Frustrating habits

[Deleted]

My four fuzziness are well on their way to raw. Mommy has had a few hiccups along the way.,most of the mistakes,have been a result of my ignorance not theirs and me wanting them to move faster to the raw goal than they want to move. I am in the third week of transition, they are eating a freeze dried purée of; chicken, lamb, beef liver, epigen 90, eggshells, uncle Bob (? Too lazy to get up and look at the lable). I add about a tablespoon ofpuréed raw chicken wings to mix.  Oh and raw egg once a week. Each ferret has lost 2/10 of a pound but stable for the last week. Here comes my frustration question.

I feed them on the floor, because the four of them take up too much space to fit around the bowl (even in my ferret nation cage complex. They eagerly meet me at the door of their cage literally chomping at the bit to get to their bowl. They have succeeded in ritualizing their eating and I am the goddess. Sounds wonderful right? Nope. I have to give them a finger lick of the purée before they will eat. Once I pass the finger lick, they settle right down and eat their fill. The finger lick is a pain, but I could live with that. Here is the real problem.

I can't get them to eat the purée in their cage! I've tried leaving the left over in their cage (same bowl, same stuff they just ate) or a fresh bowl of purée and they ALL refuse to eat it unless I do the finger lick with them. I KNOW, RIGHT?

Since I am a teacher I am gone for most of the day. And they won't eat unless they get the finger <grin>. They are going ten hours without eating while their favorite food is sitting right next to them in the cage. I want to pull my hair out. HELP! 

How can I get them to eat while I am gone and eat without my finger? I don't want them to lose anymore weight. I do see a huge change in their energy and coats, so I know the nutrition is good, poops look good too. Talk about being manipulated, lol. 

[raynebc]

I went from using my finger to using a spoon, and then gradually moving the spoon closer to their food plate until the spoon sat on the plate, underneath a pile of food. My boy ferret was stubborn for a while, but now he usually is able to eat right off the plate without much prompting.

[bitbyter]

You can do as raynebc suggests with your finger as well. During my switch I had a few days where I actually got them eating on their own but only if I stood there with my finger in the middle of the soup like an idiot. It really does take them a while to make the connection between good stuff on your finger to good stuff on the plate.

[Thérèse]

It sounds like at the moment, while they do love the soupie, they are not confidant enough to eat it without the safety of mum standing by to let them know it is safe to eat.

If they are losing weight, while I hate to say this, you may have to put their old food in during the day until they have the confidence to eat without you being present

[bitbyter]

Or just hand feed them more.

[Deleted]

You will have better success sitting with them, while they eat. It's a great chance to bond and they will eat much better. You won't have to do this forever, just for awhile in the beginning.

[Deleted]

Thank you for your support! I don't feel so 'used'   Now that I know I'm not the only one with my finger in the bowl.  Three days later and things are moving forward. I had a "duh" moment when it occurred to me to open the "hospital" upper deck of their ferret nation cage that I reserve for sick or healing ferrets. Why didn't I think of this before?  (headwall)
Sometimes I am my own worst enemy. With them eating in the upper deck they are at eye level (with me on a step stool). They took to this right away, safe at home, with mum literally in their faces, cooing and muttering words of encouragement....   with her finger in the bowl. But the finger licking time in the soup is getting shorter and shorter.

And even better news, everyone is at least 2 ounces heavier.