Salmon Oil vs Fish Oil

[bluemoose]

Yes, I know salmon is fish. I was just wondering if there is any advantage to using salmon oil rather than regular fish oil. The oil I'm using for the dogs and ferrets is made with sardines and/or anchovies. I've noticed many people use salmon oil for their dogs/cats/ferrets. Is it better nutritionally? And what about olive oil and Totally Ferret Vivify?

[Heather]

I use a marine fish oil, sardines, anchovies and such. Salmon oil is a large fish oil and more likely to be contaminated but that being said I honestly don't thing it seems to be that different. Mix if you would. I've done that on a number of occasions using my marine fish oil mix for a couple of months and then switching it with Arctic Vigor. I also use olive oil to work as a natural laxative that helps keep hairballs flushed out. I've never used Ferret Vivify, so cannot make a comment on the product, it does appear to be rather expensive.
ciao

[ferretfreke]

I know one fish oil you want to avoid is cod liver oil. It is much higher in omega 6s (bad fatty acids) than omega 3s (good, beneficial fatty acids). The way the oil is processed and packaged is very important too. Many companies completely destroy the delicate fatty acids in their manufacturing and then you're basically just throwing away your money. Pharmaceutical grade of any kind of fatty acid supplement is the best way to go, but even then the supplement can have too much omega 6s and not enough omega 3s. I will see if I can get a link to this info posted on here. One of our vets is very passionate and informative on this matter.

My ferrets each get a half capsule of Usana's Biomega and they love it. They will not let me forget to give it to them each night. Here is their link if you're interested www.usana.com/dotCom/index.jsp

It's on the expensive side, but at least I know I'm getting what I paid for.

As for olive oil, it has been proven that cats cannot utilize plant-based fatty acids, therefore it is believed that ferrets cannot either.

[bluemoose]

Yeah I did kind of wonder about the olive oil because it's plant based but I saw some other people used it for their ferrets so I figured I'd ask.

I'll probably end up going 50/50 with fish oil and salmon oil.

[mustelidmusk]

Don't exclude olive oil based upon how much nutrition a ferret may/maynot derive from it. It's a wonderful hairball prevention food.
AND...extra virgin olive oil is effective against helicobacter-pylori in laboratory studies. H. Pylori is EXTREMELY closely related to H. Mustelae. so it might benefit them.

These are the primary reasons for using extra virgin olive oil for ferrets. It's clearly my choice for hairball prevention. My ferrets have NEVER had hairballs. Nor have they had ulcers. In fact they have very strong digestive systems with good absorption of nutrients. They handle diet changes (new meats, rich organ meats, etc.) extremely well, even at 5.5 years of age. I can't be sure the olive oil is responsible for their "primo tummies", but I have no plans to change what's working well for them

-jennifer

[Heather]

Totally agreed, Jennifer. No, the ferrets and cats may not be able to totally utilize the olive oil but as a laxative and as a preventative to stomach issues I will make use of it until someone can prove otherwise.
ciao

[bluemoose]

How often do you give the extra virgin? A couple licks once a week or so? I gave them a little this morning (I may have accidentally dumped a bit on Mango's head ) and they seemed to like it alright. Not nearly as much as they like their fish oil though

[Heather]

I split it with my fish oil because my guys think it tastes terrible compared to their fish oil. So everyone gets .5 ml of fish oil and .5 (approx) of olive oil daily. I have two play groups so when the one group comes out of the ferret room to play in the house and the other group goes into the ferret room, that's when they get their oil.
ciao

[Emilee]

I have always given mine salmon oil as opposed to fish oil, as Tootsie MUCH prefers salmon. I wouldn't know about the nutritional differences but if you ask Tootsie, salmon oil is way better.

As for Vivify, it is Jasper and Percy's absolute favorite. For the price and ingredients, I wouldn't bother getting it solely for supplemental reasons. Emu oil has been claimed to have great benefits but Vivify is not just emu oil. I just get it because they like it.

[spiritualtramp]

I tend to mix it up and offer as many oils as possible, because of the differences in quality, nutritional value, and sources. I use olive oil when doing nails because of its digestive aid properties. I drizzle salmon oil over boneless meals (usually their pork meal) and when I can get emu oil or fish oils that I trust, I drizzle those in with soups. Like a raw diet in general, variety in offerings is the key to covering all bases. I encourage others to use variety in oils, also - and can see the difference it makes in my kids' health.

[bluemoose]

I ended up making a 50% extra virgin olive oil, 25% fish oil, 25% salmon oil mixture. I give a few licks twice a day after morning and evening meals. They don't seem to like the texture of the olive oil but they take it because of the fish component