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Post by katt on Feb 16, 2014 19:40:20 GMT -5
They are doing fine on duck. Oh wonderful! Go ahead and try upping the liver then. You may try introducing a new type of liver or other organ this week too. Preferably a meat you have already tried on them (eg duck liver and kidney).
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Post by katt on Feb 18, 2014 21:42:27 GMT -5
Just checking in
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Post by katt on Feb 18, 2014 21:42:32 GMT -5
Just checking in
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Post by Jeremy's Boggle on Feb 18, 2014 21:48:17 GMT -5
Everyone is doing fine for now. I have not been able to to get into town to try to get duck organs as the skin kids have a cold.
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Post by katt on Feb 18, 2014 22:45:07 GMT -5
Uh oh! It seems to be going around right now on the interwebs, half of my online forum contacts seem to be sick. lol Maybe it's a computer-virus. haha ha Sorry, terrible joke. Lots of fluids and rest! Zinc helps against viruses btw so a zinc supplement might do them some good. How are they doing with the chicken liver?
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Post by katt on Feb 18, 2014 22:45:08 GMT -5
Uh oh! It seems to be going around right now on the interwebs, half of my online forum contacts seem to be sick. lol Maybe it's a computer-virus. haha ha Sorry, terrible joke. Lots of fluids and rest! Zinc helps against viruses btw so a zinc supplement might do them some good. How are they doing with the chicken liver?
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Post by Jeremy's Boggle on Feb 18, 2014 23:00:57 GMT -5
We are on day 11. They are just about over it. The ferrets are doing fine on the chicken livers.
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Post by katt on Feb 19, 2014 0:21:50 GMT -5
Good fuzz! I'm thrilled and pleasantly surprised at how well they are doing. I really have to wonder if they truly have IBD, or if they just had continued problems after their ECE because of the crappy food they were on.... What else do you have on the list of things you want to introduce to them? Do you plan on trying to work them up to whole meats and bones, or keeping them on grinds?
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Post by Jeremy's Boggle on Feb 19, 2014 9:40:10 GMT -5
Good fuzz! I'm thrilled and pleasantly surprised at how well they are doing. I really have to wonder if they truly have IBD, or if they just had continued problems after their ECE because of the crappy food they were on.... I have wondered that myself. What else do you have on the list of things you want to introduce to them? I think that we've introduced everything I'm feeding right now. It seems that most of my proteins are now birds except for the tripe. It is really hard to find an affordable non-beef hoof animal here. I may pick up some pork this week & try introducing it again. Last time I added 2lb of pork liver to 80lb of meat & their stomachs were a mess until it was gone, so I wasn't sure about trying again I bought ground bone in turkey to try. I have deer. How long is it supposed to be frozen before you feed it? I thing I have the wrong time span in my head? We've introduced chicken, duck, quail & tripe. Do you plan on trying to work them up to whole meats and bones, or keeping them on grinds?I do feed chicken thighs, chicken necks & occasionally ox tail. Usually peer pressure & the crazed excitement of the group leads them to eating it without me having to do anything to encourage them. They have gotten to the point of eating whatever I put in the bowl. I'll put them alone with some chicken necks & whole hearts & see what they do. I found a place to buy fresh quail eggs for $3.50 a dozen. I have to check on availability since we've had such crazy weather here but if their birds are laying I might be able to pick some up on Friday. How many quail eggs do you feed per ferret & how often? Sorry if I'm rambling. I've only had one cup of coffee.
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Post by Jeremy's Boggle on Feb 20, 2014 22:14:56 GMT -5
I put in the chicken necks & got distract. Both chicken neck are gone but I don't know yet if both of them ate them.
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Post by katt on Feb 21, 2014 21:42:45 GMT -5
I really do suspect that the diet they were on had more to do with their trouble than IBD. I mean just look at what the potatoes did to them... :/ They haven't had any trouble so far aside from the liver, and liver is super rich so it's not uncommon for it to take a bit longer for some ferrets to adjust to it, especially ones who have been on a poor diet. I think that we've introduced everything I'm feeding right now. It seems that most of my proteins are now birds except for the tripe. It is really hard to find an affordable non-beef hoof animal here. I may pick up some pork this week & try introducing it again. Last time I added 2lb of pork liver to 80lb of meat & their stomachs were a mess until it was gone, so I wasn't sure about trying again I really wonder if you didn't have a bad batch of pork, or if maybe it was too sudden of an introduction of new protein for some of them. Pork allergies are certainly not unheard of, but they are relatively uncommon. Beef seems to be the number one allergy, with chicken and turkey 2nd and 3rd. Do you know which ferrets specifically had issues? Esp how many of them had trouble? I'm sure it is hard to tell with a large group, but if it was multiple ferrets I would really suspect something other than a pork allergy/sensitivity. If you can get your hands on any lamb or goat those are great meats too. Also rabbit, bison, venison, and fish (fish is best fed in moderation but is great for their coats). I bought ground bone in turkey to try. I have deer. How long is it supposed to be frozen before you feed it? I thing I have the wrong time span in my head?Deer is great! I *believe* the rule for wild game is 3 weeks in the deep freezer or 3 months in a fridge-freezer. Avoid feeding intestines (organs are fine). I'm more familiar with moose and caribou lol but I know others on the form have given deer. We've introduced chicken, duck, quail & tripe.Great! So at the least they have 3 proteins. I'd like to see some non-poultry items in there. They are doing really well so far, so I would consider testing them on a little bit of beef. It is rich, and a common allergen so I'd just start out really small like you have been doing and see how they do. I do feed chicken thighs, chicken necks & occasionally ox tail. Usually peer pressure & the crazed excitement of the group leads them to eating it without me having to do anything to encourage them. They have gotten to the point of eating whatever I put in the bowl. I'll put them alone with some chicken necks & whole hearts & see what they do.That's one of the benefits of large businesses - more peer pressure! haha I'm sure you'll have no trouble getting them on bones, you've done it plenty of times. I found a place to buy fresh quail eggs for $3.50 a dozen. I have to check on availability since we've had such crazy weather here but if their birds are laying I might be able to pick some up on Friday. How many quail eggs do you feed per ferret & how often?Oo nice! I don't feed quail eggs. They are great but IMO it is largely a fad. lol There's absolutely nothing wrong with chicken eggs. *grumble* Quail eggs are very nutritious though. Chicken eggs the rule is no more than 1 (whole!) egg per ferret every 3 days unless they are shedding or have hairballs and then you can give up to one every other day but beware the poops! Quail eggs are a lot smaller, so I'd say you can probably give 2-3 per ferret every 3 days. Or one a day. The big thing to watch is their poops, they will get gnarly egg poops if they get too much. lol Sorry if I'm rambling. I've only had one cup of coffee. No worries! I am not a morning person either. hahaha
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Post by katt on Feb 23, 2014 3:36:59 GMT -5
Posting so this will stay in my "Participated Threads" feed
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Post by Jeremy's Boggle on Feb 23, 2014 21:26:51 GMT -5
I'll probably just stay with chicken eggs instead of trying to arrange a regular meeting with these people. I can not get duck organs locally. We are trying to get an order together through our pet food store from Hare Today. Hopefully it will become a standing order.
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Post by katt on Feb 23, 2014 22:01:13 GMT -5
Oo that would be nice! The big rave about Quail eggs is you get more bang for your buck. I think they are a bit more nutrient dense than chicken eggs. Chicken eggs are also extremely nutritious though. I just don't honestly see quail eggs as being worth all of the trouble, not to mention they can be spendy. Are you still thinking about giving pork another try?
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Post by Jeremy's Boggle on Feb 24, 2014 0:23:03 GMT -5
I'll try pork. It will be Wednesday before I can pick some up. I did just get one of my adrenal ferret's stomach settled again so I hope it doesn't cause any set backs for him. Keeping the food journal should help me see if there is a pattern to his issues but I think he was having trouble with the beef.
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