Lifespan can be affected by many different factors. Genetics, diet, living conditons, etc. My personal opinion is that the overvaccinating of people and animals is a big contributer to quality of life and lifespan. Then toss in the diet and living conditions, the genetic predisposition to a disease that may already be there, and all those factors can play a role in lifespan and the quality of life. The family history plays a part. We probably all know people who have smoked for years and lived a long life, and someone who never did and got lung cancer. Or have heart problems run in the family. You can't change genetics, you can just try and take preventative measures with you and your pets health. As for raw and salmonella, you use basic safe meat handling practices just like you do when you cook and eat meat yourself. Feed them in one area, clean up that area, clean your counters, etc. And don't forget that kibble itself can and has been tainted with salmonella. And who didn't hear about the recent case with spinach? Is everyone going to forgoe vegetables now because they might have salmonella? So nothing 100% safe. Kiblle may have toxins from bad grains being used as was the case with Eagle I believe, that killed many dogs and gave irreversible kidney problems to many more. At least if you are buying the meat you know where it came from, how it was stored and handled, and how you fed it. Point being, everything can affect lifespan. I think the quality of that life is more important than the length. I have 2 that are going to be 9. They are fed kibble, are free roam in there own room with no artificial lighting, and have not been vaccinated in 7 years, or been to the vets. They don't have adrenal, insulnomia or any of the other diseases most seem to have by this age. I contribute this to both not overvaccinating them and their living conditions. Now if I could get them to switch to raw, I do believe they could be even healthier or maybe that would be the key to a longer life for them. And maybe they both have good genetics? We should be more concerned about the quality of life our ferrets have while they are alive, then how long they live. ~Amy~ [Posted in FML 5416]