Ferrets can eat fresh tuna, but canned tuna should be only as an occasional treat. Canned tuna has a high sodium content, which is terrible for them in excessive amounts. Moreover, tuna lacks the nutrients that your ferret needs. A piece or two as a treat is fine, but substituting them for your furry friend’s usual meal isn’t recommended.
Further Reading: “Can Ferrets Eat Lettuce?”
Table of Contents
Can I Feed My Ferret With Canned Tuna?
You can, but it’s best not to. Canned tuna contains a lot of seasoning and a high amount of salt. Both of these are bad for your ferret’s health in the long run. While it can be an easy-to-prepare treat, regularly feeding your ferret canned tuna may negatively affect your ferret’s health. Canned tuna is your pet’s junk food of sorts—it may taste great, but it will definitely not provide the nutrition ferrets need. In worst-case scenarios, your ferret may even get sick due to malnutrition.
If you must give your ferrets canned tuna, limit it to maybe once or twice a month. At the same time, you have to closely monitor how their bodies will respond. Some are fine after eating a small amount. Others, on the other hand, develop stinky fur or expel feces with a peculiar smell. The effects of canned tuna may vary from pet to pet.
Better yet, skip the canned tuna and opt for other treats they may enjoy, such as cooked eggs, pieces of chicken and turkey, and even cat treats. High-protein and high-fat diets are good for them, both as treats and as part of their meals, but keep their food unsalted (or very, very lightly seasoned). Store-bought cold meats are commonly seasoned according to human taste, so make sure to check before you give them to your ferret.
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You can feed your ferret canned tuna, but it’s best not to. Canned tuna contains a lot of seasoning and a high amount of salt. Both of these are bad for your ferret’s health in the long run. You can use it as a treat for your furry friend but limit to once or twice a month max.
Can Ferrets Eat Fresh Tuna?
Ferrets can eat fresh tuna. They love discovering new things, and tuna provides a variety of tastes that they will enjoy. However, it’s healthier for them to have turkey or chicken. They need protein-rich meals, and they will certainly live longer and healthier if they receive the nutrition they require.
It’s not that tuna isn’t nutritious, but nutrition is relative. Tuna contains potassium, vitamin A, iron, magnesium, and rich omega-3 fatty acids. Fresh tuna score higher than canned ones only because they aren’t salted or otherwise seasoned. But while tuna may be nutritious for humans, its nutrients are insignificant to ferrets. There are many other alternatives that can make your furry friend both happy and healthy at the same time.
Ferrets are obligate carnivores, so you can feed them most types of meat. You can give your ferrets fresh tuna from time to time, but it certainly should not be your go-to meal for your pet.
Further Reading: “Can Ferrets Eat Raw Chicken?“
Is Tuna Bad For Ferrets?
It’s not bad, but it’s not exactly good either. Tuna has little to no nutritional value for ferrets. At most, it is junk food that satisfies their taste. It may contain protein that they need, but it has none of the micronutrients that they need to keep their bodies healthy. The best answer to this question would be that it can be bad for your ferret, but not necessarily. Tuna is a nice occasional treat for your pet. But keep in mind that your ferret needs more nutrition in their diet than what tuna can provide.
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Ferrets Recommended Diet
Your fuzzy animals are obligate carnivores. Their bodies are designed in a way that they need to eat meat to survive. They may also eat plants, but they lack the ability to digest them. Ferrets often live in the wild, and when they do, they eat anything they can catch. This selection includes mice, rats, and snakes, among others. Ferrets do not catch fish in the wild, so their bodies have no need for it. In the wild, they may live their whole lives without ever eating fish.
The best meal you can feed your ferret is chicken, lamb, or turkey. They are high in protein which sufficiently provides what ferrets need to be healthy. You also have to note that ferrets tend to eat small meals in a day because they have a high metabolic rate. Keeping them on a raw diet is ideal and more in line with their biological setup. There are also alternatives that are both convenient for you and can provide the nutrients that your pet needs.
If it were up to your furry friend, they’d pick raw meat every time. It can be troublesome to keep them on a raw diet, however. Thankfully, there are high-protein food pellets available in local pet stores. They provide all the nutrition your ferret needs. These are the most convenient for pet owners who like to monitor the ingredients that go into their pets’ food. The best thing about food pellets is that they don’t get contaminated by parasites the way raw meat does.
Regardless of whether you choose to give food pellets or a raw meat diet, always choose food high in protein and fat. Chicken and lamb are ideal food items. Grain and corn, on the other hand, can fill your pet up without actually providing any nutritional value. Keep them away from your ferret’s meals.
Ferrets can’t digest plants or food high in dairy products or complex carbs, so it’s better not to give them any at all. Your ferret needs fat in their diet, but tuna is very high in cholesterol, so it’s best kept as an occasional treat rather than a regular occurrence.
A ferret’s diet should consist of 32-38% protein and 15-20% fat.
Further Reading: “How To Tell If A Ferret Is Scared?“
Include In Your Ferret Diet
- Raw meat is the best
- Dried ferret food that’s high in meat protein.
- Chicken wings and stripped carcasses.
- Rabbits
- Turkey
- Pigeons
- Beef
- Lamb
- Raw animal bones
- Chicken
- Game birds
They can also eat prey like mice, rats, and chicks.
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Avoid In Your Ferret Diet
- Fruits, Vegetables & Grains – Your furry friends will have issues while digesting these foods.
- Dairy products – They lack the enzymes needed for the digestion of lactose.
- Chocolate – This is poisonous to our ferret and may end up very bad.
Your ferret has very short intestinal tracks. While their metabolism rate is high, the food they take is digested and ingested very fast and that’s why we see our ferret hungry all the time.
Further Reading: “Can You Bath A Ferret?“
A ferret’s diet should consist of 32-38% protein and 15-20% fat.
Do Ferrets Like Tuna?
Some ferrets may like tuna more than others do. There’s no sure-fire answer to this question. Always remember that our pets are individual characters too. They have their own personalities, preferences, and quirks. Most ferrets eat anything under the sun, but the best way to know for sure whether your pet will like it is to try giving them it.
Don’t think that something is wrong if your ferret doesn’t enjoy tuna. It just means that you’re better off trying out other alternative treats that are also more nutritious for them.
Further Reading: “Do Ferrets Make Noise?“
Final Thoughts
Ferrets are curious animals who have nothing against putting anything they find in their mouths. They’re used to living in the wild, and they can eat anything they put their paws on. Most of the time, this means chicks, mice, and small snakes. Other times, this means even food that they can’t really digest, such as plants, or food with no real nutritional content.
Tunas are fantastic occasional treats for your furry buddy. They provide variety and flavor to their usual meals. Giving your ferret some is safe enough as long as you don’t do it too often. You don’t want to give them high-sodium treats that will get them sick in the long run, so keep the experience healthier for them by choosing fresh tuna over canned ones, and that’s also I would recommend giving once or twice a month.
