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Post by Deleted on Mar 1, 2011 0:33:23 GMT -5
Many of us know dog food as the 'OFF LIMITS' food. Why?
I compared a good quality ferret food to a high quality dog food, and I don't see why a ferret wouldn't be able to eat a good quality dog food.
I'm not an expert at picking apart an ingredients list, so I took the first 5 ingredients, which are the most important. Here's the first five ingredients from ZuPreem Ferret Formula: Chicken meal, chicken fat, ground wheat, wheat flour, chicken.
I bolded the meat sources. (At least I believe chicken fat is a meat source, maybe not). The General Analysis for the Zupreem:
Crude protein (min.) 40% Crude fat (min.) 20% Crude fiber (max.) 2% Moisture (max.) 10%
Now, here's Taste of the Wild High Prairie Canine Formula's first five ingredients. (It's a grain free food).
Bison, lamb meal, chicken meal, egg product, sweet potatoes.
General Analysis for TOTW: Protein: 32% Fat: 18% Calcium: 2.1% Phosphorus: 1.4%
The big deal with why ferrets can't have dog food seems to be that dog food doesn't have enough meat in it, given that ferrets are obligate carnivores, right? Cats are also obligate carnivores, which is why cat/kitten food is more acceptable. However, looking at those ingredients, I'm seeing more meat in the dog food than in the ferret food. So it appears that a good quality dog food has just as much, or more, meat than a good ferret food.
Why couldn't a ferret eat a good quality dog food?
**I don't feed my ferret dog food, he's fed a raw diet.**
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Post by Deleted on Mar 1, 2011 1:14:12 GMT -5
I don't have an entire answer for you, but I know cats and ferrets both have high taurine requirements in comparison to dogs.
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Post by sherik on Mar 1, 2011 1:15:18 GMT -5
I believe that fat in dog food is too low. Also there is no taurine in dog foods.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 1, 2011 1:17:52 GMT -5
You can't really judge the fat unless you have the moisture content of the dog food. Without it, it's like comparing apples to oranges.
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Post by taratee on Mar 1, 2011 1:19:28 GMT -5
everything ive ever heard about dog food was a big noooooo, i have heard that some cat foods could be used in a pinch but they were kitten foods becuase ferrets fat requirements are so different from cats and dogs
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Post by Deleted on Mar 1, 2011 1:31:32 GMT -5
I found this for the dog food I used in the example above.
Crude Protein: 32% Minimum Crude Fat: 18% Minimum Crude Fiber: 3% Maximum Moisture: 10% Maximum
Edited to add: I hope no one sees me posting this as trying to feed dog food. I'm simply trying to see if it's truly as unhealthy as it's been made out to be, or if dog food may possibly be acceptable to feed ferrets. (Not that it'd be popular).
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Post by Deleted on Mar 1, 2011 1:39:40 GMT -5
Okay, so since the moisture content is the same, you can compare the fat.
I'd say it's a bit on the low end for a ferret. Even cat food can be low in fat. Fat should be around 22-25% (dry matter basis) maybe more depending on the ferret.
You can calculate the dry matter by
Taking the percentage in question (ex. Fat) and divide it by how much dry matter. If it's 10% moisture, it's 90% dry matter
Using the fat in the dog food as an example. 18/90 * 100 = 20% fat
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Post by Deleted on Mar 1, 2011 1:40:37 GMT -5
I understand. =)
I think the biggest reasons are a lot of dog foods are made based on the concept that they are omnivores and have fruits and veggies. They have a lack of taurine and low fat content.
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Post by taratee on Mar 1, 2011 1:40:46 GMT -5
id say size of the kibbles would be a real problem as well
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Post by Deleted on Mar 1, 2011 1:50:54 GMT -5
Perhaps EVO dog food would be better for analysis?
I want to make a table so I can set up side-by-side comparisons.
First five ingredients of EVO turkey/chicken formula, canine. Turkey, chicken, turkey meal, chicken meal, potatoes
Guaranteed analysis for EVO. Crude protein (min): 42% Crude fat (min): 22% Crude fiber (max): 2.5% Moisture (max): 10%
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Post by wtferret on Mar 1, 2011 2:06:55 GMT -5
Mine love taste of the wild whenever they can steal it they do.
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Post by goingpostal on Mar 1, 2011 7:05:54 GMT -5
I used to feed Evo dog food in my mix, regular and red meat along with ferret food (foster and smith), Evo has taurine added although I don't know how much, high fat and protein and mostly meat but most dog foods aren't appropiate and I would always mix with a quality cat or ferret food.
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Post by trippyferret on Mar 1, 2011 8:11:06 GMT -5
The canine formulas for TOTW are not as high in protein or fat, especially their new lamb formula. Plus I feed it to my dogs and the kibbles are pretty big for most small ferrets; I'd be worried about it lodging in the roof of their mouths. However they do have taurine listed in the ingredients. I have given my ferrets dog food in a mix in the past, they were getting Innova Red Meat Bites but I would not feed it by itself, since there is no taurine added to it.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 1, 2011 8:39:08 GMT -5
I'm not supporting the dog food, BUT what you need to be careful about when picking a kibble is something sneaky the manufacturers do with the ingredients list. Your zupreem example is Perrfect to state my case. They list the third and fourth ingredient as ground wheat and wheat flour. These two ingredients are essentially the same garbage. They split it up like that to make it appear as though chicken meal and chicken fat are the most abundant ingredients, when in reality its a whole lot of undigestible wheat.
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Post by Sherry on Mar 1, 2011 10:52:04 GMT -5
The biggest reasons I think have already been stated. 1. No taurine added, which ferrrets need. 2. Fat content should be around 25-30%. 3. Too many fruits/veg/grains. When you get all three in one food, it can cause a lot of harm.
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