A large number of the very early mammals were insectivorous, BTW, and some insects are very sweet (See other post). (Says she who used to work some summers on a Paleocine/Eocine university dig, and was the student curator long ago for about 4 and 1/2 years of a large university teaching collection of fossils, bones, and teeth...) Linda wrote these good points which I should NOT have missed: >Actually, virtually ALL mammals can taste sugar, including dogs. The >major exceptions are domestic cats and their wild relatives. >See for example > <http://www.nature.com/news/2005/050718/full/050718-16.html> and > <http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/07/24/ > AR2005072401107.html> > >This suggests that the predilection for sugar was an early evolutionary >trait in mammals that was lost by a common cat ancestor. Of course, tasting can differ from marked attraction. BTW, bitterness to which there can be an aversion can be associated with several things, including poisons/toxins but at some other times (or sometimes the sources but dose-dependent) medicinal or nutritional aspects... Anyway, I still would *not* give sweetened cereals. Re: ozone: we heard from someone working on our furnace the other day that the companies selling the more recent electrostatic products (ozone generators not included in that comment) have reduced their ozone emissions. Low atmosphere ozone is still not safe according to the study quoted yesterday, but the ones he knew about are apparently trying to reduce the risk factor. http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-02/yu-sfn021606.php The full article is available here as an html full text piece: http://www.ehponline.org/members/2006/8816/8816.html and here as a pdf: http://www.ehponline.org/members/2006/8816/8816.pdf -- Sukie (not a vet, and not speaking for any of the below in my private posts) Recommended health resources to help ferrets and the people who love them: Ferret Health List http://www.smartgroups.com/groups/ferrethealth FHL Archives http://ferrethealth.org/archive/ AFIP Ferret Pathology http://www.afip.org/ferrets/index.html Miamiferrets http://www.miamiferret.org/fhc/ International Ferret Congress Critical References http://www.ferretcongress.org [Posted in FML issue 5250]