Ferret Treats

A ferret treat that fits is a small piece of meat, nothing added, held in your fingers while the ferret works at it. That is the whole idea, and the rest of this page is detail: why meat, what form, how small and when.

Ferrets are meat eaters

The Merck Veterinary Manual describes ferrets as carnivores whose diet should be meat based, and VCA Hospitals tells ferret owners to keep sweets, raisins and fruit out of the bowl even though ferrets enjoy them. Sugary and fruit based treats can be found on shelves for ferrets, and both sources point the other way, so this page does not recommend them. A treat for a ferret is a small piece of the kind of food a ferret eats.

In practice that means reading the ingredient line for an animal first. A ferret treat that opens with chicken, turkey, duck or beef is in the right family, and one that opens with a grain, a fruit or a sweetener is not, whatever the picture on the front shows. A ferret will take almost any treat it is offered, so the choice sits with you and not with the ferret.

Freeze dried meat treats

Freeze dried meat is dry and light, breaks into small pieces, and has no sauce or coating to get onto fur or carpet. The ingredient line on a ferret treat should read as meat and nothing else, and the supplier's listing on this site gives that line for each product in the ferret treats collection. The range is small today and grows as makers join.

Here is the honest part about the house line. Sniff and Shift freeze dries and air dries treats in small batches in Malvern, and the meat looks like the right kind of food for a ferret, but its labels say dogs and cats, so none of it is suggested here. We follow the label.

A treat made for ferrets belongs to ferrets, and a cat treat is a different product even where the meat looks alike. Read the animal named on the pack.

If you want to know what freeze drying does to a piece of meat, how freeze dried treats are made walks through it. A dry piece takes a ferret longer to work through than a soft one, so break it to the size you want before you offer it. Raw and freeze dried products can carry bacteria, and the raw feeding notice covers handling; wash your hands and any bowl afterward.

Treat size for a ferret

A ferret is a small animal with a small mouth. Cut or break a piece to about the size of a pencil eraser, and watch it be worked at before you offer a second. Meat is what a ferret wants, and the trade off is that meat treats are dense. Merck says treats should stay to a minimum, no more than 5 percent of a ferret's daily calories, so a few extra pieces add up quickly.

Measure the day's allowance in the morning. Put a few pieces in a small cup, and when the cup is empty the treats are done for the day. It is the easiest way to stop a ferret from talking you into one more, and it works because the limit was set before the ferret started asking.

Keep the treat to the same hand and the same spot. A ferret learns where the good things come from within a few days, and then comes to find you. Offer the piece from your fingers and not from the floor, since a ferret that finds crumbs on the carpet will carry them off and stash them behind the sofa.

Treats for training and handling

A ferret that will take a treat from your fingers is a ferret you can handle. Use one for the moments that matter: nail trimming, getting into a carrier, coming out of a play tunnel when it is time to go back. Hold the piece between thumb and forefinger so the ferret takes it from the tip and your fingertips stay clear. Ferrets can mistake a finger for the treat in the excitement, so hold the piece low and let the ferret come to it.

Carrier training is the use that pays off most. Put a treat just inside the door, let the ferret go in and come out, then move the treat a little farther back on the next try. A ferret that has learned the carrier is a place treats live is a ferret that goes in without a chase.

Pick a treat the ferret gets only for these jobs. The small pet treats collection lists what else is on offer for other animals, and treats for small pets explains why a treat that suits a rabbit or a hamster does not suit a ferret.

Common questions

Can ferrets eat dog or cat treats?

Read the label for the animal it names. The house line on this site is labeled for dogs and cats only, so it is not suggested for ferrets. If a treat names no animal, ask a licensed professional who cares for your ferret.

Do ferrets eat fruit?

VCA Hospitals and the Merck Veterinary Manual both advise against fruit for ferrets and steer owners toward meat based foods. This page does not recommend fruit treats. If you are unsure about a food, ask a licensed professional who cares for your ferret.

How many treats can a ferret have in a day?

Merck says treats should be no more than 5 percent of a ferret's daily calories. Offer a few eraser sized pieces in a session and keep the regular food as the main meal. Fewer pieces each time works better for training.

Do freeze dried treats need special handling?

Raw and freeze dried products can carry bacteria, as the raw feeding notice on this site explains. Wash your hands and any bowl after handling, and store the pack as its label directs.