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Post by Deleted on Apr 10, 2013 23:29:15 GMT -5
Because the mentors currently have their hands full, I will be using this thread to log my switching progress with Javik. This is both for my convenience and the convenience of the mentors, but also to keep my questions in one place, anything related to Javik and his current progress will be kept here to avoid spamming the forum with threads. I will likely log his meals, appetite, weight, and any stool irregularities daily if possible. Info about him: Born: 1/1/2013 Adopted: 4/8/2013 Weight on 4/9: 850.5 grams Color: white face, belly, chest and legs, black back and spots Health concerns: deaf and possible WS Original diet: Marshall's kibble Diet as of 4/10: eating raw chunks (1/4" size), almost entire wingette bones, and soup. Personality: very curious and inquisitive. Likes to play, but enjoys exploring new areas of the house even more so far. Potty trained: no Picture: (date 4/10/13)  |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 10, 2013 23:42:40 GMT -5
Today Javik was fed one 2 oz drumette (mini drumstick?) for lunch with some liver juice for breakfast. The liver juice was the first to go. He chewed the bottom part of the stick off, but left the meaty part alone so I took it and stripped the flesh from the bone, chopped the flesh into chunks and put it and the bone back in his feeding den. Meat was gone by midday, bone was eaten to about 60% remaining. Dinner was 2 oz boneless pork meat with leftover bone from lunch. As of 9:40 pm bone is down to 40% and meat is down to maybe half an oz. Didn't get his weight today, scale died in the middle of portioning meat for the month. Getting a new battery tomorrow. Stools have been slightly loose and greenish tar in color. Most recently, though, was very loose and mucus-y, pale in color. Will be adding pumpkin to breakfast I believe. He still won't go in the litterbox, prefers to use it as a dig box  |
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Post by Sherry on Apr 10, 2013 23:57:27 GMT -5
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Post by miamiferret2 on Apr 10, 2013 23:59:53 GMT -5
take a hammer or mallet and smash the bones up in the wing. may be easier for him & he may eat more bone that way.
is he eating any sort of dry kibble?
remember to remove dry kibble for at least 2 hours before and after feeding raw. the raw meat digests faster than the kibble. kibble takes longer to break down and digest. when the two mix together in the stomach, the kibble actually slows down the digestion of the raw and this can cause funky poops.
funky poops are common during the switch BTW. they need to adjust. only add about 1/2 teaspoon of pumpkin to his food once a day.
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Post by miamiferret2 on Apr 11, 2013 0:01:58 GMT -5
yes I would ditch the kibble entirely too. sounds like he is well on his way and already eating the raw meat. IMO you should only leave kibble around if they are still resisting the raw meat. plus, ferrets that eat kibble become carb junkies. as long as the kibble is there, they will have cravings for it and they will eat it. they actually go through carb withdrawals. so best thing for you is to ditch that kibble if he is already munching on the raw meat.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 11, 2013 0:07:18 GMT -5
There is a poop chart thread on this forum too that you should definitely check out of you have not done so already.  It will show you what organ poops look like, muscle meat, whole prey poops, etc. It kind of acts as a guide and can help calm you down if you have a really strange poop and panic lol! Javik is progressing along well so far! |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 11, 2013 0:26:51 GMT -5
about 1/4 cup of it in his first bowl of soup to make sure he'd eat it and now that he's taking soup, meat, and bones so well I'd say it's safe to say his kibble days are behind him for good. (he hasn't even tasted a kibble morsel in 48 hours, I'm proud to say.) As for his stool, I had a feeling funky stool was normal...but man does it SMELL funky too lol  On another note, we are now taking a short break after a long and fun play time. He was dooking and dancing around and tunneling under my covers...normal ferret stuff, I know, but boy have I missed these simple things in the past few years. |
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Post by Sherry on Apr 11, 2013 0:43:58 GMT -5
[/img] [/quote] Yeah, detox is horribly smelly  At least with his young age it shouldn't last too, too long! When they are older and have been on kibble longer it can go on for a month or more |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 11, 2013 0:57:21 GMT -5
Oh no! I just noticed for some reason my post got cut off before I sent it. Dang phone :/ basically I was saying he hasn't had kibble since his first day with me when I used it to get him to try soup.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 11, 2013 11:42:36 GMT -5
Does anyone have any advice on how to teach a deaf ferret to not bite? Usually Javik only nips gently, but when he really gets into playing he starts to bite rough. Not enough to draw blood, but leave marks for a couple hours. If he bites a finger I usually just put a little pressure on his bottom jaw and he will let go, and if he bites somewhere else on my hand I just stop moving it and he'll loosen his grip, but sometimes that will just lead to him biting me more, trying to find a better "soft spot". These aren't really solutions since he doesn't seem to be learning that he's hurting me (this is especially difficult because I can't hiss or make noises to make him let go like I did with girls). So does anyone have experience with deaf biters and have tips on how to train them?
I also have another, unrelated question. I want to buy some freeze dried raw to use as treats and for emergency meals, I'm leaning toward Stella and chewy's duck duck goose, but $25 for 12 oz seems pretty pricey. Then again, freeze dried food is generally light, so my question is how much is in their 12 oz bag in actuality? How many meals would that provide a single ferret?
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Post by Deleted on Apr 11, 2013 12:55:13 GMT -5
One of your best options for biting discipline with him is probably going to be time outs. This is what I did with Penwyn my deafy. Scruffing was counter-productive for Penwyn, and just made everything worse. 3 minute time outs in a small animal carrier with nothing in it seemed to work really well for me. Make sure it is no longer than 3 minutes though. When he comes out, be prepared for him to be upset with you and come over and try to bite you again out of spite. If he does, put him right back in the carrier for another 3 minutes.
Another tip is to always have a small stuffie with you when you are playing with him. I did this as well, and it worked for me. Direct his attention to the stuffy, or replace your hand with the stuffy.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 11, 2013 13:41:52 GMT -5
Awesome, thanks! I had read about the time outs a couple weeks ago but it completely wiped my mind haha. A stuffy is a good idea too! Thanks again, I'll try both.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 11, 2013 13:47:54 GMT -5
Just be prepared for temper tantrums to be thrown in the crate/carrying case. Also be prepared to be persistent too of course. You may have to put him back for a time out 10 times before he understands. Depending on stubborn he is, it could take you longer too.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 11, 2013 14:18:10 GMT -5
That's not a problem, I understand that behavioral issues take a lot of time and patience to over come |
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Post by Sherry on Apr 11, 2013 14:34:32 GMT -5
Since it's only when he plays you can also simply stop playing. Literally just stop all play immediately an get up an walk away.
This is exactly how our ferrets disciplined a deaf biting kit. She'd play too rough with one, and all of them would ignore her. She'd come to them, and they'd go elsewhere.
My heart went out to her several times as she'd lay there sighing because no one would play with her. But it worked.
I've used both methods. Both work. I usually try ignore for play biting first. Temper tantrum biting earns an immediate time out though ;D
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