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Starting Member
Group: Forum Members
Last Login: 2/7/2008 5:05:22 PM
Posts: 30,
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| Hi everyone...my name is Gina & I am new to these forums. I joined because I love my ferrets & I would like to be able to talk to people about ferrets & their nature as well as habits & whatnot. My first major concern is the size of my one ferret. I have two of them. BellaLaRu (Bella) & Brutakis (Brute). They are from the same litter but were bought weeks apart. When I bought Bella, I was told that because of there being so many in a litter & that ferret food is so expensive, they feed the ferrets cat food but since I was getting Bella at such a young age that it would be beneficial to buy ferret food. I was directed to the food & advised which one was best for her. She has been on it since & in my opinion has grown & is a healthy normal size, in my opinion. Brute on the other hand, i'm a bit concerned about. He was bought about a month after Bella, so was on cat food for that amount of time, & is in fact from the same litter. The difference between them though is their eating habits. i'm getting concerned at the size of Brute. He must weigh, to guess, 3 lbs. I know it doesn't seem like much but to little ferrets it makes a difference. My question is, is this normal to happen? Do some ferrets, particularly males, tend to get bigger and fatter then female. I read about feeding & the articles all say to keep food & water in the cage at all times, they also get let out to play often & are very active but his belly is so big. I don't know if this is normal & would like some helpful info if possible. Thank you for reading this & any feedback that I receive. ~Gina
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Average Member
Group: Forum Members
Last Login: 9/15/2007 8:43:51 PM
Posts: 608,
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Welcome to the forum! I hope you like it here. [ ]Now, on to your question. Males tend to get bigger then the females. For example, my ferret Delilah weighs just over 1 lb, however her cagemate, Samson, weighs in at just over 3lbs. Every ferret is different. It sounds like your boy could be a little chubby, as long as you switch him to a decent ferret kibble (I like Innova Evo Ferret Kibble or Totally Ferret) and give him plenty of exercise, the weight should come off (if it needs to). [] Some people's ferrets are naturally chubby, my ferret Weezie was a bit of a chunk when I first got her, but when I changed her diet to a better food and gave her more time out of then cage then she was getting, she started to slim down. Another member on here, BusyIzzy (matt and kristi) have two ferrets, Izzy and Brutus. When they got Brutus he was kinda chubby, but I believe he's starting to slim down a bit. Perhaps BusyIzzy can throw in their two cents about how to slim down a ferret. 
--------------------------------- Love, Giuli 
Check out my pictures/videos of all my "furkids" by clicking on the links below! http://lugnutandhendrix.myphotoalbum.com (The cats album is also here) http://samsonanddelilah.myphotoalbum.com http://willowandweezie.myphotoalbum.com http://apollopuppy.myphotoalbum.com Interested in natural feeding? Join NaturalFerrets! (Just click on the button below) 
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Average Member
Group: Forum Members
Last Login: 8/12/2007 3:46:12 PM
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Ive got a ferret named Titus. when I got him at about 10wks old he was weighing in at 2.5-3lbs. Shes going on a year old and still weighs about that. Hes eatting ferret kibble, a few yogies for treats.. but yeah, males tend to be bigger, sometimes alot bigger than females. just keep him running and exercising and keep up healthy habits and he should tone down the chub.
-------------------------- Mommy of 5 lovley ferrets- Kiba, Sable, Amon, Aphrodite and Titus Over the Bridge- Podo, dec.06 
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Starting Member
Group: Forum Members
Last Login: 2/7/2008 5:05:22 PM
Posts: 30,
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| Thank you for getting back to me. Now knowing that males tend to be bigger and average between 2-3lbs relieves me alittle. I want to get harnesses for them so that I can walk them as well as have them play in the house. I live in South Philadelphia, so the pet stores here are different then what is in the suburbs. The Brands of foods they carry for pets are limited and each store sells different brands. I trust Monster Pets vs Pet Smart (at least around here) for dog food and ferret food and the people are alot nicer. I've found the most expensive brand of ferret food is Marshall (premium ferret diet). I've used this since I got them, only because when she was bought for me, not knowing much about what brand is best, that was what came recommened, obviously because its the most expensive, but still affordable. I couldn't even tell you what other brands the stores carry. I'd also seen that you aren't supposed to switch your ferrets diet so i've continued using Marshall, even after getting Brute. Is switching the brand something I should consider? I bought yogi treats for them and they turned their noses up to them, so I tried the fruit and nuts treats that come in a can and they really enjoyed those. the bagged snacks for some reason, neither of them liked. Alright, well i'm heading off now, thanks again for the help and I look forward to reading more in the forums. [ ]
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Junior Member
Group: Forum Members
Last Login: 1/25/2008 7:46:49 PM
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- Hey Gina,
- Yes, males ARE usually larger than females.
- Izzy - 1 1/2 lbs. / Brutus - 3+ lbs.
 -
- When we got Brutus, he WAS an overweight 3 lbs.
- Now (5 mo.'s later)... He is a "mostly" solid 3 lbs.!!!
- "Mostly" meaning he still has a bit of a belly.
- The key is EXERCISE!!! At first, Brut would just
- waddle. And if he wasn't moving, he was laying on
- his stomach. He never just "stood" on all 4's.
- But NOW he runs, walks, "stands" around and to
- eat and drink. Still has a bit of the waddle when
- he runs, but hey... he's running!!! And jumping!!!
- So work on the exercise thing. Find a fun way to
- get him to RUN. Try dragging something for him
- to chase. A towel, toy, "super tube" (Brut's fav.)
- or whatever it takes. That did WONDERS
- for him.
Good Luck, Matt and Kristi (Izzy & Brutus)
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Average Member
Group: Forum Members
Last Login: 9/15/2007 8:43:51 PM
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| DEFINITLY consider switching the ferret food. marshalls really isnt that 'premium' of a diet unfourtunately. It contains corn and fish products (which equal big stinky poop). Totally Ferret and Innova Evo ferret food are two good brands. If you decide to switch the food, mix in the new food with the old food and transition them slowly. As for treats, try Totally ferret 'bits' or a meat based treat. One sure-fire treat that hardly ANY ferret will turn its nose up at is Ferretone (a vitamen supplement so dont give more then what is reccomended on the side of the bottle). Hope this helps!
--------------------------------- Love, Giuli
Check out my pictures/videos of all my "furkids" by clicking on the links below! http://lugnutandhendrix.myphotoalbum.com (The cats album is also here) http://samsonanddelilah.myphotoalbum.com http://willowandweezie.myphotoalbum.com http://apollopuppy.myphotoalbum.com Interested in natural feeding? Join NaturalFerrets! (Just click on the button below)
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Starting Member
Group: Forum Members
Last Login: 2/7/2008 5:05:22 PM
Posts: 30,
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Busy Izzy (7/5/2007)
- Brut would just waddle. And if he wasn't moving, he was laying on his stomach. He never just "stood" on all 4's.
Thats pretty much where we are with Brute. We can't allow them out of the cage all day to run around, one reason is because they aren't litter trained. I continue to put the litter pan in the cage and they dump and dig all the litter out and use the pan to sleep in...LOL. They may actually go in the pan a couple times and thats it. When they are out running around, he does sorta run but most of the time it seems as though he doesn't use his back legs, and his belly certainly drags on the ground. I noticed he loves to play hide and seek in blankets and under pillows so the tubing you recommended sounds like a good idea as well as us getting the harness to take them for walks. I'm definitely encouraged that it isn't just my chubs and that all males tend to be this way. I thank all of you for all your helpful info. HUGGZ~Gina
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Junior Member
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