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Post by Heather on Sept 2, 2009 23:18:16 GMT -5
Please also remember guys, a lot of companies use veggies as fillers. This discussion doesn't give a blanket "yes" to veggies in a carnivore's diet. You have to pick and choose and you have to be aware of amounts. I've seen commercial raw mixes that are too high in veggies and have the wrong veggies. They also have their own supplements, some are harmless, useless if frozen but you're paying for them anyway, others will actually make your furabies ill in the long run. There are a lot of companies who have created raw foods, that have fillers and veggies that are no better than the kibble mfg. So please, be very careful with what you're adding to your furkids diets. This can be very difficult. Remember what the basis of your diets are all about. Simplicity, ease of preparation and the elimination of excess supplementation. Why would you go out and buy a $40 supplement if a $1.00 bag of mixed greens would cover what you need. Remember, the manufacturers have one thing and only one thing that they're considering.....the bottom line. So read the ingredient lists carefully. What is good for your dog, isn't good for your cat and may not be good for your ferret. I've read some ingredient lists on products that claim to be made specifically for ferrets and I wouldn't feed it to my mice, much less my ferrets. Beware of herbal products (I'm not saying don't use, but be aware). We discussed a herbal product here on this forum that claimed to assist insulinoma but as we researched the products contents we discovered that it would help diabetes but not insulinoma....big difference.
So please be careful, your little ones rely on you to get the mix correct.
ciao
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Post by ferretdroogies on Sept 2, 2009 23:47:51 GMT -5
Heather is right. Before using any supplement for your ferret, look at the ingredients closely to make sure there is nothing in there that is even questionable. I usually avoid herbs. That's why I asked on here before about that supplement Heather was talking about that might be good for adrenal and insulinoma, which ended up being good for the opposite because it's made for dogs and cats, not ferrets. That's why I was skeptical of Primal and Nature's Variety raw because some of the extra stuff they put in MIGHT not be good for ferrets. Just call me paranoid  This is the reason I'm starting to move even more away from commercial, and more towards fresh and simple  I still think some supplementation is good, but not necessary if feeding unprocessed pure foods. The hippie side of my brain is telling me to leave it be, but my scientific side is saying to add supplements just in case I am a very confused person Thanks weloveourweasels for the suggestions! I have seen the nupro ferret supplement, and it's almost the same as the cat one I found, but I forgot why I liked it better.... Our floofs have tried the Pingfords Porridge red before, and they were being picky as usual  I need to try it again, but mess around with the consistency to figure out how they like it. As far as supplements, I was posting most of those for people who are not "DIY" kind of people Sometimes I am, and sometimes I'm not Although I did find an organic baby food with no other ingredients other than what it says it is. They are also cooked of course, so it might be a good addition veggie-wise since it will be already broken down since ferrets can't do that themselves. Found it at HEB too www.sproutbabyfood.com/stage1.php |
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Post by mustelidmusk on Sept 3, 2009 22:33:21 GMT -5
As far as the greens go...they are not required. The stuff I got from my vet is a mix of algaes, berries, chlorella, alfalfa, etc. basically these greens are high in anti-oxidents and other nutrients that are considered to be superfoods. each ferret gets a pinch per day. The particular product I'm using has been prepared/processed to off high bio-availability without wiping out the nutritional value. The stuff taste sweet, although there are mno sugars other than berries. the amount of uagrs is insignificant sinc they get only a pinch a day.
A small amount of greens in foods offers fiber and some nutritional value. I would not recommend feeding a bunch of greens in soup. but heather and I have both found that the addition of a lttlle fiber in the form of veggies (very finely ground!) heelps digestion. Whole prey eaters get quite a bit of non-digestible matter in the form of fur, feathers, etc.
-jennifer
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Post by sherrylynne on Sept 4, 2009 9:21:37 GMT -5
I'm really intrigued by all this! Mine are now getting whole prey of various ages and types 4-5 meals a week. Would they still benefit from the greens, or are they getting enough bulk and fiber from the amount of whole prey they are now eating?
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Post by Heather on Sept 4, 2009 15:25:24 GMT -5
If you're feeding totally prey I wouldn't bother. I find the benefit seems to be restricted to frankeprey and ground. I believe, that the veggies replace all those indegestible parts that are eaten in prey (fur, sinew). I feed all 3 that's why I add some greenery, actually veggies to my ground mix...this batch got winter squash. I only feed mice and rats so because of this I add the veggies to the ground mix (this is the cats' food too and old Samurai would as much eat a mouse as he would willingly jump in the bath tub of iced water, so I find that this is necessary for him if nobody else). Ghenghis who is IBD, and Mad Max and Lady Pooka (both adrenal) have less loose poopies if they're eating the ground mixed with veggies than just the ground stuff.
It's just my observation
ciao
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Post by sherrylynne on Sept 4, 2009 18:42:44 GMT -5
Ok, thanks! I'll give soupies a couple of times a week, instead of the once, and that way, they'll have either some of the greenery, or whole prey, at least once a day.
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Post by mustelidmusk on Sept 9, 2009 20:21:23 GMT -5
Hi, If you do consider the pre-made diets that contain veggies, make sure there are no high-carb starchy things - like potatoes, sweet potatoes, tapioca, grains, etc. Also be sure all the verrgies are very finely ground. An, idealy, the veggies should be a very small percentage of the mix (5% - 10% of the mix at the most.) The supplements I'm giving are 1 pinch per fert per day. Heather and I have both found that ferrets do better wth small amounts of fiber - fur, bone bits, finely ground veggie matter....it all serve as fiber. If the brands of frozen food have too much plant matter, you can mix the commercial stuff with more meats/organ/bone to change the percentage of veggie matter. Why bother?  Well, there may be a rdifferent meat type - such as a rabbit mix that it otherwise terribly inconvenient to add to your ferrets' diet. -jennifer |
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Post by mustelidmusk on Sept 9, 2009 20:40:28 GMT -5
This is really interesting.....perhaps a co-incidence....BUT....
About 3 years ago, one of my girls scraped herself during one of her midnight escape episodes. She ended up with a two-inch, furless scar that has been growign non-stop transient mast cell tumors (small ones that come and go) . I started those greens a couple of weeks ago, and for the first time in about 6 monts, the scar has no sign of mast cell tumor activity. The skin is light pink - no redness, swelling, etc. I also recently started using up the rest of a mushroom supplement (about 3 days ago) since it will be expiring soon.
This is might all be coincidental, but then again, maybe not. I'll add a thread in the medical section and update it periodically with info on how the scar is doing.
-jennifer
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Post by sherrylynne on Sept 10, 2009 0:15:29 GMT -5
That is interesting. I mean, let's face it, we still don't know how everything interacts with the human body, in spite of all the study. So who's to say what you're giving her isn't helping somehow?
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Post by Heather on Sept 10, 2009 0:18:03 GMT -5
Jennifer, what's the name of your greens supplement?...you may have already said but I don't see it mentioned on this page. There are a lot of greens supplements out there...some of them would be absolutely ghastly for a ferret  (actually they don't taste so great for humans either  ). ciao |
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Post by weloveourweasels on Sept 10, 2009 3:13:06 GMT -5
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Post by mustelidmusk on Sept 10, 2009 20:59:04 GMT -5
The stuff is called Nanogreens www.nanogreens.comIt is sweet and very potent - The brats hate it. They each get one small pinch per day. -jennifer |
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Post by Heather on Sept 11, 2009 0:12:14 GMT -5
I don't think I can get that up here ciao |
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