I was going to stay out of this, but.... As one person pointed out in yesterday's FML, Totally Ferret has done a lot for the ferret community, and especially for ferret shelters. They should be applauded for that. I suspect that many people not involved with the shelter community are not aware of just how much food Totally Ferret donates. To be honest, I don't know, either, but I know some of what they have done, and it is a lot. As a company, I respect them for giving back to the people who support them. Yes, at one time years ago, there was an issue with a batch of Totally Ferret, and before it became widely known, some ferrets did get very sick. As soon as the problem was discovered, though, the people at Totally Ferret did their best to make public the information, and also to determine the source of the problem, and get it fixed. Again, as a company, I respect them for this. And, I feel that at least to some extent they do listen to ferret owners and try to provide what people want. All that said, I do not use Totally Ferret, and no longer recommend it to ferret owners or to people who by my kits. Why - because it contains grains. I feed only grain free kibbles myself, in addition to raw prey and commercially prepared raw foods. Grains are high in protein, but protein from grains is very bad for ferrets. Protein from grains and other plants is a major cause of some types of bladder and kidney stones, and is also very hard on a ferret's kidneys. And, while all kibbles contain some plant material, and therefore some plant protein, grains tend to have higher protein contents then many of the other plant materials used. I have posted this before, and I would suggest that everyone read the article "Rethinking the Ferret Diet" by Susan Brown, DVM, which can be found at the following link. Rethinking The Ferret Diet - VeterinaryPartner.com - a VIN company! <http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&A=479&S=1&SourceID=43> Below is one paragraph from the article. Because of the short GI tract and the poor absorption of nutrients, ferrets require a diet that is highly concentrated with FAT as the main source of calories (energy) and highly digestible MEAT-BASED PROTEIN. This would match the basic composition of a prey animal not excluding the essential vitamins and minerals it also contains. Ferrets should never be fed carbohydrates (such as vegetable, fruit or grains) as the main source of energy in the diet. Ferrets cannot digest fiber, as is found in some vegetable and fruit sources. If there is a significant amount of fiber in the diet it serves to lower the nutritional value of the food. As mentioned, ferrets need a highly digestible meat-based protein in the diet. Vegetable protein is poorly utilized. In the presence of excess vegetable protein the ferret can suffer from such diseases as bladder stones, poor coat and skin quality, eosinophilic gastroenteritis (wasting, diarrhea, ulcerations of the skin and ear tips and swollen feet) poor growth of kits and decreased reproduction. Dog food and vegetarian-type pet foods are completely inappropriate for use in ferrets because of the high level of vegetable protein and fiber. The bottom line is that ferrets use fat for energy not carbohydrates and they need a highly digestible meat-based protein not vegetable protein. Pet food manufacturers are required to list ingredients by their weight. In other words, the ingredient with the highest weight is listed first, the second heaviest second, etc. However, there is no requirement that the ingredients be weighed in the same state or form. Thus, meat and meat products are usually measured wet, while grains and some other plant matter are weighed dry. So, even if the first 2 ingredients are meat based, if the third ingredient is a grain, then the protein content may be coming from meat based products may be only about 30 to 50%, because the dry grain will weigh less, but may actually be greater in volume . And that means that as much as half the protein in the food may be poorly utilized by the ferret. Although I personally feed raw to my ferrets, I do not believe that it is necessary to feed raw foods to provide ferrets with the nutrition that they need. However, I do believe that when feeding a kibbled diet, it is important to feed one that is grain free, and as low as possible in other plant matter. Danee DeVore ADV - If your ferret hasn't been tested, you don't know! For more information visit: <http://www.ferretadv.com> ADV - Find out how you can help: http://help4adv.terrabox.com/ [Posted in FML 6836]