>Need to know if anyone allows their babies catnip.  I have cats so catnip
>is available at my house.  I put the catnip into two socks and both socks
>are tied in a knot so there is no chance of it opening up.  Tabitha loves
>to drag the sock all over the house hiding it in different places.  Will
>catnip harm ferrets?
 
If I recall my herbs correctly, catnip is in the mint family.  Like all
mints, it has pretty potent oils in the plant - if you've ever bruised a
fresh or living catnip plant you'll know just how strong those oils are!
(The dried is no where as fragrant!)
 
I think pretty much everything in life is harmful if consumed or taken in
very extreme quantities - even things like water can be bad if drank in very
extreme quantities.  Moderation is the key ingredient to a safe anything.
(I don't have any herbal sources with me at the moment or I'd look up more
detailed information on catnip for you.) So my *guess* is that as long as
Tabitha just plays with the sock and isn't chowing on the catnip (or the
sock!), she'd be just fine.  The little bit of catnip she comes into contact
with that way shouldn't amount to much and shouldn't be of any problem for
her - even if there is some toxicity associated with catnip in quantites.
 
Only a ferret would like something as stinky as catnip!! :)
 
-kim, squirt (yawn!), pippi (meep!), atlas (chomp!), and jinx (nip!)
 
Kimberly Burkard     |             _    Everything I needed to know in life,
Eastman Kodak Company|      _____C .._. I learned from my ferret:
Rochester, New York  | ____/     \___/  Frolic and dance for joy often, have
[log in to unmask]    |<____/\_---\_\    no fear or worries, and enjoy life.
[Posted in FML issue 2328]