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Post by Deleted on Aug 1, 2013 13:48:11 GMT -5
Hmm not giving pumpkin for a while now unless it's something in the kibble mixing with the meat? I kind of cheated today and mixed in like a 1/2 tsp of ferretone into a 3oz dish of the soup and Zuko ate it off the spoon no problem! I only ate a small amount but I will try again later after play time.
I have not been watching as much and I left some gross meat in the den it got maggoty blechh. I'll have to be careful with cleaning out what they don't eat and putting less in!
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Post by Deleted on Aug 1, 2013 13:49:45 GMT -5
By *I* ate a small amount I meant *HE* ate a small amount... I did not eat any haha
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Post by Sherry on Aug 1, 2013 23:10:18 GMT -5
Hey if tone lured him into eating the soup the by all and use it! Definitely try using less because that mush will give him really runny poops But if that's what it takes? We can always wean him off it once he's eating.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 3, 2013 14:58:55 GMT -5
I fed Zuko probably around 3 teaspoons of his mush today! He seemed to even enjoy it, he followed the spoon rather than begrudgingly lick it off when I shoved it in his face. I made sure it was after kibble had been taken away for a few hours and they'd played for a while. Sokka and Aang were helping him out too, then Peter (my dog) cleaned out the container heh. It was really cute since there were stringy bits getting on their faces and they were making funny expressions.
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Post by Sherry on Aug 4, 2013 9:49:57 GMT -5
That is a major breakthrough for Zuko (dance) Keep working at him eating it from a dish by himself. Once he is eating it reliably you can remove the kibble from the cage completely How are the others doing with heart, etc?
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Post by Deleted on Aug 5, 2013 10:30:56 GMT -5
Well Aang and Sokka have been getting chicken neck, chicken wing/leg, and chunks of stewing beef. They like the chicken for sure and eat it really well. The stewing beef I'm not sure about it does disappear sometimes, other times it's just left there. I did try the idea of letting it marinate in with the chicken but didn't seem to have much effect. What if for things they don't like as much like beef liver, beef meat I blended it up with some chicken to incorporate the tastes? I think that might get them used to eating it. Aang and Sokka like the soup I have going for Zuko right now which has beef liver blended into it. I still don't have heart, the stupid meat market place kept saying ' oh next week'. I'm going to have to try elsewhere maybe if they don't produce it very soon. 1. Ferret's name: Aang 2. Ferret's weight: 1.11kg 3. Eating around 2-3 oz per day plus some kibble 4. Tiny orange-like stools. Sometimes a bit mucousy but mostly firmer. 5. Activity levels: Spent a bit more time with them recently because the way my schedule worked out and they played for probably 3 hours one day! 1. Ferret's name: Sokka 2. Ferret's weight: 1.09kg 3. Eating around 2 oz per day 4. Normal stools, nice and firm. 5. Activity levels: Normal. Plays at least 3 hours hours per day. 1. Ferret's name: Zuko 2. Ferret's weight: 1.14kg 3. Eating around a teaspoon or two of soup and then kibble 4. Soft stools but haven't changed from what he usually has 5. Activity levels: Playing at least 2 hours but does still nap before the rest, realized this is because he wakes up before the others Week in review... Tuesday the 30th - offered about 5ox of necks, beef, gizzard, also some kibble and soup Wednesday- leftovers from the day before plus added about 3 oz of neck, kibble also offered Thursday - leftovers from the day before,they went bad so lesson learned about giving too much and leaving it out. kibble offered. Added ferretone to soup so didn't have to 'scruff and stuff', fed around 3 teaspoons. Friday-offered around 3 oz of chicken wing, beef, kibble also left out, around 2 teaspoons of soup eaten by Zuko. Saturday- zuko ate lots of soup around 3-4 teaspoons, offered egg yolk to Aang and Sokka, fed about 2 oz of chicken neck, kibble offered Sunday- about 1.5oz of neck put out, kibble offered, about 2 teaspoons of soup eaten by Zuko
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Post by Sherry on Aug 6, 2013 8:41:00 GMT -5
Okay, in that case you are going to have to order some taurine capsules. They really do need taurine in their diet. It's been just over a month since they started the switch, and while not in any danger just yet it's always a good idea to err on the side of caution. In the interim keep looking for heart- any kind. With the meats they aren't as fond of, what I've done is blend it up and hand feed if they aren't taking it in small sliver/chunks form. That gets them used to the taste as well. Also- pick up another protein for them. Pork is usually accepted, but duck, turkey, or whatever you can get. Cornish hen is also great for the smaller bones. With Zuko start leaving the kibble out during the day. Feed him soup in the morning and evening, and let him have access to the girl's raw. Kibble only goes back in just before you go to bed for the night. Let me know how he does in a couple of days.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 6, 2013 9:31:46 GMT -5
Where would I find taurine capsules?
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Post by Sherry on Aug 6, 2013 17:19:10 GMT -5
You may have to order them online if you don't have a health food store near you.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 7, 2013 9:58:03 GMT -5
Alright will look for some. I've been calling around to a couple different places and I may be able to find an alternate source. I didn't think it would be this hard because I know I saw them at the grocery store before!
I'm a little concerned about Aang. On Tuesday he threw up and I'm pretty sure it was him that had a really clear runny stool, then today I saw him gagging/coughing. But the past two days his stool has been firm and solid just this weird grey-brown clay-like consistency. When I picked it up and smushed it in paper towel it felt kinda chunky. I'm happy that it's firm but still worried that he's getting some kind of blockage, or build up, or not breaking up the bones enough.
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Post by Sherry on Aug 7, 2013 16:34:38 GMT -5
That is some bone in there. It's normal for some to pass through the bowel without completely dissolving. Is he or one of the other animals shedding right now? It is also possible he's getting a bit TOO much bone. Try cutting back on it a bit and see if it helps. Also, try giving an egg yolk for him once a week. If he DOES have some fur in there, it will help break it up. Also just so you are aware and don't panic, a fur filled stool literally looks like a slug.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 8, 2013 19:22:37 GMT -5
That's a relief... I will cut back on the bone or edible bone meals. I have started giving egg yolk at least once a week. I made a new batch of soup with chicken breast, stewing beef, beef liver, eggshell powder, some oil, and a bit of kibble powder for flavour. Aang and Sokka seem to like it too, they licked the bowl clean so that's getting them used to liver/beef taste.
Zuko is getting better with his soup. I've been trying to offer it at least twice a day or more after kibble has been out for a while. He will eat anywhere between a 1/2 teaspoon to 2 teaspoons per try. He's still only eating from the spoon. Sometimes he'll go right for it, other times I just tap him on the nose with some and then he starts licking it up. I've tried getting him to eat it right out of the dish but he won't yet.
Also for their feeding den behaviour, I've been trying to give smaller amounts and when they are locked in their cage. They're kind of going through litter re-training anyway so I have them in the cage at night and when I'm not home most days, I try to just feed them their chunky meat stuff then. Otherwise I'll see Aang trucking it to the living room to hide some meat under a cupboard!
One thing I noticed about Aang and Sokka eating as they do, is that some black marks they had on their teeth were completely gone!
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Post by Sherry on Aug 11, 2013 8:59:26 GMT -5
Sorry- don't know how I missed this!!! First- fantastic news that the plaque and tartar have disappeared from Aang and Sokka's teeth! Something that helps with stashing out of cage is to put a couple small feeding dens around out of cage as well. Just direct them to those areas, and sooner or later they start using them. For the most part With Zuko that is EXCELLENT news (dance)He now knows it's food, and that's a huge step. How would you feel about removing the kibble at night entirely, hand feeding him in the morning, and putting the kibble back in AFTER he's had a full feeding? Also keep some raw in there(cage) for the others to nosh on during the day time(as well as at night), and hopefully watching them eat will have him trying it as well What exactly are Aang and Sokka eating now again? soup,slivers, chunks, bone in, what proteins, heart, liver, etc.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 11, 2013 20:04:47 GMT -5
My schedule is pretty erratic so I try to do soup for Zuko before work then before bed, and if I'm home then I try the middle of my day (which varies...). When I'm feeding him soup I've made sure that there's very little kibble or no kibble. So that could mean I put some in after feeding soup in the morning, and they didn't eat it all before I go to bed. Or I put some in before bed and they didn't eat it all before morning or whatever. He's now eating out of the spoon while it's resting in the dish so eventually I think he will stick his whole face in there.... So Aang and Sokka I'm alternating between necks one day (which they don't really eat the bones for anyway), and chicken wings/leg and beef chunks (cut up smaller) another day, plus they are getting a bit of the soup everyday which has the eggshell, beef, beef liver. These are the things I have ready and frozen. A couple times I forgot to take out a bag from the freezer so they just ate kibble or snacked on Zuko's mush. I found a place that may have hearts and other organs. I just need to get there. Very much trying to get the time and needed to wait for pay day, it's coming soon though. I figure with the kibble being left out for them it's acting as a bit of a supplement so their diet shouldn't be too deficient while I try to get this stuff together. I figured out what the weird looking poop was from! It's from the eggshell powder. Here's my weekly update. 1. Ferret's name: Aang 2. Ferret's weight: 1.14kg 3. Eating around 2-3 oz per day plus some kibble, plus some soup 4. Still seeing mucousy booger poops from him, but I may just not be seeing his normal looking poops happen. He did have a clear stool on Tuesday the 6th, and vomited. On the 7th he had the eggshell poop. on the 8th he was gagging in the morning. on the 10th he had a blobby poop. today he was hacking and coughing. 5. Activity levels: good 1. Ferret's name: Sokka 2. Ferret's weight: 1.13kg 3. Eating around 2 oz per day plus kibble, really likes the soup too 4. Normal stools as far as I've seen. 5. Activity levels: good. 1. Ferret's name: Zuko 2. Ferret's weight: 1.16kg 3. Eating around 2-3 teaspoons of mush and then free eating kibble 4. Soft seedy stools 5. Activity levels: good Week's menu in review... Sunday the 4th - about 1.5 oz of neck, some soup, some kibble Monday - kibble, soup, about 1 oz of neck and 1 oz of wing Tuesday- about 2 oz of neck, kibble, fed soup in the morning to Zuko. Wednesday- about 2 oz of neck and wing and beef chunks cut up then coated in kibble powder, soup fed in the am, kibble put out in between Thursday - about 2 oz of neck/wing, soup fed am/pm about 3 tsp Friday- fed some neck, kibble, soup Saturday- soup/kibble Sunday the 11th- 4oz of neck, 4 tsp of soup, kibble The days where I was busier and not home much are the days I'm not sure of amounts or times that I fed
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Post by Deleted on Aug 11, 2013 20:05:50 GMT -5
Bottom line is there is pretty much always food of some kind of available to them if I'm not home or I'm sleeping.
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