From:
Brett Middleton
Date: 2001-03-29 18:37:00 UTC
Subject: Re: urine licking (not drinking) interference with Japanese
Satsuma.
Edward Lipinski <elipinski@j...> wrote:
> Then again, could it be that urine has some factor in it that
> closely mimics the nutrients in tangerine juice and that most ferrets
> fed on commercial ferret food lack in their system the products of
> citrus that they instinctively know is absent?
The problem with this idea is that no research has ever found evidence
that animals (or humans) have some sort of "nutritional wisdom" or
"nutritional intuition" and develop cravings for missing nutrients. If
you're deficient in, say, molybdenum, you don't wake up in the morning
with a sudden desire for molybdenum, and foods that contain molybdenum
don't suddenly look/taste/smell better to you.
Aside from that, if the urine contains a nutrient that ferrets lack in
their system, how did it get there? Anything that comes out must have
gone in, and any nutrients excreted in urine are generally there
because they were extra nutrients that the animal couldn't use or
store.
Brett
*SLMW 1.0* Ferrets: Drugs would be cheaper, but not as much fun.