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Post by angelfish on May 10, 2011 9:59:25 GMT -5
Purified water: is water from any source that is physically processed to remove impurities.
Propylene glycol: is a small organic alcohol commonly used as a skin conditioning agent. It has been associated with irritant and allergic contact dermatitis as well as contact urticaria in humans; these sensitization effects can be manifested at propylene glycol concentrations as low as 2%.
Xanthan gum: is a polysaccharide, derived from the bacterial coat of Xanthomonas campestris, used as a food additive and rheology modifier,[2] commonly used as a food thickening agent (in salad dressings, for example) and a stabilizer
Amino acids: are the structural units that make up proteins. When taken up into the human body from the diet, the 22 standard amino acids either are used to synthesize proteins and other biomolecules or are oxidized to urea and carbon dioxide as a source of energy.
Propylparaben: is in the paraben family of preservatives used by the food, pharmaceutical, and personal care product industries. Parabens mimic estrogen and can act as potential hormone (endocrine) system disruptors.
Potassium sorbate: is a potassium salt of sorbic acid, a naturally occuringantimicrobial compound; used as a preservative.
Sodium benzoate: is a preservative. It is bacteriostatic and fungistatic under acidic conditions. It is used most prevalently in acidic foods such as salad dressings (vinegar), carbonated drinks (carbonic acid), jams and fruit juices (citric acid), pickles (vinegar), and condiments. Cats have a significantly lower tolerance against benzoic acid and its salts than rats and mice.[6] Sodium benzoate is, however, allowed as an animal food additive at up to 0.1%, according to AFCO's official publication.
Methylparaben: is in the paraben family of preservatives used by the food, pharmaceutical, and personal care product industries. Parabens mimic estrogen and can act as potential hormone (endocrine) system disruptors.
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Post by Deleted on May 10, 2011 13:06:17 GMT -5
Ok see all that sounds horrible. Almost like it's nothing but the amino acids, all the others just make it into a goo with lots of preservatives. Maybe Mikeybox was right? I am familiar with those ingredients being in cosmetics, not anything for consumption. I myself avoid all parabens like the plague. But I have no idea how those ingredients will interact with a ferret's body. The whole "mimics estrogen" part really spooks me, though. Thanks for posting that, Angelfish!
I actually went out and bought an air purifier, a big tower style one for under $100, can't recall the exact price. The result? A stinky draft on the ferrets. That is all.
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Post by Deleted on May 10, 2011 15:40:21 GMT -5
I looked it up before I started using it. As I remember, I thought the active ingredient was made from a fungus/mushroom. I decided that that was acceptable. I added it to their water bottle whenever I refilled it. They have two water bottles, a large one and a small one. The small one got two squirts, the large, three. I stopped using it after the transition to raw. Some time after they were eating raw, I noticed there was no smell anymore. I thought, I keep reading here that the raw diet much alleviates their odor. So I thought, let me go without it a while and see if it starts to smell again. And there was still no smell, so I stopped using it. So to answer your question, oskimosa, about noticing a smell while transitioning, it was just a realization I had a while after switching them to raw. Maybe three weeks after the switch was complete, maybe only two. I'm not that sure anymore. I noticed their poop smell improved after about two weeks. But I'm not all that observant when it comes to smell, I have a high tolerance. My boyfriend certainly noticed though!
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Post by hails on May 10, 2011 20:01:13 GMT -5
My parents commanded me to use it for about a year. A month or so ago I ran out and 'accidentally' didn't remember to get any more and no one has fussed about a smell yet. << My kids are still kibble-fed and I found that having a large litter box with a 3-4 inch layer of litter helped with the odor control more than this.
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Post by Deleted on May 20, 2011 22:35:24 GMT -5
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Post by Sherry on May 20, 2011 22:39:00 GMT -5
It's weird. Mine wouldn't eat their meat with it on, so I just never bothered continuing with it.
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Post by Deleted on May 20, 2011 22:42:03 GMT -5
lol mine got to where they wouldn't eat their meat without it. They were sad when i ran out. I have a coupon so im going to get some again soon. The stuff you spray directly on the litterbox and in the cage is REALLY good too.
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Post by Deleted on May 20, 2011 23:15:27 GMT -5
Thanks for posting. - sounds interesting
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Post by Deleted on May 20, 2011 23:58:11 GMT -5
My only smelly ferret is DaVinci - the only one who refuses to switch to Natural food. The rest on natural have no odor. During outings to pet shops and around town, folks will say, "Oh I always wanteda ferret, but they always stink." TO which I'll comment how their diet and housing is the main influence of their odor. I'll scoop up a ferret and pass it to them to take a whiff. They do and remark - why he doesn't smell at all - when did he get a bath? My answer is over 2 or three years ago!
I use either White Distilled vinegar/water or "Nature's Source" or lemon scented anti-bacterial wipes to clean cages and wipe surfaces. After wiping I'll spray with a disinfectant and allow to dry before replacing floor mats. Anytime I spray or wipe the ferrets are NOT anywwhere in the vicinity.
Equine Pine pellets for litter that gets scooped out nightly after the ferrets have been in their cages for the day. At night they are loose in the house and I have a few litter boxes scattered around as well as newspapers in strategic places. THe papers get tossed every morning and the night boxes scooped in the mornings.
Cage flooring is bath mats which get changed once a week or as needed if someone (usually Roman) has decided to stash his meaty bones or mouse morsels UNDER the mats!
When I leave for work in the mornings all the ferrets are back in the cages and I'll spritz the carpets, drapes and furntiure with Zep air & fabric odor eliminator. Which works better than Febreeze and is cheaper too! I have a tower air purifier - mainly for my own allergies - but the thing is so noisy, I rarely use it.
Odors for any animal, like people are easily controlled with decent diet and personal hygiene. No amount of additive or perfume will help if the basics aren't covered. Chances to get out into the dewy grass and fresh dirt do wonders for their coats and smell too!
Cheers, Kim
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Post by Deleted on May 21, 2011 5:32:22 GMT -5
Bath mats... that's an interesting idea. I can get those cheap, sometimes even the dollar store has them.
I've just noticed that their poo smells more like people poo than corny toxic poo. It's still gross. Not so much with the urine. Plus the food has a smell to it. I clean the cage when I get off work, and just a couple hours later it starts stinking again. That's my main frustration. I'll even change the papers out whenever someone goes on them. My mom thinks that it might be making me sick since they are in our room.
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Post by starracino44 on Jun 11, 2011 17:42:29 GMT -5
I use it and it works great the smell is way down and there poop is in perfect shape and form
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Post by Deleted on Jun 11, 2011 17:54:34 GMT -5
If you look at the ingredients, I would really reevaluate continuing to give it. They really don't belong in a ferrets water/diet. Even if it made ferret poop smell like daisies I wouldn't feed it. I'd rather have a stinky litter box than feed them that junk just my two cents though. Raw IMO is the best agent against stinky litter boxes. Poop is poop, and it will smell like it.
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Post by katt on Jun 11, 2011 18:11:32 GMT -5
I used it before I fed raw and it made a HUGE difference, HUGE. But after they switched to raw, they hardly smelled and it didn't do anything anymore- we stopped using it then. Wow really? Did you add it to food, or to water? It sounds like it works for kibble-fed ferrets but not raw-fed ferrets. I have heard that the ingredients are some natural amino acids or something like that. Makes me wonder if it works because it adds something that the kibble lacks, without which the poo smells more, but on a raw diet that component isn't missing to begin with. Just an idea That very well could be - a large number of the ingredients are simply amino acids. It's the OTHER ingredients that would concern me... Bath mats... that's an interesting idea. I can get those cheap, sometimes even the dollar store has them. I recommend NOT using bath mats. They typically have rubber backings that can be easily clawed through to make little chewy rips and pieces. I was all excited that I found ones with no rubber backing...and they dug the material to bits and were eating it. They are VERY convenient, but IMO too risky. How is this stuff any different from regular probiotics? Also, what about the litter box spray - is it actually safe for their lungs? A lot of "ferret" deodorizing sprays can cause lung damage...
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Post by Deleted on Jun 11, 2011 18:14:41 GMT -5
Baking soda seems to do the trick here...
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Post by Deleted on Jun 11, 2011 22:26:15 GMT -5
years ago (when marshalls food was the main ferret food) I had 2 ferrets. we used it and it helped but they still stunk. we finaly got rid of them cause they stunk so bad. now I have 4 ferrets, and with them on raw food, I hardly notice their smell.
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