From:
sukiecrandall@telocity.com
Date: 2002-07-29 18:35:53 UTC
Subject: RE: Bob C: Common Knowledge
To: ferrethealth@smartgroups.com
Message-ID: <25916339.1027967753182.JavaMail.root@scandium>
One thing that I have noticed, when comparing life spans and health issues with those seen by folks on non-kibble diets is that the life spans seem to be similar.
What medical problems the ferrets may differ, though. That has been impossible to know for sure since the variables involved are so large: most in different countries (which varies many things), different housing, different genetic lines, etc.
As a result, though I know that research on humans has shown over and over again that ancestoral diet components and proportions tend to work out best in term of health, I also have to acknowledge that for me the jury is still out on what alterations in diet may be the most useful for length of life span and general health for ferrets.
In fact, it is my impression (and only that at this point) that improvements in vet care and in our own knowledge about when to jump and how high for any given symptom have made far more difference in ferret health here than dietary improvements have over the twenty years when we've lived with ferrets. That could be wrong of course; hypotheses often enough are...