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Post by Deleted on Dec 16, 2012 21:46:02 GMT -5
They ate 7.5oz last night of little chunks and chewed on a chicken bone at bit. Sorry I don't have much to add today - I started feeling really bad again and haven't spent too much time in the same room as them.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 16, 2012 22:10:24 GMT -5
It's ok. Sounds like they're doing good. Hopefully they take a liking to the bones.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 17, 2012 22:32:30 GMT -5
Sorry, another day of not feeling well and, on top of that, tomorrow we're driving down to my parent's for the holidays so I've been a little scatter brained.
Anyway, their weights haven't changed much, they're looking the same and I've given 9oz tonight (as they tore through 7.5 yesterday). They were very happy to get their full bowl this evening. Nothing new to report though they have shown interest in a pork back bone.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 18, 2012 10:45:48 GMT -5
Great news! Give them a little time to experiment and I'm sure they will be crunching their way through it in no time. I hope you feel better soon! Nothing worse than being sick for the holidays.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 19, 2012 20:55:52 GMT -5
Yesterday we traveled up to "Grandma & Grandpa's" house. ;D My mother was very kind and ferret proofed the entire finished basement for the fuzzies so they've got a ton of exercise (they need it being in that crappy super pet cage!) Last night wasn't a good eating night. Only ate half of their 9oz and barely chewed on the two chicken leg bones I offered. I'm thinking they may have been stressed or tired from the move. Their energy is still fantastic and they're all about some play time. My postal scale is still in my car but I have to ship packages in the A.M. so I'll have exact weights tomorrow. But overall they look the same. Loki's yellow patch is becoming fainter and fainter!  He has such a pretty winter coat right now - completely lost his faint mask for a totally white face. So pretty; wish he'd keep it! Tomorrow is also "food making day". I've got a whole hen, some pork chops, gizzards, chicken hearts & gizzards. Going to do my normal "separate them into equally portioned servings & freeze" so the fuzzlets get a little of everything each night; that is if you agree? Also going to make the chunks a little larger. They're at dime sized right now. If they can't do larger I can always go back and cut up the other portions I make a little more before serving. |
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Post by Deleted on Dec 19, 2012 22:28:47 GMT -5
I've always been the overly cautious type and felt it was better to mix a little of everything in each meal to achieve a better balance overall rather than feed them hearts one meal, bone the next, organs the next etc in case someone isn't fond of something or misses a meal. It's more work overall, but it gives me peace of mind. You can of course do it whichever way works best for you.  If you do end up mixing everything together all the time, you will want to figure out the proper ratio of bone/meat/heart/organ to serve each meal so that they don't overload on certain things. I'm sure they were tired out from all the excitement going to see the new place and playing, they'll likely be back to chowing down soon enough. |
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Post by Deleted on Dec 19, 2012 22:49:35 GMT -5
to mix a little of everything in each meal to achieve a better balance overall rather than feed them hearts one meal, bone the next, organs the next etc in case someone isn't fond of something or misses a meal. It's more work overall, but it gives me peace of mind. That is exactly what I've been doing. Sorry I wasn't clear at first; I realize how it could sounds like I was feeding only one thing at a time. Nope everything gets mixed all together and separated into equal portions that I freeze and thaw each meal. I would say their last batch was 50% muscle meat (pork, chicken); 20% organs (gizzards, livers, hearts), 20% small bone & eggshell powder and 10% egg innards (the whites & yolks). They've been fed this mix for about the past two weeks (how much I normally make) along with supplemental bones (pork back & chicken) and raw eggs. Looking at the quantities I bought today the next mix is going to be: 70% Muscle Meat (hen, pork) 15% Organs (Gizzards, hearts, livers) 10% Bone & Eggshell 5% Eggshell Innards (trying to give the base the chunks sit in a less "soupy" texture) Which I think is closer to what it "should" be. Their poops have been good and normal-looking on the other mix, though. Please let me know if there is something I can improve on this mix before I make it tomorrow. I always feed a raw egg as a "treat" (as in every couple days) so they should still get the same amount of egg, generally, in their diet. I'll also have some really nice chewin' bones from that whole hen! Edit: Oops! They have only been on that particular mix for about a week or so, actually. I made a new batch on the 11th substituting pork for the beef I had earlier in the month. My batches normally last two weeks but I opted for a small batch this time as I was traveling to my parent's and I didn't want to lug a bunch of meat around. |
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Post by Deleted on Dec 20, 2012 9:57:37 GMT -5
I'll run the mix by some of the other mentors to make sure it is alright proportionally. Hearts count as muscle meat even though they are technically organs, though they are still an essential source of taurine so you want to make sure you have plenty of them.
Is this the end goal state? To basically serve up a mix everyday (but in large pieces, not soup)? How are they doing with the chunks of meat?
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Post by Deleted on Dec 20, 2012 12:13:13 GMT -5
I'll run the mix by some of the other mentors to make sure it is alright proportionally. Hearts count as muscle meat even though they are technically organs, though they are still an essential source of taurine so you want to make sure you have plenty of them. Is this the end goal state? To basically serve up a mix everyday (but in large pieces, not soup)? How are they doing with the chunks of meat? Yes, I believe this will be the goal. Large pieces, even ones still on bone. I love the pictures I've seen of ferts going to town on racks of ribs. ;D With my current schedule (last semester of Uni, internships, etc), making a pre-made mix and distributing it into ready to serve portions is the most feasible thing for me right now. Later, when I'm moved and working a "real" job I'm sure I could experiment with more varying daily diets. I also want to get them eating mice at some point. I had no idea heart counted as a muscle meat! I guess it makes sense since the heart *is* a muscle. ;D Thank you for that. They're good on dime sized chunks. Eating them completely. Also will eat large potions of chicken skin. |
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Post by Deleted on Dec 20, 2012 14:23:23 GMT -5
Sounds like they are doing great.  They don't give you any fuss with the organs? I can't wait to be able to try some mice some day, I am positive that Mayhem and Glados would enjoy them a great deal once they got used to them. I don't want mouse guts everywhere in my bedroom though, so until we have a house with a dedicated ferrets only room... eesh. |
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Post by Deleted on Dec 20, 2012 14:27:27 GMT -5
Sounds like they are doing great. They don't give you any fuss with the organs? I can't wait to be able to try some mice some day, I am positive that Mayhem and Glados would enjoy them a great deal once they got used to them. I don't want mouse guts everywhere in my bedroom though, so until we have a house with a dedicated ferrets only room... eesh. I'm hoping I have a fenced or bricked in yard so I can let them "hunt" for real. No, they love liver. It is probably their favorite part of the meal. They're a little iffy with the gizzards - those are one of the last things to go. |
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Post by Deleted on Dec 22, 2012 20:25:02 GMT -5
Alright, made the mix with the following: 75% Muscle Meat (hen, pork, hearts) 10% Organs (Gizzards, livers) 10% Bone & Eggshell (Small hen bones that I broke up) 5% Eggshell Innards And they loved it! Ate it up so fast last night - not a crumb left this morning (7.5oz) Also gave two tiny hen wings - they chewed on them and drug them to their litter box. So I suppose they get their seal of approval as well. They've been getting a surprising amount of free roam time - my parents are very welcoming. My father is really enjoying them. He had paperwork to complete in the basement today (he has a desk down there) and I offered to cage them while he worked: "Oh, no. Just leave them out." He later said they were "Sweet" and "Really cute" - "especially the one that pushes the ball around on his nose like the toy" (Dexter). |
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Post by Deleted on Dec 22, 2012 20:43:20 GMT -5
Haha. I bet he didn't get much work done with the fuzzies lose down there.  They're very distracting. They sound like are making excellent progress. Don't be afraid to try upping the size of the bone/meat pieces as you go and introducing new proteins if you have them available. |
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Post by Deleted on Dec 22, 2012 23:30:08 GMT -5
Haha. I bet he didn't get much work done with the fuzzies lose down there. They're very distracting. They sound like are making excellent progress. Don't be afraid to try upping the size of the bone/meat pieces as you go and introducing new proteins if you have them available. They have a grocery store here that has a wide selection of meats. It's where I found the whole hen. I will totally be going back before I go home. I wish I could convince my mother to bond with them - she claims they're "rodenty" and is too scared to touch them. It was funny to hear my father tell her that they certainly weren't rodents and that he "pet them and they were really sweet critters who just want to play". ;D At least one of them is on my side. I think she would enjoy their company if she gave them a chance - though I don't know what else to say besides "They aren't rodents; they eat rodents" and "They aren't going to crawl up your leg and bite you". |
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Post by Deleted on Dec 23, 2012 10:13:14 GMT -5
I have one who will crawl up your leg and bite you, right in the back of the knee where it's meaty and tender. Little brat. ;D But only if you're laying in bed. My Murder acts a lot like a 3 1/2 lb dog |
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