The big issue ferret owners have is a lack of ferret specific nutritional information, especially in regards to raw feeding. We are limited to a small handful of outdated forum pages, with a few active Facebook groups sprinkled in the mix. My goal with my content is to spread new educational information, and throughout my journey with my ferrets I have learned that a lot of what is said for raw fed dogs and cats, can also be applied to ferrets This is nothing new, we have been aware for many years now that ferrets and cats have very similar, if not nearly identical nutritional requirements. However, I have been using that knowledge only when it came to feeding dry food and treats, not raw.
The 80/10/10 prey model is followed by dog and cat owners around the globe. Ferret owners also follow this base guideline. In my studying, I came across loads of information on these guidelines, and how following them strictly will lead to nutritional deficiencies. When I learned this I freaked out! What do you mean this base guideline that I have been following for nearly a year now isn't perfect? Truth is due to the lack of ferret specific nutrition, I was never exposed to that crucial piece of information! Not until I branched out and began following and learning from raw feeding pages for dogs and cats. One thing that I have learned (also read here for what the PMR guidelines are missing!) is that fish is good! I always thought you should never feed your cat or ferret fish, it isn't what they would naturally eat in the wild. Upon further inspection of my freezer, I realized that most everything I was feeding is not something a ferret would naturally find in the wild. It also just doesn't even matter. When it comes to raw feeding, meat is meat. The meat they would come across (amphibians, rodents, carrion) is all low in nutrients and fat in comparison to the raw diets we feed at home. We also have a larger access to variety. While it is good to implement whole prey into the diet, we shouldn't be overly concerned about the prey items we are feeding. Just because a ferret wouldn't normally find a cow in the wild, doesn't mean they can't consume and reap the benefits of their meat. Back to fish- what's so special about it? Fish contains....
It is important to select fish with lower levels of mercury. My ferrets really enjoy salmon, hake, mackerel, and sardine. What about shellfish? Shellfish is also a great weekly addition to a raw diet for ferrets. Green and blue lipped mussels are a popular choice when looking to add manganese into the diet. A raw diet lacking in whole prey items may be deficient in that micromineral. *Raw mussels should be cooked prior to feeding due to the risk of toxoplasma gondii infection. Cooking eliminates the risk, but mussels sold on the half shell or without any shell have been pre-steamed and do not need further cooking (how most are sold!) Oysters also provide EPA and DHA. These can be fed in small amounts to complete zinc and copper requirements. Oysters should also be cooked prior to feeding. Or, canned oysters in water can be fed. Oysters are naturally rich in sodium, and the canned version even more so. Fatty fish and shellfish are not recognized by the NRC (National Research Council) as a requirement for a balanced raw diet plan, but it is still recommended to supplement with EPA/DHA and vitamin D if you're not feeding fish...so why not feed it? Feeding the natural form is always better than synthetic supplementing. How much should you feed? You can include fish or shellfish in the diet once or twice every week. This is enough for your ferrets to receive all the yummy benefits! It's been about a week and a half of implementing fish in my ferrets diet and I've already seen the difference! Momo and Appa have gone through winter with short, scraggly coats. Now, they have the softest fur ever! I firmly believe it is due to the fish / shellfish along with just being fed a more consistent frankenprey schedule in comparison to the whole prey ground food they were eating prior. *You may notice a stinky poop or two after a fish meal! Happy fishing!
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