From:
titania3398
Date: 2002-02-04 22:14:00 UTC
Subject: What to do about an overweight ferret?
Hi,
I have 2 ferrets, one male, one female, aprox.9 months old. They
are on Iams kitten chow. They get a lot of exercise. The male,
Gandalph, has, in my opinion, a weight problem. His peak weight was
5lbs. His excess was always evenly distributed. At his heaviest he
had a difficult time running and could not jump up. I began
monitoring his eating and taking him for walks. I let the female,
Buddy, eat as much as she wanted (she's a skinny girl!). Gandalph
was/is fed small portions several times a day. I have been doing this
all outside of their cage, ie. I do not leave a dish in their cage.
Needless to say I would like to be able to leave SOME food in their
cage, especially at night. I'm afraid Gandalph will eat it all and
Buddy will not get any. Gandalph has come down to a reasonable size.
He is able to run and jump and has more energy.
Should I change their diet in any way? ie. use a different kibble
and/or add more of a variety of low fat foods? I would like to
maintain Gandalph's weight and be able to feed them in their cage!
Thank you!
Mary