.  I've had 9 ferrets all live on Iams kitten (we started out in a
Michigan when ferrets were illegal, and it's all I could get).  My oldest
passed away 2 weeks shy of her ninth birtday.  The others are between 6
and 8.  None of them have had any urinary tract infections or crystals.
 
My vet suggested I switch them to Totally Ferret, or any other ferret
specific food.  But, of course, none of my Business will touch it.  I
swear they would all rather starve than eat anything other than Iams.
 
I wouldn't worry about mixing Iams in with a high quality ferret food.
Feed them whatever they want to eat.
 
Jeffery
[Posted in FML issue 3880]