Post by raynebc on Jul 25, 2014 11:42:58 GMT -5
I'm a second time ferrent, have a boy and girl at the moment. When I got them, I immediately began transitioning them off of Marshalls kibble and now they eat a mix of equal-ish parts Epigen 90 (digestive support), Zupreem (corn free) and Evo, and considering adding Orijen cat/kitten.
Their poos are generally pretty consistent in firmness and color, but sometimes one of them (they've both exhibited this) will have a poo that is two-tone, ie. half normal color and half light brown/tan. And on very rare occasions, the entire poo will be entirely light brown/tan or even yellow. Since it's so intermittent, and they never actually appeared green in color, I'm pretty hopeful that it's not a sign of a disease like ECE, but I definitely would like a more expert opinion if possible. I don't want to post a sample photo without permission for etiquette reasons, but I can provide one if that's OK.
As far as other items in their diet go, the only treat they both really like at the moment are nbones, but I limit them to half a stick each every one or two days. They also get Oxyfresh and Goodbye Odor (my room mate is extremely sensitive to smells) in their water. Occasionally they'll eat some freeze dried chicken liver if I leave it in their bowl, but they haven't taken to other foods as of yet and that's something I'm going to work on them with, starting with a soup made of their regular kibble mix finely ground and mixed with water. When they were at the pet store, they offered dry food and a kibble mash like this so I'm hoping they'll quickly consider it food. I probably am not adventurous enough to try feeding them whole or raw, ground up prey, but I am certainly willing to feed them any types of cooked or freeze dried meat they're willing to eat. I've tried feeding them medium boiled eggs, but they haven't been interested. I may try a soft boiled egg, but I'm sure once they start having soup I could mix it in.
I have some Ferretone stocked from back when I had my first ferret, but I'd like to avoid using it if I can give them higher quality oils. I just got some salmon oil and while the little girl quickly became an addict, the boy hasn't come around to it yet, so I'll keep dabbing it on his lips and tongue. They don't like extra virgin olive oil yet, but if I can get them both to eat the salmon oil, I can try mixing the two. I haven't tried any more-exotic oils yet, but I'm planning on trying some others in the future. Do most oils that people give to ferrets store well when mixed, or should I keep certain ones separated? Is 1/2tsp of single or combined oil per ferret per dose too much? How many times a week should they have a dose to prevent hairballs and otherwise promote good health?
Their poos are generally pretty consistent in firmness and color, but sometimes one of them (they've both exhibited this) will have a poo that is two-tone, ie. half normal color and half light brown/tan. And on very rare occasions, the entire poo will be entirely light brown/tan or even yellow. Since it's so intermittent, and they never actually appeared green in color, I'm pretty hopeful that it's not a sign of a disease like ECE, but I definitely would like a more expert opinion if possible. I don't want to post a sample photo without permission for etiquette reasons, but I can provide one if that's OK.
As far as other items in their diet go, the only treat they both really like at the moment are nbones, but I limit them to half a stick each every one or two days. They also get Oxyfresh and Goodbye Odor (my room mate is extremely sensitive to smells) in their water. Occasionally they'll eat some freeze dried chicken liver if I leave it in their bowl, but they haven't taken to other foods as of yet and that's something I'm going to work on them with, starting with a soup made of their regular kibble mix finely ground and mixed with water. When they were at the pet store, they offered dry food and a kibble mash like this so I'm hoping they'll quickly consider it food. I probably am not adventurous enough to try feeding them whole or raw, ground up prey, but I am certainly willing to feed them any types of cooked or freeze dried meat they're willing to eat. I've tried feeding them medium boiled eggs, but they haven't been interested. I may try a soft boiled egg, but I'm sure once they start having soup I could mix it in.
I have some Ferretone stocked from back when I had my first ferret, but I'd like to avoid using it if I can give them higher quality oils. I just got some salmon oil and while the little girl quickly became an addict, the boy hasn't come around to it yet, so I'll keep dabbing it on his lips and tongue. They don't like extra virgin olive oil yet, but if I can get them both to eat the salmon oil, I can try mixing the two. I haven't tried any more-exotic oils yet, but I'm planning on trying some others in the future. Do most oils that people give to ferrets store well when mixed, or should I keep certain ones separated? Is 1/2tsp of single or combined oil per ferret per dose too much? How many times a week should they have a dose to prevent hairballs and otherwise promote good health?