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What is a healthy diet for a ferret?

What, in your view, does a healthy diet consist of for a ferret? Do you feed it the same stuff each day or do you change it regularly? What do you give it to drink – water or milk, or both?

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Ferrets
EDWARD COOK says: I’ve always worked on the theory you should give a working ferret exactly what it would eat were it in the wild.

I’m not a fan of dried food but, for some who find it hard to get enough flesh throughout the summer, it’s the next best option.

I normally feed my ferrets on various parts of rabbits, badly shot deer or any fresh scraps from the game dealer. But be careful when feeding flesh in the summer. You should always take out any ‘left overs’ a few hours after feeding to avoid the smell and to stop the ferrets getting gastroenteritis.

A varied diet for any animal is always best. I’ve never seen a wild polecat that feeds on flesh in bad condition, but I wouldn’t be able to say the same for a ferret fed on dried food. As for milk, or water, my ferrets mainly have water but occasionally they are given a small bowl of goat’s milk as a treat.

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