Kyser Animal Diagnostic & Wellness Center

Ferrets are strict carnivores, meaning they are designed to eat whole prey items, which includes all parts of the killed animal. Ferrets have a very short gastrointestinal (GI) tract and it takes about 3 to 4 hours for food to go from one end to the other and thus they absorb food rather inefficiently. Ferrets tend to eat several smaller meals and carry any excess to their dens to eat later.

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 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 cannot digest fiber, as is found in some vegetable and fruit sources. In the presence of excess vegetable protein the ferret can suffer from such diseases as bladder stones, poor coat and skin quality, eosinophilic gastroenteritis , poor growth of kits and decreased reproduction. Dog food and vegetarian-type pet foods are completely inappropriate.

Ferrets are carnivores and need a high protein, high fat diet with minimal carbohydrates. A dry ferret diet should contain at least 30% to 40% crude protein and 15% to 20% fat. The protein should be of animal origin and highly digestible. Ingredients on a pet food label are given in order of their amount in the diet, starting with the largest. For ferrets, the first three ingredients should be meat-based. Processed dry foods are heated during production and in the process nutrients can be destroyed or altered and then have to be replaced artificially. In addition, other additives may be used to keep the food from spoiling. Several commercial dry diets are readily available on the market today. Another choice is to feed a balanced raw carnivore diet. There are more and more of these diets available in either freeze-dried or frozen form as pet food companies realize that heat processing the food and making little baked kibbles may not be the answer. Several of the fresh, frozen or freeze-dried carnivore diets have been successfully used in ferrets. In general, you should look for diets that they are made from meat suitable for human consumption (preferably organic) containing all the parts of the animal (organ meat, muscle, fat and bone), a high level of fat and containing no grain or grain products, sweeteners or chemical preservatives.

Adrenal Gland Neoplasia	Heartworm Disease
Aleutian Disease	Hind limb weakness
Cardiac Disease	Human Influenza
Dental disease	Inflammatory bowel disease
Distemper	Insulinoma
Disseminated Idiopathic Myositis	Lumps and Bumps
ECE	Lupron
Feeding sick ferrets	Lymphoma
Flea Control	Nutrition
Gastrointestinal Disease	Prostate Disease
Grooming	Renal (kidney) Disease
Gastric Ulcers/Helicobacter	Splenomegaly

Lethargy (lack of energy)
Vomiting
Diarrhea lasting more than a day
Hind end weakness (Drunken walk)
Drooling
Hair loss
Unusual bumps or tumors
Swollen vulva in females
Urinary blockages in males
Unusual behavior
Swollen gums or feet pads
Pale, almost white gums

Yellowing of the skin and eyes
Green, slimy stools
Dark tarry stools
Lack of stools
Lack of appetite
Rough fur, or very short whiskers
Swollen or painful abdomen
Loose skin and dull eyes
Seizures
Overheating

Lumps on body or feet