raebees
Junior Member
Raw Feeder
Yes, i am contagious. ππ
Posts: 219
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Post by raebees on Feb 15, 2017 11:42:01 GMT -5
Yes, sorry, it's been an exhausting week already. I can't seem to get to sleep before midnight. I've been working on them eating more while parts in the morning before I chop things. And I've been deboning the quail, chopping the bones and slicing the meats. Last night I did ground beef and sliced chicken thigh and discovered that i don't need to add so much water anymore. I used to add a bit to make things slimy and to encourage licking. Last night, with only a little water, I made things sticky and Moxie seemed to enjoy it better! Bella was unconvinced but she'll come around, my fatty girl. This morning I tried the same thing with the quail, more sticky than slimy, and both of them ate a fair amount no problem! So I'll keep making it less slimy and see where that gets us.
I'm struggling with the whole parts, though. I'm not sure how to teach them to eat it on their own, without having to hold them. I cut everything up in the end so they'll eat something before I leave for the day but I'd love Bella, at least, to move forward with legs, wings, and body without having to hold it. I suppose this will be another 'out stubborn them' lesson huh? πππ
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Post by Aftershock on Feb 17, 2017 0:27:34 GMT -5
you're cake, I understand completely. Yes, very much an out stubborn them lesson. Kekekekeke. You may want to try taking a chicken or quail wing and shattering the bones in it, then offer it to them. Maybe cut it in half, but don't break it down so much. ^-^ Try no booping at all, they both know the plate means food, I promise! Keep it up! We will be there in no time!
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raebees
Junior Member
Raw Feeder
Yes, i am contagious. ππ
Posts: 219
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Post by raebees on Feb 21, 2017 2:31:25 GMT -5
This weekΒ has been a struggle. These girls are killing me! ππ 1. Ferret's name: Moxie 2. Ferret's weight: 940g (β¬) 3. Ferret has eaten "X" amount on average per meal: 1/2 to 1oz 4. Stools on various proteins: Good, very tiny, still dark 5. Activity levels: Try to slow her down! Cat killer! π 6. Weekly Menu: Same as Bella 1. Ferret's name: Bella 2. Ferret's weight: 1690g (β¬) π±π± 3. Ferret has eaten "X" amount on average per meal: 1 to 3 ozs 4. Stools on various proteins: Good. Color is lighter, bones are moving through well. 5. Activity levels: Meh. She needs to be encouraged to move. But she's still playing with Moxie. 6. Weekly Menu: Mon AM - Quail PM - Chicken thigh Tues AM - Chicken neck & thigh 3:1 PM - Beef and Chicken Wed AM - Quail PM - 4oz chicken heart, 2oz liver (pork), 2oz kidney (pork) Thurs AM - Quail PM - Turkey Fri AM - Quail PM - 4oz chicken heart, 2oz liver (chicken), 2oz kidney (pork) Sat AM - Chicken neck & thigh 3:1 PM - Turkey Sun AM - Quail PM - 4oz chicken heart, 2oz liver (chicken), 2oz sweetbreads (pork) I'm picking up Turkey this week. I was inspired by someone I know π Somehow I think I need to get more proteins. Chicken, Beef and Quail are boooorrrring. πππ I have been pushing large pieces the last few days. They. Are. So. Stubborn! I know they can chew them. I know they know how. I don't know how long to hold out for them to eat. I've made sure they had a few bites but they both haven't eaten near the amount they have been This morning was pretty scarce. Some parts eaten from my hand but hardly any meat slivers or bone chunks. Tonight, Moxie actually out ate Bella. Bella has definitely tried to regress. She wants nothing to do with bigger chunks ππ My bone cruncher doesn't like chewing on meat! Which tells me I took too long in the beginning. So wish me luck as I try to not give in to the rumble of their bellies. "The food is RIGHT there! C'mon!"
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Post by Aftershock on Feb 21, 2017 14:00:19 GMT -5
Have you been mixing the larger pieces with small? Remember, the main goal is them eating on their own, and some times you have to take a bit of a step back to move two steps forward. It's kind of like how Moxie wouldn't touch bone at all, but you kept on it with putting bones into the mix and she finally ate them. ^-^ As long as they eat off the dish without you touching it, I am happy. Think of hand feeding as only a very last resort. If you have to move backwards with meat size, go for it, but you should not have to touch their food at all. RESIST RAE, RESIST. As a comparison, hand feeding is very much super step one, step two is getting them to eat on their own, step three is introducing bigger pieces. At this point, every time you hand feed, even a tiny bit, I see it as a giant step backwards. You can do this! Kekekekekeke, you don't want your floofs to be spoiled rich kids that don't have to feed themselves forever, right?
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raebees
Junior Member
Raw Feeder
Yes, i am contagious. ππ
Posts: 219
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Post by raebees on Feb 21, 2017 14:11:18 GMT -5
Bahahaha no I don't! That's why I've been including the larger pieces. I was mixing bobby pin size pieces with grinds and smaller slivers but they kept picking around the bigger pieces. I started reducing the amount of grinds and small pieces to encourage them towards the big ones but it doesn't seem to be working. This morning, Moxie ate a couple pieces and I think Bella did too but she mainly dragged some larger ones off the plate, then gave up when she realized that was really all that was there. And by larger, I mean slightly thicker than a bobby pin and just as long. They both are approaching the plate ok, Moxie still looks for a bit of encouragement to start but I've been drizzling a little salmon oil in the plate instead of using my hands. Do you think I need to step back and get them comfortable eating small slivers first? I'm worried that Bella will gorge herself. She instigated play with me this morning for the first time. Launched herself and danced in a circle, then took off after Moxie. I know her weight is dragging her down but I don't want them to go hungry either. Tonight I'll try smaller pieces with no grinds and see if that makes them happier. They have GOT to be hungry by now!
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Post by Aftershock on Feb 23, 2017 12:10:26 GMT -5
Kekekekekekeke, the imagery of spoiled rich floofs. I would let them get happy with the small slivers first, then push with a mix of 75% small slivers and 25% bigger sized. Salmon oil is a great tool for this! ^-^ How are they doing?
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Post by Aftershock on Feb 27, 2017 10:22:33 GMT -5
Hey raebees yesterday was sundayyyyyyy
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raebees
Junior Member
Raw Feeder
Yes, i am contagious. ππ
Posts: 219
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Post by raebees on Feb 27, 2017 12:10:58 GMT -5
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raebees
Junior Member
Raw Feeder
Yes, i am contagious. ππ
Posts: 219
|
Post by raebees on Mar 1, 2017 5:28:52 GMT -5
Oh my gosh, I'm bad at this.
1. Ferret's name: Moxie 2. Ferret's weight: 920g (β¬) 3. Ferret has eaten "X" amount on average per meal: 1/2 to 1oz 4. Stools on various proteins: dark and small 5. Activity levels: marathon runner π 6. Weekly Menu: Same as Bella
1. Ferret's name: Bella 2. Ferret's weight: 1630 (β¬) 3. Ferret has eaten "X" amount on average per meal: 1 to 2oz 4. Stools on various proteins: Good, responds well to bone meal powder 5. Activity levels: Good, seems sad she can't follow Moxie everywhere 6. Weekly Menu We are temporarily heavy on beef and chicken. Turkey didn't pan out last week, I'm trying again tomorrow.
Mon AM - Chicken thigh & ground Pork (bmp) PM - Beef & ground Pork
Tues AM - Chicken thigh & ground Beef (bmp) PM - Beef & ground Pork
Wed AM - Chicken thigh (bmp) PM - 4oz chicken heart, 2oz liver (pork), 2oz sweetbreads (pork)
Thurs AM - Beef & ground Turkey (bmp) PM - Chicken & ground Beef
Fri AM - Beef & ground Pork (bmp) PM - 4oz chicken heart, 2oz liver (chicken), 2oz kidney (pork)
Sat AM - Chicken thigh & ground Beef (bmp) PM - Veal cutlet (& ground pork)
Sun AM - Veal cutlet (& ground pork) (bmp) PM - 4oz chicken heart, 2oz liver (chicken), 2oz kidney (pork)
It *seems* like I'm making little progress with the chunks. Tonight Bella actually chewed and / or swallowed a couple beef slips, but didn't eat as much as she would if it was grinds, I'd guess at most maybe an oz. Moxie is a stubborn ferret, she must wait to eat and she must have it warmer. Even then, Bella out-ate her again today.
The mouse I introduced the other day, however, was missing both hind feet when we got home. And when I played with it, Mox proceeded to figure out how to eat mouse tail! Tomorrow is a big rearranging day, I'll post a couple mouse videos then! π
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raebees
Junior Member
Raw Feeder
Yes, i am contagious. ππ
Posts: 219
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Post by raebees on Mar 1, 2017 15:06:39 GMT -5
ππππππππ
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Post by Aftershock on Mar 3, 2017 10:27:46 GMT -5
Moxie's stretching picture kills me πππ she looks like she's laughing at a bad joke! Bella is photogenic as usual!β€β€β€ Awesome! Keep it up with the bonemeal powder and chunks vs actual bone for now! Large chunks first, then actual boneβ€ Ferrets will definitely pig out of grinds because they are easy to eat. Grinds are like prechewed food for them, so they overeat them like crazy. As we move into bigger chunks, I'd like you to think of how much they eat in chunks as the true amount they should be eating. (Kekekeke, yes, I'm telling you to forget your safe number) Whoooooooo! You get that mouse Moxie! I also think it's funny how feet and tail were the first things my crew ate too πππ ππππππ those tail wags!
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raebees
Junior Member
Raw Feeder
Yes, i am contagious. ππ
Posts: 219
|
Post by raebees on Mar 3, 2017 14:13:50 GMT -5
I feel like I'm doing something wrong, truthfully. The chunks have been a big pain in the arse. I left out the little bit of grinds I usually add to last nights meal and they ate a little bit. This morning's beef was less well received. How long should I leave them be before resorting to tricks to entice them to eat? I sometimes feel that they're not enthusiastic because they're never without food. I was thinking of lessening the amount I leave on the plate and leaving grinds out completely. See if giving them no option but to eat what's there might work? I'm still scared to "starve" them but the chunks are still a battle, even for the thin, wide pieces. I get so jealous when I see other people's ferrets enthusiastically tearing at their meals and I have no idea how to help the girls become like that without making them very, very hungry.
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Post by Aftershock on Mar 4, 2017 11:33:18 GMT -5
I promise you aren't doing anything wrongβ€ switches can take a good chunk of time! Patience is a virtue π Meat chunks are, what I feel, one of the hardest steps. Remember, doing too much is just gonna jumble things up again. Take it slow. What is the grind to chunk ratio right now? Also, how much are you serving vs how much they are eating? Don't be jealous and don't compare you and your ferrets to othersβ€ no situation is the same.
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raebees
Junior Member
Raw Feeder
Yes, i am contagious. ππ
Posts: 219
|
Post by raebees on Mar 6, 2017 15:26:05 GMT -5
I've increased the amount of chunks to about 75% chunk to grinds because Bella will seriously remove all the chunks to eat the easy bits. She would gorge herself on grinds if I add too much more. This morning I changed the chunks to about 1/2" long, 1/8 to 1/4" wide. I serve about 3 to 4 oz per meal, sometimes more, there's usually an oz or more left by next meal. They still don't seem to snack outside of meal times, except for organ soup. Bella, ironically, is the stubborn one. Moxie is still skeptical but once she starts to eat, she doesn't leave too many pieces behind. What she picks up usually gets chewed or, more often, swallowed. Bella will remove all the pieces she doesn't want to eat to clear the way for the grinds and small pieces. Today was a bit more successful, I think they were getting bored of beef, chicken and pork. I picked up some ground turkey, which was part of this morning's meal, and they definitely approved, even if all the chicken chunks didn't get eaten. I also was able to snag a boneless leg of lamb so that will be in rotation this next week or two. Beef kidney was a new organ this week and they LOVE it! It smells like an outhouse but they've eaten more of the organ soup the last two times than they have been. Food boredom is still very much a thing with raw ππ I'll be weighing them tonight and will post the menu then. I'm not giving up! Just feeling a bit discouraged with my picky girls.
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Post by Aftershock on Mar 8, 2017 10:52:44 GMT -5
If they don't eat outside of meal times, that's fine. ^-^ some ferrets are just like that. 3-4 oz is a lot for two females, especially since one eats about 1-2, and the other 1/2-1. If you have more than an oz leftover by next feeding, you are feeding too much. You should be trying for them only having a few bites left, and that is generally less than half an ounce. we've had this talk before, overfeeding can cause a major speed bump. I know you are terrified of under feeding them, I've been there, but over feeding causes issues. I think that we should focus on figuring out how to get them eating chunks of a few proteins that they are already familiar with before adding in anything new. Remember, small steps. I know getting them to eat something new feels like a giant step forward, but right now I feel like it is a step backward until they willingly eat chunks. Too many distractions for them right now. It's kind of like trying to talk on the phone, eat breakfast, text your boyfriend, and message your son all at once. In the end, it's easiest to focus on the phone call, then eat breakfast, and so forth. Ferrets are most definitely like toddlers and don't handle multitasking well at all. For now, just stick to beef, chicken, and organ meals.
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