This may be the first enrichment that will cause problems in application; for some strange reason, ferrets will put ANYTHING into their mouths EXCEPT new foods. Electric wire--ok, nasty garbage--fine, bacteria-laden socks--great, bitter apple--sure sure, new food--WHOA, get that crap out of here! It constantly amazes me that ferrets will sample poisonous fluids from under the sink, eat rat and cockroach poisons, swallow bits of rubber and dine on sponge, but swivel their heads when offered fresh chicken like a child trying to avoid a double dose of castor oil mixed with bile. The problem is olfactory (scent) imprinting, a natural phenomenon that "locks" polecats into hunting specific animals found in their local environment (well, for new foods anyway; I have NO idea what goes through their minds regarding the bad stuff). As polecat kits are fed in their nest, the scents of the animals brought in to them by their mother stimulate those olfactory cells and associated structures. Olfactory stimulation actually keeps these cells and nerves alive; those that are not stimulated deteriorate and die. Why waste energy keeping alive connections that are not needed? The declines of these olfactory connections are severe enough by the third month of the polecat's life that 70-80% of their olfactory preferences are "locked in." By the time a polecat is 6 months old, 90% of olfactory preferences are set, and by the time a polecat is a year old, the brain is wire to only recognize specific odors as food. That is olfactory imprinting, and ferrets have inherited the trait from their wild polecat progenitors (ancestors). Ferrets older than a year of age are EXTREMELY reluctant to try new foods; some, having dined on a single kibble for years, will starve rather than try a new diet formulation. The ONLY real solution is to give young ferrets (6 weeks to 1 year--the younger the better) as wide a diet as possible, introducing an extensive diet of kibbles, raw and cooked foods, and various nutritious treats. Ferrets have SOME ability to learn new food scents, although it seems more of a learning process than a rewiring one, and the solution is time consuming and frustrating to both the ferret and the owner. The only real solution is prevention, not cure. So, why is this discussion of SMELL taking place in a discussion of TASTE enrichment? Because the two are so intimately connected; much of the sense of taste is actually smell. Ever have a cold and notice foods taste bland? Ever eat the overly spiced food cooked by a heavy smoker? Both colds and smoking reduce the sense of smell, greatly impacting the sense of taste. This means ANY taste enrichment is ALSO an olfactory enrichment as well. It also means we can intensify taste enrichments by enhancing odors. Some hints to make the experience more satisfying to both the ferret owner and ferret include: 1. WARM the food to enhance the smell, 2. Add a familiar scent to a new one to make it more acceptable, 3. Liquefy a new food to make introduction easier (ferrets will lick a new food off a finger BEFORE they will try sampling it from a dish), and 4. Remember the idea is to ENRICH through taste, NOT teach to eat new food; sampling is the goal, not consumption (although if done young, it accomplishes both). Taste enrichments can be anything, although I don't recommend nasty flavors. The occasional piece of dog chow, a Cheerio, a TINY bit of fruit or vegetable (no more than a couple of 1/4 inch cubes), teaspoon of milk, chunk of cheese, TINY chunk of red licorice, a malt ball; you get the picture. Remember, it is ok to give junk food such as sugar treats AS LONG AS it is done infrequently and mixed with more nutritious foods, and as long as it doesn't injure an ailing ferret. Just giving treats are enrichment, but you can combine the taste delicacy with other types of enrichments to enhance the effect. 1. Gimme Dat Ting, Gimme, Gimme Dat Ting: Chop favored treats into small fragments not exceeding 1/4 inch along their longest length. I hide these fragments around the room, hidden in bedding, in clumps of hay, inside toys, etc. 2. Forgotten Love: Once a week, the regular diet is replaced with one of the foods learned during the olfactory imprinting period. I randomly feed various ferret kibbles (frozen until use to keep fresh), duck, turkey, deer, elk, dried beef, cat foods (dry and wet), and various soups and gravies. 3. "Ferretasbord": Take 5 or 6 new foods, blend them to a paste with a bit of water, and warm them to about 100F or 40C degrees. Pour the warm liquid into shallow dishes, then dip your fingers in the fluid, and touch it to the ferret's nose. They will naturally lick it off, getting the taste enrichment. 4. Spray 'N' Wash It Down: Select 3 or 4 foods, and then blend them to liquids. Water the food liquids down so they can spray through an inexpensive aerosol bottle. While playing with the ferret, occasionally spray the face and paws. This should excite the ferret by stimulating the senses of smell and taste (besides getting squirted). Some ferrets go wild and others stop dead in their tracts and lick off the spray. 5. Stinky Eggs: Obtain a half dozen wooden eggs (available at craft stores), and drill a 1/2 inch hole in the wide end, about 1/2 inch deep. Fill the hole with various treats, and toss them out for the ferrets. This is one of MY favorite enrichments, and one my ferrets adore. Sometimes I will soak the wooden eggs overnight in something smelly. The eggs tend to stain from the food, so I replace them on occasion if I think they are unsanitary. Some of the eggs have been dyed bright red with food coloring, others have been stained white and marked with black magic markers. Bob C [Posted in FML issue 4209]