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Post by bitbyter on Aug 18, 2012 10:27:31 GMT -5
Ok, they both back in the cage and chowing down on their kibble (grrr). I was hoping Wilma had eaten enough of the soup that she wouldn't be this hungry.
I'm not going to have the opportunity to try again tonight as I am going out. But I'll pull the kibble again late this evening when I get home and have another round tomorrow morning with the soup.
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Post by Sherry on Aug 18, 2012 13:40:31 GMT -5
Persistence is the key! Don't worry, they'll get there it's going to take some time, though. I feel really lucky to have our four new boys eating small chunks and wing tips in three weeks! That's actually fairly quick. So don't be surprised if your girls take a while
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Post by bitbyter on Aug 18, 2012 14:07:07 GMT -5
Well I'm really encouraged by Wilma's willingness to eat the soup off of my finger, I'm just worried about Socks. She looks so stressed when she takes a lick and I'm still holding her. Any advise regarding how to gain her trust while she's eating?
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Post by Sherry on Aug 18, 2012 19:44:12 GMT -5
For Socks right now, just keep scooping her up, dabbing some one her nose or tongue and let her go again. It's about all you can do at the moment. Do it over and over and over again while they are out playing. And try to keep firmly in the forefront of your mind that the more a ferret tastes meat, the more a ferret will develop a taste for meat. Think of it like a kid who's had McDonald's and ice cream all their life, and now they are being made to eat good healthy vegetables like broccoli and brussel sprouts ;D It can take a long time, but she WILL develop a taste for it. And once Wilma is doing well enough to have a dish left with her, rivalry will start to play a part also.
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Post by bitbyter on Aug 19, 2012 12:07:24 GMT -5
Ok, my update today.
Wilma, still eating well off my finger but is still reluctent to eat from the bowl. I fed them this morning and just now 12:45 pm.
Socks, big SURPRISE! While I was holding Wilma and feeding her from my finger she came over to the bowl three times, took a lick and then did her "run and hide" to eat thing. I am very please that she did this on her own. It gives me some some confidence that I could leave soup in their cage and that she would eat it.
I found a good poop in the litter box today that was obviously from the soup. It was well formed and very light in colour compared to their kibble poops. I would guess it was from Wilma as she eat enough soup yesterday to affect her poops. I don't think Socks would have eaten enough to change her poop.
So, as it stands I have left the bowl with a bit of soup in it in their cage with a bit of crushed kibble on it. I am going to check on it around 5 pm and probably give them their kibble back until I go to bed.
Tomorrow morning I'm going to try a soup feed before I go to work, give them a ration of kibble for during the day. Pull it as soon as I get home and try an evening soup feeding.
Based on their weight how much soup should they be eating (by weight) each? I just need to know they are getting enough nourishment.
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Post by Sherry on Aug 19, 2012 12:39:01 GMT -5
On an average I'd say they'll likely settle to about 3-4 oz a day each. Right now? It's really going to be up in the air. As they get used to it, and when the kibble is finally pulled their appetites are going to go through the roof. To give you an idea, our 4lb Frodo now eats about 5oz a day on average. But he's not quite as active as my smaller girls. When he hit that appetite surge, he was eating 6 oz PER MEAL. So what all that means is I have no idea what is going to be enough for them ;D As long as they are eating a minimum of what I mentioned at first, they'll be fine Okay, with Wilma, start trying to get her to take it from the spoon entirely. And that's a good step with Socks! For her, try keeping her in one place to keep tasting the meat at least. You can also try a feeding den with her and a dish of soup to see just how much she'll eat in private. Ultimately you'll likely want to do this anyway to confine the meat.
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Post by bitbyter on Aug 20, 2012 18:51:33 GMT -5
Evening Sherry,
Wilma took about 1.5 ounces straight from the plate tonight. I had to remind her at first by letting her lick from my finger and after that, as long as I had my finger in the soup she would lick it up herself. I had to bring her back to the plate a few times but she nearly ate the full 2 ounces!
Socks is still being problematic. This time I made up a separate small plate and put in a feeding den. She took a few mouthfuls in the feeding den and ate them before realized she was exposed. She then ran off and hide to eat her last mouthful. From that point on I had to grab her and let her take a lick, then she would struggle until I let her go so she could hide and eat. I think in total she might have gotten half an ounce this way.
I have left the plate in the feeding den with them and am going to check on it before I go to bed and give them their kibble back.
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Post by Sherry on Aug 20, 2012 19:19:59 GMT -5
That's actually excellent progress! Especially for Socks What is her feeding den made of? For a while at least, she may prefer an enclosed space, even a cardboard box with a hole cut in for her. Something where she feels secure enough to eat in. Later on, I'll give you the link for a variety of different feeding den ideas(one the phone right now). That might give you some ideas on easy setups.
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Post by bitbyter on Aug 20, 2012 19:40:20 GMT -5
It's a tupperware with lid and painted black. She is totally comfortable eating her kibble in it but I think the whole soup situation is still to strange for her. I am encouraged by this though and will keep presenting it to her this way.
I forgot to mention in my last post. Ferrets reeeealy don't link their chins to be wet do they? As soon as either one of them gets a wet chin from the soup they run off to snake their faces on blankets or tunnels or anything they can find!
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Post by Sherry on Aug 20, 2012 20:03:04 GMT -5
Yep- the chin wiping is par for the course ;D Okay, just keep giving her the soup in the den as long as she's taking some.
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Post by bitbyter on Aug 20, 2012 22:26:18 GMT -5
And people think Ferrets are dirty smell animals. There the only animals I know who wipe their bums and chins!
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Post by bitbyter on Aug 21, 2012 16:15:36 GMT -5
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Post by Sherry on Aug 21, 2012 19:42:21 GMT -5
You know at least SOMEONE likes it enough to clean it up ;D What you've suggested is a good idea. Don't forget, though- they can't be TOO long with no food. Might be an idea though to put soup along with kibble in the cage when they go back in tonight.
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Post by bitbyter on Aug 22, 2012 20:58:49 GMT -5
I decided to wait until this evening to seperate them and give them both access to soup to see who is eating it. Answer...no real suprise, it's Wilma. I put a dish in the cage with Socks and a dish in a feeding den outside the cage. Within 15 minutes Socks was chowing down on the soup with no prompting from me at all. She stopped half way through and then eat the rest half an hour later.
Socks on the other hand went to sleep in the cage and 3 hours later she still hadn't eaten any of the soup. I have left her in the cage with the soup and kibble for the night and we'll see if she eats any of the soup on her own.
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Post by Sherry on Aug 22, 2012 21:12:48 GMT -5
Okay. Socks is still going to need a lot more work. Step back to finger feeding her the soup for now, and make sure she's got access to kibble at least 12 hrs of the days.
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