From:
George Gebara
Date: 2002-01-22 14:36:00 UTC
Subject: Re: [Ferret-Health-list] more on omega fatty acids, some
web references
At 08:51 22/01/2002, Linda Iroff wrote:
>OK so I spent a few minutes doing some web searches and came across the
>following.
>
>http://www.silanutrition.com/flaxomfa.html
>This does a fairly good job of explaining the difference between omega-3
>and omega-6 fatty acids, and why it is the RATIO of the two that is
>important. Typical human diets have 10 to 25 times as much omega-6 as
>omega-3. Recommendations are that this be reduced to 4 to 10 times. NOTE
>that omega-6 is still supposed to be higher than omega-3.
This appears to be a reasonably accurate introduction.
>So what does this mean for ferrets, whose natural diet is very different
>from ours? It's anybody's guess!
Based on the requirements of their cousin the mink, I would conjecture
that ferrets need the following:
Omega-3 fatty acids in the form of:
DHA (docosahexaenoic acid, 22:6w3)
and
EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid, 20:5w3)
Both are found in brains, eyeballs, adrenal glands, and testes. Consider
that the ferret would naturally consume all these parts of small prey animals.
Possibly:
LNA (alpha-linolenic acid, 18:3w3)
DHA and EPA can both be derived via enzymatic action from LNA. In itself
LNA may not be required. There have been some positive results using ground
flax seed, which is very high in LNA, in mink food. If ferrets have the
same enzymatic ability, and more importantly this ability hasn't been
degraded through illness or age, giving them LNA would suffice.
Omega-6 fatty acids in the form of:
LA (linoleic acid, 18:2w6)
Is found in the fatty tissue of their prey animals, as well as in chicken
fat and most vegetable oils.
AA (arachidonic Acid, 20:4w6)
Is also found in the fatty tissue of their prey animals, but not in plants
or their oils. Some obligate carnivores such as mink and cats cannot derive
AA from LA (as we can).
Both LNA (w3) and LA (w6), and their derivatives such as EPA and DHA, are
produced by plants. Animals must have them. Commercial farm animals are fed
grain-based diets that are high in w6 but very low in w3. This is in
contrast to their wild cousins that eat primarily the w3-containing green
grasses. As has become the case in humans, we can assume that ferrets that
eat a "modern" diet get an excess of w6 at the expense of w3.
My recommendation would be to supplement with some freshly ground flax seed
in a healthy ferret. Otherwise, a salmon oil capsule will provide DHA and
EPA directly. Simply cut the capsule open and squeeze out the contents into
their food. Their should be no supplementation needed for LA or AA, as they
are already abundant in their diets.
I would also like to point out that the commercial pet oil supplements are
a poor choice. Both w3 and w6 degrade rapidly without refrigeration and
protection from oxygen. The products of this degradation are harmful.
HTH,
George.