Message Number: SG14937 | New FHL Archives Search
From: sukiec@optonline.net
Date: 2005-08-07 02:20:57 UTC
Subject: RE: [ferrethealth] Raw Meat Question
To: ferrethealth@smartgroups.com
Message-ID: <6918474.1123381257114.JavaMail.root@thallium.smartgroups.com>

Author wrote:
> I don?t think diet has that much to do with ferret health

I also suspect that people overemphasize it because it is controllable. I do think that is has its impacts but here. too, before so many fancies were bred for we often saw longer lives and what was fed then was not only usually kibble but lousy kibble.

>I think selective breeding for colour had done fare more
> damage to the ferret population than we realise. Chris

Again, my suspicions agree with yours. I recall a time when people would point out this or that breed defect which shortened the lives of other domestic animals (Notice that some dog breeds live only about half as long as some others.) and feel superior because that had not yet been done to ferrets. In the last ten or fifteen years I think that has changed for the worse.

One thing that is not debatable is that it would mean much if breeders all kept careful records of the health and longevity of the lines they use and close relatives, and once they have enough data to know better what they are seeing to then select mainly for what counts: health, longevity, personality.

One quote I love for tits blunt truth about health and breeding is from classical geneticist, Dr. Brett Middleton from
http://fhl.sonic-weasel.org/browse.php?msg=YG3069
(a post all should read, but especially breeders):
>Too many people who would never consider beating or
>starving their animals suddenly seem to lose all sense of ethical
>limits when it comes to breeding them.