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Post by skits on Jun 29, 2011 22:34:47 GMT -5
Sorry for the late reply. I bought some boneless chicken and some chicken legs with the bones. I put in some chunks and a chicken leg next to the bowl of chunks. All 6 of them tore the chicken apart and even started eating the bone! From there would I be able to find a good meal plan for them since they are all doing so good?
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Post by katt on Jun 30, 2011 3:46:59 GMT -5
haha A big step and a very good one! But not quite there yet. Keep feeding them the bony chicken. Now we need to get them eating other meats, other bones, heart, and organs. Check Asian markets, Halal meat markets (African markets), other ethnic markets, butchers, and grocery stores to start seeing what is available in your area. The organs I usually find are: beef liver pork liver pork kidney chicken liver Then when I get whole ducks and rabbits from the Asian market they have the organs in them still. Look around too for a pet store that carries commercially ground raw meats. These are a GREAT way to add variety as they often have proteins that you won't find in the store, and they usually have organ, heart, and bones ground into them (but not always so be sure to check). I can get commercial ground: pheasant, rabbit, chicken (Koda can't eat this), turkey, beef (also a no-no for Koda), bison, quail, tripe. For variety here are some ideas. Pretty much any meat you can get your hands on is ok for them: chicken turkey pork beef bison (buffalo) rabbit duck pheasant Cornish Game Hen quail veal and game meats rodent goose lamb goat fish Start trying to add in as many new meats as you can find. The more variety the better! Also, seeing as how it is unrealistic to keep an entire farm in your freezer start just trying to locate new meats so that you have an idea of what you have access to, and where you can find what. And keep me in the loop. Some "parts" that are good to have of all of the above animals: heart (is a muscle meat but vital for the taurine) liver kidney spleen tongue (is a muscle meat) brain (VERY nutritious organ meat) gizzards (is a muscle meat - great for cleaning teeth) feet (good bone source - i.e. for a "bone-in" mean you could feet pork chops and chicken feet) necks (also a good bone source) ribs (pork ribs have edible bones - usually that is right on the line of thickest bones they can eat, some ferrets can handle pork ribs other can't, or at least don't, eat the bones, but they can often still get the marrow out depending on the cut) Right now as far as you have updated me they are just eating raw chicken bones? That is a good start, but you are still just at the beginning of the journey. See if you can find some chicken heart and some organs and see what they think of those. It is a different texture, different taste, so don't be surprised if they balk at it at first. Also, pick another protein (i.e. Beef, turkey, pork...) to introduce to them. Start with small chunks and see how they do. You can always pour chicken soup over the top as a gravy to entice them to taste the new foods, or even a little olive oil. Let me know how they do. The more you can keep me in the loop, the better I can help guide.
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Post by skits on Jul 2, 2011 0:01:48 GMT -5
Alright thanks I'm hopefully going to the petstore this weekend so I'll ask there, and if possible I can get my dad to drive me to the reptile store downtown and ask what they have there. I've been looking for hearts but the one store that used to sell organs stopped selling them so I'll have to look around for any more. They're eating chicken legs and beef chunks right now. Also I noticed Missy and Delilah spit up their food a bit after they eat it. They've done it before on soup though. Will it just take some time for them to adjust or is there something I should do?
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Post by katt on Jul 2, 2011 11:28:38 GMT -5
I'm hopefully going to the petstore this weekend so I'll ask there, and if possible I can get my dad to drive me to the reptile store downtown and ask what they have there.I would be surprised if either of those places have anything in the meat department. They should have whole prey rodents though for later. I've been looking for hearts but the one store that used to sell organs stopped selling them so I'll have to look around for any more. Hmm... check Asian markets. Even if you can't get a ride you can always call and ask. Ethnic markets are your best friend. If you cannot find hearts and organs you will have to supplement which is not ideal. Let me know what you can find. They're eating chicken legs and beef chunks right now.Ok. Try some pork next, and start adding as many new meats as you can. Also, look for chicken wings they are really good and the bones are easier for them than the leg bones. As soon as you find heart/organs let me know because now that they are eating meat and bones we need to get that into their diet. Also I noticed Missy and Delilah spit up their food a bit after they eat it. They've done it before on soup though. Will it just take some time for them to adjust or is there something I should do? How much are they spitting up? Do they eat like little piggies? It is very possible that they are eating too fast, that is not uncommon. Try hand feeding them a few meals to make them eat nice and slowly and see how they do. It is also possible that they are just learning to handle the richness of the raw meat. They will probably all have funky poops for a while to as they adjust to the new diet. Keep an eye on them. Make sure they are still eating, staying hydrated, and acting alert. Also monitor hos much they are throwing up. If they are losing their whole meal there could be reason for concern. If they are spitting up a little bit because they ate too much or too fast for their little bellies (that are still adjusting on top of it) then they should be ok. See if it continues or not and keep me posted. So next steps: finding, then adding organ/heart adding more variety of meats and bones (try turkey, and turkey neck!)
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Post by katt on Jul 2, 2011 12:55:19 GMT -5
Just want to let you know I will be out of town for the weekend with no internet access. I will be back Monday night, so the only day I won't have access really is tomorrow (Sunday). I'll check back in here tonight too if you have any questions.
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Post by skits on Jul 3, 2011 14:34:59 GMT -5
Ok sounds good I'll look at some stores around. I'm currently having to feed Evelynn back on soupies because she wasn't eating meats anymore and lost a lot of weight. They're throwing up a lot less than they used to which is good, I'm guessing they were really just eating too fast. I've been feeding them smaller portions at a time and they like it better that way. And it was just a bit, never in full meals.
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Post by katt on Jul 5, 2011 15:27:27 GMT -5
I'm currently having to feed Evelynn back on soupies because she wasn't eating meats anymore and lost a lot of weight.
That's ok. Every ferret is different, and you have a decent sized business, so you are likely to have several switching "styles." Keep feeding her the soupies but make it as thick as she will take it. Keep making it thicker and thicker, and then gradually add in teeny tiny chunks (think rice grains). Then slowly increase the size of the chunks. They're throwing up a lot less than they used to which is good, I'm guessing they were really just eating too fast. I've been feeding them smaller portions at a time and they like it better that way. And it was just a bit, never in full meals.Good. It sounds to me like they were probably just being little piggies.
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Post by skits on Jul 8, 2011 0:24:14 GMT -5
I've been feeding her soup and she's doing fine, I'm going to wait until she gains more weight before putting her on bigger chunks in fear she stops eating again. She was doing fine with chicken legs, I'm not sure what happened. But my others are doing great on it, especially the boys. Luo even gained some weight and is looking a lot healthier, as all of them. Their poop is really loose though and smelly. Is that just because they are only eating chicken for now? Or should I feed them something on the side to help with that? I'm still looking for canned pumpkin, it's impossible to find for some reason. And last question, I made my dad go out and buy pork and he bought pork chops. Is that fine too? It felt a little bit wrong to feed them porkchops.
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Post by katt on Jul 8, 2011 3:24:40 GMT -5
I've been feeding her soup and she's doing fine, I'm going to wait until she gains more weight before putting her on bigger chunks in fear she stops eating again. Start making the soup a little bit thicker every day then by just adding less water. Try to make it almost a paste in consistency. That should help with adding the chunks back in when you are ready. She was doing fine with chicken legs, I'm not sure what happened.That's a ferret for you. Sometimes they just backslide a little and need to be reminded. But my others are doing great on it, especially the boys. Luo even gained some weight and is looking a lot healthier, as all of them. Great! Keep it up! Their poop is really loose though and smelly. Is that just because they are only eating chicken for now? Or should I feed them something on the side to help with that?Yup - totally normal. It can take a few weeks to months for that to clear up. Part of it is that they are not eating a fully balanced diet yet, and part of it is simply their GI tracts adjusting to the new diet. How much of the bone in the chicken legs/wings are they eating? If they are not eating the bones all the way, try wings - the bones are much smaller and easier for them to handle than chicken legs. If you can't find wings, then get a hammer and just crush the bones of the legs a bit to help them get a start on them. I'm still looking for canned pumpkin, it's impossible to find for some reason. In some areas it is only seasonal. Check local pet stores (not the big chain ones like PetCo, but small local chains) as they often carry it for dogs. If that's a no go then squash baby food works just as well. I used that for almost a year before I ever touched a can of pumpkin. It is just a little more watered down, but I find that it works every bit as well as the pumpkin. It's just the fiber. Any kind of squash baby food will work - they usually have "Squash," and "butternut squash" here. If all else fails, sweet potato or meat and sweet potato baby food is an OK substitute. Not my favorite but it is ok for short term. Also, you can get iceberg lettuce, blend it up, then freeze it, and use that instead of pumpkin. I'd go with the lettuce over the sweet potato. You can also make your own "canned pumpkin" by buying a squash (any type - acorn, summer, yellow, even zucchini would work) and cooking it - boiling is best though baking should work too. Then you can scrape out the insides (remove seeds) and blend it up with a little water for consistency. Voila! Homemade fiber mush! So there are other options. I would start adding 1-2tsp of one of the above as soon as you can find one. It will help with their poops. And personally, I highly recommend it as a regular part of their diet. It helps to replace the fur and stomach contents that they would get from whole prey by adding a little fiber and is good for their GI health, and poop consistency. And last question, I made my dad go out and buy pork and he bought pork chops. Is that fine too? It felt a little bit wrong to feed them porkchops.Check the list of meats I gave you. Pork is totally ok! My boys had a nice pork chop for dinner just last night! Koda is allergic to beef and sensitive to chicken, so that limits the foods he can eat. Pork is one of the main meats on the menu here, especially when it comes to organ meats. I get pork liver, kidney, and heart (muscle meat) from the Asian market. Pork, duck, goat, rabbit, and rodents are my staples with other meats mixed in as I can find them - pheasant, bison, Cornish game then, etc. Try out the pork and see how they like it! Don't be alarmed if some of them balk at first. Some ferrets take new meats in stride once they have started eating meat. Others balk at every new meat and have to be introduced to each and every new flavor gradually. Ferrets! ;D Start looking around for some of the other meats I listed as well, especially organ and heart meats. Ethnic markets are seriously your best friend!
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Post by skits on Jul 8, 2011 3:36:31 GMT -5
Alright sounds good. She's already eating pretty thick soup now, basically it's just blended meat, so I'll just start cutting it up and see how she does on that. I'll be getting wings hopefully soon. I made my dad go out and buy the meat and he always forgets the chicken wings. And thanks for the tip about the things I can use instead of pumpkin. I'll see which they prefer and feed it to them. And for the pork, that sounds good. I wasn't so sure if porkchops were the right type of pork so it worried me. My dad is currently not working for this week and I'm not getting paid, but as soon as I do I'll have to stock up on everything. ;D
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Post by katt on Jul 8, 2011 4:37:02 GMT -5
She's already eating pretty thick soup now, basically it's just blended meat, so I'll just start cutting it up and see how she does on that.Ok. In that case just cut up some meat (do you have chicken breasts? They are easiest) into REALLY small pieces and mix it into the soup. Feed her that a few times and see how she does. If she does well, you can slowly increase the size of the chunks and decrease the amount of soup. I'll be getting wings hopefully soon. I made my dad go out and buy the meat and he always forgets the chicken wings. Haha That's what you get when you ask a man to go shopping for you! ;D And thanks for the tip about the things I can use instead of pumpkin. I'll see which they prefer and feed it to them Good luck! Let me know what works out for you. And for the pork, that sounds good. I wasn't so sure if porkchops were the right type of pork so it worried me. Pretty much ANY raw meat sold for human consumption (that is not processed, seasoned, salted, cured, filled with saline, etc) is okay for ferrets. And a lot that is sold not for human consumptions is too. [Like commercial ground raw and raw from raw-feeding pet stores and such.]
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Post by skits on Jul 8, 2011 13:07:46 GMT -5
Ok thanks. And I do have chicken breasts so I'll feed them that today and see how she likes it.
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Post by katt on Jul 8, 2011 14:02:34 GMT -5
Cool! Let me know how it goes!
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Post by katt on Jul 11, 2011 4:45:02 GMT -5
Just checking in for updates.
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Post by skits on Jul 12, 2011 2:49:50 GMT -5
Oh sorry ;D Evelynn still isn't eating unfortunately, we have to bring her to the vets because I think something might be seriously wrong with her as we're having to syringe feed her. But as for the others, they are doing great. They LOVE porkchops, and chicken, and beef...basically everything. The only problem with them is they will fight for a piece. I've even put in separate pieces for them and Delilah, Missy and Yoshi will usually fight for the biggest piece, and than Summer will go eat after they all finish and go to sleep. Luo lives alone with Evelynn right now so he never puts up with fighting. I'm going to go out and get some hearts, turkey necks, all that stuff in a week or two, depending on how money is. I'm hoping I'll even be able to find some whole prey, I'm sure they would love that too when they're ready for it.
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