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Post by Deleted on Apr 1, 2016 19:39:19 GMT -5
I was here a few months ago asking about toys for my ferret since she seems to not like all the "normal" ferret toys like tubes and such, but I've recently found a treat she really likes and I've found that she will spend some time rolling around a kong toy with a treat inside to get the treat.
I wish she'd take kibble in place of the treat since that would be much healthier, but she just isn't very food motivated. I think she just likes the treats because they smell/taste good, as opposed to the kibble just giving her a readily available food source. The treat is those little Bandits things that come in a small package at most pet stores. I looked at the ingredients and it does seem pretty heavily meat based but I wanted to ask if this is okay to give her on a regular basis? Like would one treat daily be okay for her? More than one? How often is it safe to give her these treats? It is just so hard to entertain her that now that I've found something she likes to do I want to take advantage of it as best I can.
Is there a healthier treat I can offer her that smells and tastes just as good? Cat treats maybe? She doesn't eat raw, and doesn't recognize raw meat as food, so that's not really a treat I can give her. Like I said before, kibble isn't something she's willing to forage for. I'm not sure what else to try if Bandits isn't healthy on a regular basis.
My next question is what sort of foraging toys can I get for her that would take her some time to get to the treat? The kong is great and all but she's figured that out and has the treat out in 30 seconds. I'm hoping to find some toys that may take her a few minutes at least to work out, at least the first few times. I looked online at some dog treat foraging toys and there are a couple I may try out but I wanted to ask if anyone here had some ideas. She has a rice dig box (that she doesn't use much), I can try putting them in there.
I don't want to start with anything too complicated since I'm not sure exactly how long her attention span will last, but if she seems to really like some simpler treat puzzle toys then I may look for more complicated stuff.
If it helps she eats EVO brand cat food, the chicken flavor one I believe.
Thanks in advance!
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Post by Deleted on Apr 1, 2016 20:37:00 GMT -5
I take a clean 2 litter bottle and put holes in it thats as near to kibble size as I can, put kibble in it and they roll it around trying to get it out. They have food in the bowls still but they work that bottle anyway  |
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Post by Klarissa on Apr 2, 2016 6:14:18 GMT -5
Bandits treats are terrible for ferrets  They are full of sugar & unhealthy "other" ingredients. Orijen makes freeze dried raw meat treats (get the dog ones - same thing, more cost effective than cat). They are strictly meat, and they crumble, so a single treat goes a lot further. They are awesome for putting in treat dispensing toys. If your ferret snorkels, or will go bobbing for treats, they float & are fun to fish out of a little bowl of water too! |
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Post by raynebc on Apr 2, 2016 14:51:36 GMT -5
You can also give them pieces of cooked meat as a treat if you don't want to feed it raw.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 2, 2016 20:46:00 GMT -5
Do the Orijen treats have a strong smell? I think that's part of what interests her in the Bandits treats so much. I'll give them a shot either way but I'm just worried she won't go for them since she's so picky with everything else. I can try cooked meat but I've offered her some stuff before and she never really seemed interested, even beef in beef broth, likely with seasonings too (came from a canned soup, I only offered her a tiny bit since she hardly ever gets treats), she wouldn't touch the stuff. I may try the 2 liter bottles, I imagine I could do the same thing with smaller bottles? When I get soda it's usually canned so I don't really get the big 2 liter bottles, but I get the small bottles sometimes. I can also try the bobbing for treats idea. I've offered her a tub of water with some plastic toys in it and she didn't seem interested, she just used it as a giant water bowl, but she might like bobbing for treats if they smell good to her. Still interested in other toy ideas! |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 2, 2016 22:27:12 GMT -5
you can make scent trails with a tiny bit of salmon oil on a swab dragged across the floor just enough to leave a scent trail, not so much that its leaving the oil on the floor) or whatever that leads to some hidden treat, mine enjoy that.
Oh another thing that my guys love is when I take paper dixie cups and put just a tiny drop of pure vanilla flavoring (for smell) in the bottom, just a tiny amount, you don't want it to pool, stack the cups till they dry and then toss them one by one into the room. Mine absolutely go nut smelling and stashing them. They even scoop them up with their heads and toss them around! I never use salmon oil when I do this though because I worry that they would think it was for eating and that isn't the goal. I don't want them eating cups lol.
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Post by unclejoe on Apr 3, 2016 5:41:25 GMT -5
I'm not defending or attacking Bandits, but here is the ingredient list for chicken flavor Chicken Flavor Ingredients: Chicken Liver, Chicken Meal, Wheat Flour, Chicken By-Products (organs only),Glycerin, Propylene Glycol, Phosphoric Acid, Salt, Potassium Sorbate and Citric Acid and Mixed Tocopherols and Calcium Propionate and BHA (preservatives), Color Added, Yellow 5, Yellow 6, Red 40, Rosemary Extract. I don't see any added sugars, but there are preservatives (tocopherols is vitamin E) and some food colors. As for propylene glycol, it is not antifreeze (ethylene glycol) www.foodinsight.org/questions-answers-propylene-glycol. www.bestfoodfacts.org/food-for-thought/is-propylene-glycol-safe www.md-health.com/Potassium-Sorbate.html |
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Post by Klarissa on Apr 3, 2016 8:53:43 GMT -5
I'm not defending or attacking Bandits, but here is the ingredient list for chicken flavor Chicken Flavor Ingredients: Chicken Liver, Chicken Meal, Wheat Flour, Chicken By-Products (organs only),Glycerin, Propylene Glycol, Phosphoric Acid, Salt, Potassium Sorbate and Citric Acid and Mixed Tocopherols and Calcium Propionate and BHA (preservatives), Color Added, Yellow 5, Yellow 6, Red 40, Rosemary Extract. I don't see any added sugars, but there are preservatives (tocopherols is vitamin E) and some food colors. As for propylene glycol, it is not antifreeze (ethylene glycol) www.foodinsight.org/questions-answers-propylene-glycol. www.bestfoodfacts.org/food-for-thought/is-propylene-glycol-safe www.md-health.com/Potassium-Sorbate.htmlGlycerin (also known as gylcerine & glycerol) is a type of sugar alcohol compound. It is added for sweetness & as a humectant (to keep the treats moist). BHA is a preservative classified as a possible human carcinogen (and ferrets a little cancer machines). |
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Post by abbeytheferret6 on Apr 3, 2016 9:00:24 GMT -5
24/7 Animal Poison Control Center 855-764-7661 $49 per incident fee applies EMERGENCY INSTRUCTIONS POISON LIST quickly find a poison FOR OWNERS a guide to pet safety FOR VETS events and information HOME NEWS & BLOG ABOUT US CONTACT US Search ← Back Propylene Glycol Google+PinterestShare Poisonous to: Cats, Dogs Level of toxicity: Generally mild to moderate, depending on the amount ingested and if ethylene glycol is present Common signs to watch for: Severe sedation Stumbling Seizures Tremors Panting Disorientation Lethargy Metabolic acidosis Google+PinterestShare Print Friendly Propylene glycol is one of the least toxic glycols. It is a synthetic liquid substance that absorbs water and is used by the chemical, food, and pharmaceutical industries for a wide variety of reasons. Like ethylene glycol, propylene glycol may be used as an antifreeze and can be found in high concentrations in RV and “pet safe” antifreezes. Since it has a wider margin of safety as compared to its chemical cousin, ethylene glycol, it is commonly used to absorb extra water and maintain moisture in certain medicines, cosmetics, or dog and human food products and is categorized by the FDA as a GRAS (generally recognized as safe) substance for this use. It is also used as a solvent for food colors, flavors and pharmaceuticals (i.e. injectable diazepam). Cats are particularly sensitive to PG and its use is not allowed in cat foods. Historically, some semi-moist cat foods contained up to 5-10% PG and cats were harmed by this (Heinz body formation).If cats or dogs ingest large amounts of propylene glycol, poisoning can occur. This is most commonly seen when pets ingest liquid propylene glycol products. www.petpoisonhelpline.com/poison/propylene-glycol/Reason Ichimed in, I saw propylene glycol added to the Nature's Miracle cleaner and was concerned.. I no longer see it as an ingredient, although they have a variety of products. |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 3, 2016 10:27:03 GMT -5
I thought of another thing mine enjoy.
I am a coffee drinker, with my schedule I don't think I'd make it without my nectar of the gods (coffee)
Anyway NO, I do not give them coffee!
I end up with a lot of coffee containers left over though. The ones I get are a heavy plastic which I end up e to organize stuff but before they get put to use in that way I rinse them out really well, after they are rinsed well and thoroughly they still have that coffee smell. They get a soapy wash later but first my ferrets get to play with them. I'll put one someplace in the ferret room, usually hidden and Peanut (or Daisy and Beasely) will hunt them down and go to town rolling around in the can or digging like crazy.
The reason they don't get a soapy wash first is because once that is done they don't hold the smell anymore. I make sure to rinse them enough that there are no grinds left and no residue that I can feel.
They are very scent driven wee mites so a lot of our enrichment here utilizes that sense. I don't give treats really outside of salmon oil and egg. Though we are going to try some orijen treats. I don't want to offer treats that don't have nutritional value. Generally any foraging that ends with food is one of their kibs.
The dixi cup thing we do, I stick to scents that are safe for them and that do not smell like a food to them, reason being is that I don't want them to be tempted to lick or eat it.
Another scent we play with here is when I have lemons I'll squeeze a bit of zest into a couple of Dixie cups, again, leaving the cups to dry before tossing the lot into the room. (we go through a lot of dixiecups here because it is a favorite game to them)
Another scent we use is I'll grab some grass clippings and put them in a seal-able container with , you guessed it, dixiecups, shake it a bit then let the cups sit in there for a couple of days, take the cups out and give a good shake before tossing to the ferts and they have grass scent, this can be done with fall leaves too. Those cups are great for absorbing scents. No E.O's though.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 3, 2016 16:42:56 GMT -5
you can make scent trails with a tiny bit of salmon oil on a swab dragged across the floor just enough to leave a scent trail, not so much that its leaving the oil on the floor) or whatever that leads to some hidden treat, mine enjoy that. Oh another thing that my guys love is when I take paper dixie cups and put just a tiny drop of pure vanilla flavoring (for smell) in the bottom, just a tiny amount, you don't want it to pool, stack the cups till they dry and then toss them one by one into the room. Mine absolutely go nut smelling and stashing them. They even scoop them up with their heads and toss them around! I never use salmon oil when I do this though because I worry that they would think it was for eating and that isn't the goal. I don't want them eating cups lol. Do you have a link to what scents are safe to use for something like a scent bucket? |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 3, 2016 19:55:43 GMT -5
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Post by unclejoe on Apr 3, 2016 20:04:21 GMT -5
I'm not defending or attacking Bandits, but here is the ingredient list for chicken flavor Chicken Flavor Ingredients: Chicken Liver, Chicken Meal, Wheat Flour, Chicken By-Products (organs only),Glycerin, Propylene Glycol, Phosphoric Acid, Salt, Potassium Sorbate and Citric Acid and Mixed Tocopherols and Calcium Propionate and BHA (preservatives), Color Added, Yellow 5, Yellow 6, Red 40, Rosemary Extract. I don't see any added sugars, but there are preservatives (tocopherols is vitamin E) and some food colors. As for propylene glycol, it is not antifreeze (ethylene glycol) www.foodinsight.org/questions-answers-propylene-glycol. www.bestfoodfacts.org/food-for-thought/is-propylene-glycol-safe www.md-health.com/Potassium-Sorbate.htmlGlycerin (also known as gylcerine & glycerol) is a type of sugar alcohol compound. It is added for sweetness & as a humectant (to keep the treats moist). BHA is a preservative classified as a possible human carcinogen (and ferrets a little cancer machines). Also called glycerol or glycerine, glycerin is present in all natural lipids (fats), whether animal or vegetable. It can be derived from natural substances by hydrolysis of fats and by fermentation of sugars, and it also can be synthetically manufactured. BHA (wikipedia) The U.S. National Institutes of Health report that BHA is reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen based on evidence of carcinogenicity in experimental animals. In particular, when administered in high doses as part of their diet, BHA causes papillomas and squamous cell carcinomas of the forestomach in rats and Syrian golden hamsters.[5] In mice, there is no carcinogenic effect,[5] and even evidence of a protective effect against the carcinogenicity of other chemicals.[4] When examining human population statistics, the usual low intake levels of BHA show no significant association with an increased risk of cancer.[6] The State of California, has, however, listed it as a carcinogen.[7] The operative words are "high doses in "experimental animals." I'm not defending that either. Vitamin E is an excellent preservative, so BHA is probably unnecessary. DArn near anything can cause cancer in high enough doses. California Prop 65 lists hundreds of toxic and carcingonenic substances, including alcohol, ASPIRIN, ACE inhibitors used to treat high blood pressure, diazoxide used to treat insulinoma in ferrets, oral contraceptives and nickel among them. oehha.ca.gov/prop65/prop65_list/files/P65single120415.pdf |
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Post by Klarissa on Apr 27, 2016 12:03:59 GMT -5
According to an article I'm reading now, propylene glycol was banned from cat foods for causing anaemia (still permitted in dog foods). Considering we already model ferrets diet off cats & they share a number of similarities, I would be concerned about it as well.
I'm sure the occasional treat will do nothing, but I also know someone (who refuses to listen to any reason) who feeds her ferrets multiple treats a day. This is definitely not uncommon among kibble feeders.
Bandits are really unnecessary, when better alternatives are just as accessible. I'm by no means saying I'm perfect... My dog LOVES Tim bits (donut holes) and on their birthdays I split one between the two dogs. They get nothing but raw 365.
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Post by marietta on Feb 17, 2017 10:05:28 GMT -5
I love the idea of different scents in cups! I am definitely going to try that.
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