Let's be honest here...we all love chubby animals, but when and how should we draw a line between slightly chubby and overweight?? I briefly mentioned this in my video on preventing cancer in ferrets, but a very common phrase in the ferret world is, "ferrets can't overeat. They're great self regulators!" In actuality, this statement is a half truth. Yes, ferrets tend to be better than dogs and cats with regulating their food intake, and will mostly do fine when free-fed... However, this will not hold true for all ferrets and diet choices. Dry food for example, each having their own amounts of calories, protein and fat sources, additions of starches and carbs...all these factors have a role to play in ferret weight gain. You should not expect your ferrets to self regulate on any and all foods you feed them. Even on a natural raw diet, if you're feeding ferrets mainly fatty proteins and cuts, the likelihood they'll have a harder time regulating is much higher. A Note on Seasonal Weight Gain & Other Natural Weight GainFerrets are known to gain weight in preparation for the colder months, and will drop that weight going into spring/summer. This may be reversed in some ferrets kept indoors with central heating and A/C. Seasonal weight gain shouldn't be confused with obesity. You may also notice them growing in a thick long coat and eating more food, they may also be lazier than normal. As mentioned, this may be reversed with weight gain going into the hot months and a drop in weight come fall/winter. It becomes difficult for some ferrets to adjust to the seasons when kept in the warm indoors in winter and a cool home in the summer. It is also important to note that male ferrets tend to be larger than females. And, breeding plays a big part too! Ferrets in the UK tend to be "stockier" than mill-bred ferrets. If your ferret(s) are the same heavy weight all year round, you may have a problem! Here is a perfect example of what I mean. Take Pazu, in the summer, he's as lean as can be, but quite the opposite in the winter. How to Tell if Your Ferrets Are OverweightThe most reliable method in determining if your ferret(s) are overweight is to have an examination done by an experienced exotic veterinarian. I say "experienced' because some may not be aware of seasonal weight gain (it sounds odd, but it's true). During the examination, your veterinarian will go through a few variables:
There are a couple methods for assessing weight in ferrets. The most common method is called body score / BCS-model. Ferrets are assigned a number that best represents their body condition based on the model published for felines. The 9-point body condition score chart is what is most commonly used for ferrets. Underweight is between the numbers 1-3. Ideal weight; 4 and 5. 6-9 is overweight and obese: Thanks to this chart provided by Inge Bertjin (you should really read her paper!), we finally have a basic visual of what weight scoring would look like for the ferret: This is a great basic guide! All ferrets wear their weight differently. It mentions males over the weight of 1404g (3lbs) are heavy, but this certainly won't apply to all ferrets. My young male ferrets are always between 2.3-3.5lbs depending on the time of year. With that in mind, I believe the variables mentioned earlier in determining body score to be more efficient: like humans, ferrets are all built differently! It may be normal for your young male to be 3lbs, but for someone else, 2lbs is the norm. Massive thank you to the author of the paper and their thorough research into the subject. Complications of Excess WeightBy now, I think we all have a confident grasp on the complications of excess weight:
Just to name a few. Overall, it's a major decrease in quality and quantity of your animal's life. Ferrets have the same risk of becoming overweight or obese like your cats and dogs. How to Help Fat FerretsThere are a few reasons why your ferret may be fat. The most applicable being:
#1 Caloric Intake/Carbs/Starches If you're feeding a raw diet, you should be feeding about 10% of your ferrets' body weights. This is a basic guideline that should absolutely be adjusted when necessary. Baby ferrets will require much more food, sometimes aged ferrets may eat less, etc. It's quite uncommon for a raw fed ferret (not being fed carbs/starches) to be obese. However, if you feel it best; you're more than welcome to calculate their meal plan based on calories. This is actually the most preferred way of formulating diet plans for dogs and cats. I do strongly suggest doing this if your ferret(s) are struggling with weight gain. If you've done all that, try and aim for leaner meats. Not all the time, but as part of their weekly protein rotation. Meats like free-range rabbit, frog, and turkey tend to be lower in fat. All cuts are different, so be sure to compare them via a food database. If you're feeding kibble, you may need to select one with fewer calories. This can be quite difficult to determine though, as kibble fed ferrets should be free fed. You'll need to find out how much your ferrets are eating daily, which does fluctuate depending on the day and season. It's also suggested to mix multiple brands of dry food, which makes it even harder to narrow down. Another easier way is to check the label. Do you see any carbohydrates/starches like corn, potatoes, legumes, and fruit? Carbs and starches are linked to excess weight in animals and humans. These ingredients are used in most dry foods to keep it's shape. Though, there are some better kibbles (like Dr. Elsey's Clean Protein Chicken) that contain other things to hold the product together. Of course, fat can also play a major role in weight gain, particularly the quality of fat. Does the fat in your pet food come from plant-based sources? These aren't easily digested by the ferret compared to animal-based fats. The fat included in processed pet food will not be the best it can be, always keep that in mind. #2 Quality Exercise Your ferrets should have ample free roam time every single day. At the very minimum, 6-8 hours out of the cage. More is much better. You should also be engaging in active play with them whenever you can, just like you would a puppy or kitten. While ferrets do sleep a lot, they need this playtime. Be sure to allow free access to things like:
If you're feeding a food high in carbs/starches while keeping your ferrets locked in a cage for most of the day or night, the risk of excess weight gain/obesity is much higher. #3 Health Issues Weight gain may not always be in our control. There are multiple health related issues that may trigger this in our ferrets:
My ThoughtsI do not believe there are any truly reliable scoring charts available for ferrets at this time. I do think there are some helpful resources, but like with all things ferret; nothing is certain. It all boils down to needing more studies done on the subject of ferret weight. While ferrets are similar to the cat, they really do deserve their own scoring system that factors in many variables; gender, neuter status, time of year, diet, age, activity level, all have a major role to play. It's impossible to group all ferrets of the same categories together. Each ferret is an individual, and when assessing weight, should be treated as such. I personally go about scoring my ferrets based on their unique characteristics and patterns. I have two very largely built male ferrets that will easily push 3.5lbs+ at their heaviest time of year. While that is a lot of weight, these two are massively built! Just to give an example. All that said, I do believe it's very important to monitor food intake, and provide ample and quality exercise every single day. ⚜You know your ferrets best, and please think twice if your veterinarian tells you your ferret is too skinny or too fat before taking any action. Ask them questions, why do they think that? Do your own personal studying. Is your ferret on reverse season? Is it a pattern for your ferret to be bigger this time of year? Was your ferret bred to be stocky? And more.
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