Kadance's Switching Thread/ Wildferret

[Heather]

Name: Bri
HF Forum Username: Kadance

1. Where did you first learn about natural diets for ferrets?
I’ve been aware of it for a while just from doing research on ferrets.

2. Please describe the type of diet you would like assistance in switching your ferret(s) to. Be sure to include if you are interested in feeding whole prey (live or frozen-thawed) and if you are wanting to FULLY switch to a natural diet or PARTIALLY. If you are unsure what kind of diet you want to put your ferrets on, please express that and we can help you find the best type of natural diet for your ferret.
I’m not sure yet, but my boyfriend wants to turn our ferret into a little hunter, ie live feed. I’m mostly just interested in getting him off kibble, without breaking the bank.

3. Why are you interested in switching your ferrets to a natural diet?
Our ferret Cooper has decided he no longer wants to eat kibble. He’s been on a soup/mush diet since early January, first with duck soup recipes consisting of kibble, babyfood, and ensure because he lost weight before we realized he wasn’t eating his food anymore. And then in an effort to ease him back into eating kibble we fed him uncle jim’s duk soup mixed with mushy kibble and finally just mushy kibble.
No matter how hard we try he doesn’t want hard kibble. And yes, we did take him to the vet but she couldn’t find anything wrong with him. Because he is so young, she said it was most likely a bowel obstruction. However, I should note that he has been pooping fine this whole time, and the vet suspected it might possible be an ongoing allergic reaction (likely due to the corn-heavy low-grade puppy food he spent a week pilfering instead of eating his own kibble) rather than a bowel obstruction.

4. Do you understand that switching your ferret to a natural diet can be a lengthy, arduous process? Its not an overnight switch. It can be a commitment of several weeks or even months. Your HF Mentor will be more then happy to assist you in switchng your ferret(s) to a natural diet, but you need to be equally as commited. If you aren't willing to tough out a potentially lengthy switching process, or if you have major life changes approaching (baby on the way, moving, starting school, getting married/divorced, etc) then it might be a better idea to wait on switching your ferret's diet until you have more time. Are you willing to make the commitment?
Yes, considering that we are already feeding him soupie twice a day, I don’t think raw feeding would be that much of a stretch. We think it could be very fun and rewarding for both him and us, and want to give it a shot.

5. How many ferrets do you currently have? What are their names? Ages? Genders? Do they have any health problems? Are they overweight? Underweight? How long have you had each ferret for?
Just one for now. His name is Cooper and he is about 10 or 11 months old. He is happy, and with the exception of his disdain for kibble, he appears healthy. He has good poops, a healthy coat, is bright and alert, is as playful as ever, unaggressive, and his weight is fine. I have periodically been checking him all over to make sure nothing hurts, and have seen no evidence of pain. The vet also said he has very healthy teeth & gums, so no issues there. I’ve had him since September and he was 5 or 6 months old when I got him from Petco. He is a Marshall Farms ferret.

6. What diet do you currently feed your ferrets? (Please include all treats, supplements, etc) Do they already eat some form of soup?
Right now Cooper is eating mushed 8-1 kibble with *raw* ground turkey mixed in, in increasing amounts since the evening of 2/19. Before then he was eating kibble and Uncle Jim’s duk soup mix.

7. Have you ever tried to switch your ferrets to a natural diet in the past? If yes, what happened?
No.

8. What additional information about yourself or your ferrets would you like to share?
Cooper is my first personal pet, I love him very much, and all I want for him is to be healthy and happy. My boyfriend and I are very tired of trying to convince him to eat kibble that he obviously no longer wants. I think transitioning him to a raw diet is our best bet and will likely be successful, being that Cooper has been gobbling up his turkey/kibble mix (we’re up to about 20-25% turkey) more readily than when he was being fed just mushed kibble and/or duk soup.

9. How often during the week do you have access to a computer?
All day, every day.

10. Please post a picture of each of your ferrets (if possible).
Cooper

Hi and welcome to the mentoring program (wave). In a little while your mentor (Wildferret), will introduce himself and you can get started on a new adventure in natural ferret care and diets. Please remember to post regularly (daily or as per arranged with your mentor) so that your mentor can assist you move along safely in this adventure. If you experience computer difficulties or are going to be away, please notify your mentor and most of all relax and have fun (dance) Your mentor is here to help you on this journey.
ciao

[Deleted]

Hi! I'm Wildferret. I'll be your mentor through your switch. So, He's already eating mushy kibble with ground raw turkey and he's young. That's great. I think this will be easy. We'll start off with a grind and introduce some different proteins as we go. You need to mash up some chicken livers and another organ such as beef kidney. You will also need some chicken, beef or some other animal heart for taurine.Also you will need some crushed egg shell or human grade bone meal powder. At this point you need to understand that his diet must be balanced. That is what the bone meal/pulverized egg shell, organs and heart are for. Find out what sort of ground meats are available to you and inform me of them and we'll go from there.

[Deleted]

Hi Wildferret! Sorry I took so long to get back to you, its the end of the semester for me and between that and work things have been really busy.
Anyway, Cooper is a little past ground turkey and kibble at this point, I've been feeding him heart, gizzards, and liver once a week mixed with turkey, and the rest of the week he's been eating mostly chicken, with the occasional ground turkey meal. At this point he'll eat chunks of muscle meat, skin, and fat. I still mix in a little water and kibble just so he'll realize its food and eat it. I've also recently been able to get him to eat bones. He'll eat most of the bones in a chicken wing, but he isn't interested in anything bigger like a drumstick. He really likes his chicken wing bones though, sometimes he tries to eat them even when they are still almost completely covered in meat.

What I'm really struggling with is getting him to eat bigger chunks, anything bigger than a bite sized piece and he tries to run off and drop it somewhere. This means getting him to pick meat off the bone is a no-go because he just tries to take the entire thing and stash it. Then when I wont let him because I know he's just going to leave it there until it rots, he decides he doesn't want it.
Also, he doesn't really eat it on his own, which is probably my fault but I'm not sure how to persuade him to so I feed him like a baby, every, single, time. I usually sit on the floor with him and hold spoonfuls in front of his face while he eats. Sometimes I can get him to eat out the bowl by lowering the spoon into it, but that usually only works if he's really hungry.

So, basically Cooper is almost entirely on a raw diet at this point, but his diet is not at all balanced like it should be and I'm having to cut up his food into bite sized pieces and practically spoon feed it to him to get him to eat it.

[Deleted]

You're progressing nicely, but we need to balance his diet. Prepare eight ounces of minced chicken thigh,two ounces of minced chicken liver,one ounce of chicken heart or some other heart meat, and one half teaspoon of bone meal powder to ensure he gets enough calcium. Continue putting small pieces of bone in chicken wings in his grind.Continue leading him to his bowl with the spoon and stop feeding him like a baby.He'll eat on his own now if you insist.Try drizzling a little salmon oil on his food to further entice him.You're at the point now that he's either going to train you or you're going to train him, lol. Be firm with him about it.He knows it's food now so he will eat.If he misses a meal or two,it won't hurt him.

[Deleted]

Try getting a cardboard box and making him a feeding den.