VixenLilly's Switching Thread / Morgan

[Heather]

Name: Chelsea

HF Forum Username: VixenLilly

Please confirm that you are 18 years of age or older: I am 26 07/24/1990



1. Where did you first learn about natural diets for ferrets? From one of my friends actually. she pointed me to this forum



2. Please describe the type of diet you would like assistance in switching your ferret(s) to. Be sure to include if you are interested in feeding whole prey (live or frozen-thawed) and if you are wanting to FULLY switch to a natural diet or PARTIALLY. If you are unsure what kind of diet you want to put your ferrets on, please express that and we can help you find the best type of natural diet for your ferret.
I would like to fully switch him to a franken prey diet



3. Why are you interested in switching your ferrets to a natural diet?
its what they were made to eat in the wild.. so why stop him from doing so even though he is a pet? plus its not filled with any of those vegetable fillers and will overall give him a better quality of life I also know exactly what he is eating.



4. Do you understand that switching your ferret to a natural diet can be a lengthy, arduous process? Its not an overnight switch. It requires a commitment of several months at minimum. Your HF Mentor will be more then happy to assist you in switching your ferret(s) to a natural diet, but you need to be equally as committed. The switch takes time and effort every single day. It can also be extremely frustrating at times. If you aren't willing to tough out a potentially lengthy switching process, you have major life changes approaching (baby on the way, moving, starting school, getting married/divorced, etc), or limited time due to work, then it might be a better idea to wait on switching your ferret's diet until you have more time. Are you willing and realistically able to make the necessary time commitment?
Yes I am. I have considered meal prepping as well as the fact that there are times I have to hand feed him to get him to eat his soupie



5. How many ferrets do you currently have? What are their names? Ages? Genders? Do they have any health problems? Are they overweight? Underweight? How long have you had each ferret for?
one his name is Merlin Male 9 months old he weighs about 2lbs no health issues we got him the day before christmas eve 2016



6. What diet do you currently feed your ferrets? (Please include all treats, supplements, etc) Do they already eat some form of soup?
he was eating Natures Variety raw boost up until last night 1/11/2017 when he got his first tasty of soup which he took to. he got his second bit of it this morning. I pulled out 3.3oz so far he has eaten 1.8oz of it after having to hand feed him some


7. Have you ever tried to switch your ferrets to a natural diet in the past? If yes, what happened?
No I have not.. I did not even know of a natural diet.



8. What additional information about yourself or your ferrets would you like to share?
I am a stay at home mom to 3 wonderful kids as well as my fur kids so I have the time to dedicate to this switch which I am very excited to have already started! I am looking forward to (hopefully) the longer years with my best pal Merlin and the many years of fun with him <3

as for my little guy. he is a snuggler! which I just adore to pieces! having a good couple hours of fun and play only to snuggle up with me either at my desk or the couch hehe



9. How often during the week do you have access to a computer?
All day everyday lol



10. Please post a picture of each of your ferrets (if possible).


Hi and welcome to the mentoring program . In a little while your mentor (Morgan), will introduce herself and you can get started on a new adventure in natural ferret care and diets. Please remember to post regularly (daily or as per arranged with your mentor) so that your mentor can assist you move along safely in this adventure. If you experience computer difficulties or are going to be away, please notify your mentor and most of all relax and have fun . Your mentor is here to help you on this journey.
ciao

[Deleted]

Hi Chelsea! I will be your mentor through your switch!

If you would like to know more about me here is my bio. Also just scroll down almost to the bottom to see it holisticferret60.proboards.com/thread/21689/meet-mentor?page=1&scrollTo=306715

What I have here is the soup recipe and the rules to the mentoring program

Soup for switch:
8oz chicken(or other meat)
1oz liver (about One half chicken liver)
1oz heart (about 2 chicken hearts)
1/2 to 3/4 tsp bone meal or powdered egg shell

Basic guidelines for how long their food lasts
Soups - 6-8 hours (for soup recipe, see below)
Grinds - 8-12 hours
Chunks - 10-24 hours depending on the size (larger chunks last longer)
Bone-in meats - 12-24 hours, again depending on the size
Whole prey - up to 48 hours
(Remember that it also depends on temperatures for most of these. We also recommend doing a sniff test. Usually if it smells alright it is still okay to eat.)

The following form is to be filled out weekly so we can keep better tabs on not only how the switch is going, but on the health of your ferret. As well as any potential risks that may arise if they are not eating enough at certain sections of their switch:

Please copy/paste this very short weekly questionnaire into your switching thread every Sunday/Monday.

1. Ferret's name:
2. Ferret's weight:
3. Ferret has eaten "X" amount on average per meal.
4. Stools on various proteins.
5. Activity levels:
6. Weekly menu:

EXAMPLE:
Vincent, 3lbs 2oz(1417g), small chicken wing chopped into 2" pieces, bone and all. Stools good colour and consistency. Played as per normal.

Willow, 1lb 4oz(567g), 2 tbsp commercial raw turkey, hand fed. Stools good colour and consistency. Very hyper when up, playing for 2-3 hours at a time.

Mr. Frodo, 4lb 4oz(1928g), 1/4c pork slivers mixed with soup. Stools slightly loose, somewhat seedy, and pale in colour. Somewhat more tired, plays for 30 minutes, then finds somewhere to sleep. Flat ferreting more often.

Weekly menu was:

Monday: chicken legs
Tuesday: Commercial raw
Wednesday: Soup with pork slivers

Also, to help us make sure your ferret is doing well during his switch, a picture from above showing his body shape clearly would be appreciated bi-weekly, but is not essential.

You are required to post every second day during the "soup" stage of the transition. From the "sliver" stage, through to large chunks, you will be required to post a minimum of every 3 days. Once you hit the large chunks, once a week will be acceptable.
If you wish to post into your thread more often, that will be MORE than welcome The above are simply the minimum requirements so we can help with sticky spots, and not have to "catch up" to where you are presently at. Failure to post as required will result in your switch coming to a standstill and will result in two warnings before being dropped from the mentoring program.
If something comes up, and you need to be away, please contact your mentor letting her know how long you will be absent.

This is just a recommendation. I recommend it so you can see if anyone is loosing weights or has bad stool on a certain protein. Or really anything. You can go back and read your notes to see if it's normal or not.

Weight/diet/poop journals

It is a really good idea to have a place to keep track of your ferrets' weights and eating habits. Keeping track of their weight can give you an early heads up if something is wrong. It can also help to prevent panic over sudden weight loss by tracking normal weight fluctuations. You can look and realize "oh hey, this is just normal weight fluctuation or seasonal weight change" or "hmmm...he didn't lose this much weight last spring."

It is also good to keep a record of what foods you feed, approximate amounts, and poops. This is especially helpful when you are first starting the switch, but you would be surprised how important that record can become. Keeping a record of what you feed can help you recognize patterns that you might not otherwise notice. This is SUPER important if a food allergy or IBD every arise or are suspected.

If you track how MUCH your ferrets eat, it can help you figure out how much to feed as well as give you an early clue if they experience a loss of appetite. (Weighing food before feeding, and weighing leftovers remaining by the next meal will give you an approximate total for their food intake).

What should be included in this journal
1) what he/she ate
2) how much
3) what supplements were given if any
4) what his/her poops looked like that day/after that meal
5) what his/her energy level was like that day/after that meal
6) if there were any notable events that might cause stress or other behavior/appetite changes e.g. "didn't get out of the cage today, slept all day and didn't eat food but then cage raged all night" or "I am super stressed, might be picking up on my stress today" or even "got a new toy" (even Positive stresses are still stress) "rearranged the cage today" etc etc

[Deleted]

@vixenlilly if you could fill out the questionnaire I have above that would be great!

Also if you could post a dangling picture of your baby along with a birds eye view of your baby just sitting down eating something. I would like to see his shape

[Deleted]

1. Ferret's name: Merlin
2. Ferret's weight: 3LBS!! I am so happy I believe when i filled out my app he was at 2.5 so he has gained 5oz since switching
3. Ferret has eaten "X" amount on average per meal. 1.5 - 2oz of soup each meal
4. Stools on various proteins. so far he has only had the chicken/hearts/liver/bone meal powder soup mix his stool are normal
5. Activity levels: I have actually noticed a slight increase in his energy levels
6. Weekly menu: This is where I may need some help.... I have the chicken wings which i was going to try tonight so today's menu would be chicken wing. if you could maybe get back with me before I leave (tonight is the hubby's and my date night sooo excited haha) I will pick up some more meat for him.

also I have a stash just for his images that you can take a peek through that way you don't have to back track through previous posts of mine
sta.sh/21tt63hhvmmq?edit=1

[Deleted]

Sorry to ask this again but how many times do you feed him a day?

Also you can cut a chicken winter in 3rds the wing tip is usually easiest for them to eat smash it up and you can put his soup on top. Drizzling the soup on top is to entice him to eat different foods

[Deleted]

alright so cut up a chicken wing in 3rds got it <3

I am feeding him soup 4x a day right now.

[Deleted]

So he's eating about 1.5 to 2 oz 4 times a day? Awesome. No more kibble right?

[Deleted]

no well at least not since I seen you post "if he is eating the soup fine then i can ditch the kibble"

[Deleted]

ok so... good news and bad news here... good news is! he is actually eating eating the chicken solid at that! bad news is... I am having a very hard time cutting a chicken wing lol.

[Deleted]

If you have a walmart you can buy a cleaver. That knife will go through the bone beautifully!

So is he eating chicken chunks then?

[Deleted]

ohhh ok! I am so sorry I am so new to this and not used to well cutting through bone lol! but I need to

yes he is! I am still working with him though on getting used to the hearts/liver/gizzard being whole.. this is his first time trying them like that. I did rub the soup on there but he just licked it off lol. he did take the chicken wing to another side of his home though! he has done all this in the past four hours.. normally he is out with me all day but he wasn't interested in eating only playing haha <3

[Deleted]

If you have a meat tenderizer you can smash the bone up so he can have an easier time eating it the bowl you pictured has he eaten anything from that bowl or just from the leg?

[Deleted]

yep just the bit of the leg so far

i dont think i do... but i shall double check that

[Deleted]

If you have chunks of chicken you can try offering it to him and see what he does. He ate off the bone let's see if he will just eat the chunks.

[Deleted]

ok i do have chicken breasts which is what i was using for his soupies... i can thaw some tonight then but what about the heart/liver?