None of my ferrets are fixed and they are as soppy as can be the only ferrets I have problems with are a few males, when these ferrets are in the human terms of becoming teenagers, like their human counterparts they think they know all about life and what it has to offer, so once they get over that stage, they settle down to life and what it has to offer. A friend of mine in Norway who decided to change all of his ferrets which had up until he rescued them lived on kibbel, to the raw mix of mammal, fish and poultry bi products that is used to feed on mink farms and it only took him 3 days to get all of his ferrets to eat it. Now his ferrets have wonderful coast and he thinks they look and feel much better on the new diet. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- FEEDING A RAW FOOD DIET TO FERRETS WHY WE FEED RAW FOOD When we first owned ferrets we fed a complete dry ferret food which was easy and convenient to feed. The main problem I had was that there are only adult maintenance ferret foods available. With dog and cat foods there are various life stage foods available from puppy/kitten through to senior. So what could I feed kits or senior ferrets? We started feeding raw carcass (rabbit and pigeon) when we could get it . We found that on carcass the ferrets looked in much better condition, so I looked into ways of feeding raw food that I could combine with carcass or feed as the main diet. On a total biscuit diet we found tartar forming on their teeth, this is one of the most common health problems in ferrets and one that largely goes unnoticed - excessive tartar can lead to gum disease. Also they lost a lot of muscle tone and their coats didn't seem as soft and sleek. So I researched raw food diets further and found a diet combining raw meaty bones and minces which keeps our ferrets in the condition I want. I can vary the diet slightly to make it suitable for all life stages. If you do wish to feed a full or part raw food diet I suggest you look into the pros and cons. There are many web sites containing information on raw feeding. Sadly little on feeding raw to ferrets but the feline recipes are a good guideline. Consultation with your veterinary surgeon may also help. (Note not all veterinarians promote a raw food diet) In the wild a ferrets natural diet is a mixture of small mammals, some birds, fish, amphibian and invertebrates. These provide a complete diet. Carnivores need a high meat protein, low carbohydrate diet. Whole carcass such as rabbit or wood pigeon provides a ferret with most of the nutrients needed. But in general these are impractical for the modern ferret owner to feed. So other raw food types need to be considered and along with supplementation be turned into a raw food diet. PROS AND CONS The main worry with the feeding of raw bones are the dangers of choking on splinters of bone or a piece of bone puncturing the small intestine. From personal experience we have not had a problem with this and find the benefits of feeding raw food far outweigh the disadvantages. Another worry is that a full raw food diet will not contain the required amount of vitamins and minerals. We use natural vitamin and mineral supplements and find our ferrets very healthy. When feeding poultry and raw eggs there is a small risk of salmonella and other bacteria, more to ourselves than the ferrets, care must be taken to defrost thoroughly and remove uneaten food. Ferrets digestive systems are short and acidic designed for handling bacteria. It can be awkward feeding raw food in summer due to the flies, feeding later on in the evening and removing all uneaten food first thing in the morning normally alleviates the problem. The main benefits of feeding raw food is a general increase in overall healthiness. Raw foods contain enzymes that assist in digestion and absorption of nutrients. We find our ferrets have increased muscle mass, shiny coats and a general zest for life. Their teeth and gums are very healthy. One aspect I noticed is that during the winter months the silver ferrets kept there black noses, albinos don't turn yellow and the general colouring on the ferrets was as good as in summer. The ferrets overall attitude seems a lot more relaxed Auther unknowen [Posted in FML issue 4744]