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Post by Deleted on Aug 30, 2014 21:58:01 GMT -5
Hi everyone I have signed up for the mentoring program, but I've already started my switch so while I wait I was going to keep track of everything with this switching journal. Techinally I started giving them soupy on Thursday, but I just mixed a bunch of stuff together and have no idea what they got or how much until today, so I'll be starting with tonight. A little background- Caillou is a 4-5 year old male marshall farms ferret, I adopted him 1 year ago in September, he was found roaming around outside, covered in dirt and fleas with some hair loss and skin irritation, a fear of dogs and a tad bit skittish. About 3 days after they found him and the shelter took him in, I adopted him. Today, almost 1 year later, he is a fluffy, fat, dog loving, healthy, people caring ferret. Caillou weighs 51.2 oz (3.2lbs) (weighed 08-30-14) Picture of him- Juliet is a 4-5 year old female marshall farms ferret, I adopted her 2 years ago in October, she was a healthy active little girl, the sweetest ferret I'd ever met. At the beginning of this year she was diagnosed with Adrenal Disease, she had surgery to remove the tumor but it was on her right adrenal gland and was attached to the blood vessel that leads to her heart, so the Vet closed her up and stuck a melatonin implant in her. She's still on melatonin, until I can afford the deslorelin. Juliet also has cataracts in both of her eyes, and she has limited vision. She is slowly losing weight because of her disease, so my goal is to get her to gain it back. Juliet weighs 27.4 oz (1.8lbs) (weighed 08-30-14) Picture of her- Tonight at about 8:30 pm they each got a 3oz bowl full of this recipe- 8oz Chicken Breast 2 Chicken Hearts 1/2 Chicken Liver 1/2 Teaspoon Eggshell Powder all blended together with water to make a consistency a bit thicker than milk. I did have to add ferretone so they would eat it, but I'm working on adding less and less until I don't have to add it anymore. I fed Caillou first, He scarfed down the whole 3 oz of it by himself, no finger or spoon feeding. He needed to be a bit enticed to finish the last spoonful but he did it. In total today he ate 6.5 oz of soupy Then I fed Juliet, she ate 1.3 oz of it, she needed to be enticed a bit with the spoon and dipping my finger in it, I tried and tried to get her to eat as much as she would but she was done soon. In total today she ate 2.8 oz of soupy I've been giving them the soupy about 3 times a day, but I've been leaving their kibble in. Tonight when I fed them I took it out, I'm not planning on ever putting it back in since they're eating enough soupy. As for their poop it's been different, a bit runny, light brown, dark brown, super weird, they've been "going" less often, it's more smelly, and Caillou has been peeing A LOT more than usual. But I'm guessing it's from all the water intake. Their acting pretty good, Caillou had a weird day today for a few hours from getting too hot, but he's good now. I guess I'm done for the day. My only question is- How often should I be giving them the soup? I'd been doing it 3 times a day but since I'm not giving them kibble anymore I don't want to accidentally starve them or something. They'll be eating the above recipe for a little while. Not sure when to try different stuff, I suppose that's also a question haha. 08-30-14
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Post by Deleted on Aug 31, 2014 11:09:10 GMT -5
Those are good pictures of your Caillou and Juliet. Most ferrents fed twice a day. If Caillou is eating that well, leave the soupie out. It's good for six to eight hours. He may eat alot in the beginning. He's getting more nutrients from the soup and is "catching up". 2.8 oz is good for a female. She will learn to like it and may eat even more. Poops will be a little different for awhile. The organs make for runnier, darker poops. They are a little smelly in the beginning. Its a Detox effect from the kibble. You may see seedy poops, that's usually undigested fats. Fat equals energy for ferrets In your soupie, leave some skin and fat in there. Let's see how the next few days go and then we may be able to move on to the next stage. The next stage will be adding little bits of meats. Tiny slices about the size of your fingernail crescent.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 31, 2014 11:24:10 GMT -5
I've been leaving what they don't eat in, but they only seem to want to eat when I put them in front of the bowl. I left it in all night, and they didn't eat any. Maybe they'll start once they're off the ferretone.
Actually yesterday when I was giving Caillou his soup he was almost done and all the sudden he just froze for a few seconds, and I realized that he had caught a tiny piece of meat in his mouth. He chewed it up and swallowed it sort of reluctantly, but when I offered him another slightly bigger piece he dragged it under my desk and left it.. lol
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Post by Heather on Aug 31, 2014 16:17:49 GMT -5
I would say he's not quite ready to be eating whole chunks just yet, but he's well on his way. Good work. ciao
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Post by Deleted on Aug 31, 2014 16:21:13 GMT -5
Yeah I was going to try giving him slivers possibly this weekend or next week. It just depends on how good he's doing, right now I'm focusing on ditching that stupid ferretone they love so much.. agh.
But, I'm very glad that just 2 or 3 days in they're already eating enough soup to where they don't need kibbles. Victory is mine!! Haha
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Post by Deleted on Aug 31, 2014 21:10:51 GMT -5
Okay, their Journal for today- So today was good, the ferrets have mostly slept today because I don't let them out on Sundays until nighttime, but their poops are looking about the same, they've stopped peeing so often, but they still smell like dead rotting animal. They haven't had kibble since I think Friday, and they've been eating more than 2 oz a day so they're good. Today they both had this recipe- 8oz chicken breast 2 chicken hearts 1/2 chicken liver 1/2 tsp eggshell powder I'll start with Caillou, This morning I thawed out 5 ice cubes of their soup and Caillou ate 1.4 oz of the soupy, I didn't have to add as much ferretone as last time but still had to have some in it. He ate it really good, no enticing, I just put the bowl down and sat him in front of it and he licked the bowl clean. This afternoon he had the same recipe, I thawed 4 ice cubes and Caillou ate 1.1 oz of the soupy. He ate it really good again. And tonight I thawed 5 ice cubes and Caillou ate 1.0 oz of it, he ate it really good and ate 5 slivers that were in there because I didn't blend it good enough, I was so proud of him! All together Caillou ate 3.5 oz of soupy today. Now Juliet, This morning she got 1.4 oz of soupy just like Caillou, she isn't a huge fan of it so she has to have more ferretone to eat it. This afternoon I gave her 1.1 oz of soupy and she ate it good, a little less ferretone added but I had to spoon feed her some of it so she would finish. And tonight I gave her 1.0 oz, and she ate it all very well, and faster than usual. She ate 1 un blended chunk, but I had to hold her and convince her to eat it, she's slower than Cai but she's getting there. All together Juliet ate 3.5 oz of soupy today. Poop is like it was yesterday in color and such, but it's more runny, and they've been pooping a lot less, but peeing a lot more so the litter box is being changed twice as much. I'm told it's just the detox and extra liquid, so I'm not too worried about it, it's just that I bought Worlds Best Litter and it's too expensive to go through like they are. So I'm hoping all the peeing doesn't last too long. I was going to give them some egg tomorrow, because they're shedding their coats for winter and I don't want to give them their ferret lax because it's way too sugary and I don't have the salmon oil yet to make a homemade solution. So overall today was good, I will be going to the farmers market on Saturday to see if I can get some organ meats, and I'm buying 4lbs of beef liver from someone this weekend too, $2 per pound from her, or $4 per pound at the store, so I'm buying all that she has and keeping it in the freezer, I know that will last a while. So to recap- Caillou - 3.5 oz soupy Juliet - 3.5 oz soupy runny stools, good energy, ate some meat chunks. 8-31-14
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Post by Deleted on Sept 1, 2014 9:14:54 GMT -5
This morning they ate the same recipe as they've been eating (chicken, chicken heart, liver, etc) and I put some little slivers in for Caillou purposely this time, just to see if he would eat them, and he did! He ate 5-6 slivers, chewed and swallowed, and I think he liked them. Juliet ate one, but she did not like it, she's slower than him but she's catching up. Juliet has to have 2-3 times the amount of ferretone to eat the soupy. I can now get away with just a pew drops for Caillou, but for Juliet it's more like, one eighth of soup, and the rest ferretone :pullhair:
But, it's a stepping stone. She looks for her kibble, but hasn't had any since Friday night. She will eat the soupy on her own, but would rather starve than eat it without ferretone. I say by the end of the week Caillou won't need ferretone, I doubt it will be the same for Jules.
Today Caillou ate 1.5 oz soupy - 6 slivers Today Juliet ate 1.0 oz soupy - 1 sliver
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Post by Sherry on Sept 1, 2014 9:20:53 GMT -5
Try cutting the ferretone half and half with extra virgin olive oil. That will help reduce the reliance. And yes they will detox for 4-6 weeks. The voiding does slow down somewhat but as their bodies are finally hydrated they will void more than a kibble fed ferret
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Post by Deleted on Sept 1, 2014 10:08:14 GMT -5
Okay I'll mix in some olive oil with it, and if they like the olive oil I might just replace the ferretone with that.
I really just need a few drops of it to get Caillou to start eating, and once he starts I don't have to add more in. With Juliet, as soon as the ferretone flavor is gone she's done. I'll have to really work with her on that, but I am glad they're eating enough and don't need kibble.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 1, 2014 14:43:51 GMT -5
Okay so I tried to trick them by putting olive oil in instead of ferretone, and Caillou sniffed it and ran away, so I dipped my finger in his soup and put it on his gums and.. well.. if ferrets have panic attacks, then what Caillou did is what it looks like. He literally acted like I was rubbing rat poison in his mouth. So then I put a few drops of ferretone in it, and he scarfed it down.
I got Juliet tricked with it, she took a few licks but then I had to put ferretone in it, and she still only ate maybe 0.5 oz. So I left Jules bowl out, and when I came back 10 mins later Caillou was eating it. So I mixed olive oil into the ferretone bottle, so hopefully that will help wean them off of it.
I have a question though- We bought a turkey to cook and I pulled the bag of insides out of it (heart, liver, gizzard) and I am almost out of soupy, so I wanted to use the turkey liver and heart paired with the chicken meat, but I didn't know if that was a good idea or not?
Caillou ate 1.5 oz Juliet ate 0.5 oz
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Post by Deleted on Sept 1, 2014 20:03:21 GMT -5
Here's today's scoop,
This morning I gave them each 1.0 oz of soupy, and Caillou at it all, plus a few slivers, and Juliet ate it all too and no slivers (maybe one) it was the same recipe as usual.
This afternoon I gave them 1.0 oz again, and Caillou ate all of it, and Juliet ate 0.5 oz.
Then tonight I gave them both 1.6 oz of a new soupy, the recipe-
8 oz chicken breast 1 oz turkey liver 0.5 oz chicken heart 0.5 oz turkey heart 1/2 tsp egg shell powder
And the consistency was a lot thicker than before, not a paste but much thicker than milk. I made it thicker because it used to be the consistency of water. Caillou ate all of it plus about 1 oz of Juliets, and Juliet ate 0.5 oz.
Caillou had 5 oz of soupy today Juliet had 2 oz soupy today
Their poop is small, and brown with some green in it.
I also mixed olive oil with their ferretone, it's half and half now, which Juliet is NOT happy about. But, she ate anyways, just not as much.
They're acting normal today, Juliets Implant is due so she's been kind of lethargic but other than that pretty normal. Caillou really enjoys the soupy, and I'm using less and less ferretone for him.
09-1-14
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Post by Thérèse on Sept 2, 2014 4:30:25 GMT -5
Caillou is doing great, persistence will see Juliet get there too
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Post by Deleted on Sept 2, 2014 5:00:58 GMT -5
Yes I'm really proud of both of them, I do wish Juliet would eat more (or like it better) but she's eating enough, so I'm glad for that.. she only really ate 2, sometimes 3 times a day when she was on kibble, so she never ate a lot. Caillou is just a little pig, but a picky one at that. He's more trusting of me than she is, she has always been reserved with me, but I got Caillou when he was really vulnerable, and theres a lot of trust between us so I think that's one reason why he's doing so good.
I'm going to start feeding them just twice a day starting tomorrow, maybe they'll be more willing to eat without so much ferretone if they're a little hungrier at feeding time.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 2, 2014 11:26:16 GMT -5
You're off to a good start. Females really eat so little that it can be scarey. Especially, when you're doing a switch. 2oz is normal for a female, so don't panic too much. She is getting more nutrients from the soup than from the kibble. That should reassure you and with Winter coming, she may eat a little more. She will also eat better as she gets used to this new food.
I like to stick with the same basic menu, so that they do become familiar with the food. It's early in your switch, so when you get to a basic frankenprey menu, we can talk about that.
One note about Olive Oil. Mine don't like the Extra Virgin Olive Oil. They will eat the regular Olive Oil. I think the Extra Virgin is a stronger flavor. I think that I'm the only ferrent who has posted about this. Everyone else seems to have ferrets who are fine with EVOO.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 2, 2014 11:52:16 GMT -5
Yeah I'm trying to remind myself that she's eating enough, but it's seeing Caillou eat so much and then her eating so little kinda freaks me out, but, she never ate a lot anyways. I'm just glad that they're off kibble. I already mixed the EVOO in with their ferretone bottle, wish I would have taken some out of the bottle and mixed it first, but oh well. It's just now I have to add in more to get them to eat. Caillou isn't too happy about it either, but as long as their eating enough, they can deal with it. I was going to stick with my all-chicken recipe, but my sister threw away my liver :face: and I don't think they like the new recipe.. so I'll be buying chicken liver today. I just fed them this morning (okay, afternoon), Caillou ate all I gave him, with a LOT of enticing, I had to hold him, spoon feed him, push him towards the bowl, add more and more F/O mixture, but he ate 2.5 oz. I then tried to feed Juliet, and she ate maybe 0.5 oz... possibly that much, but probably not. I forgot to weigh it with the ferretone mixture, I weighed it before, and I have to add so much that it could have equaled up to what she ate so I did't bother. Kind of freaking out because she barely ate after like 16 hours of not eating anything, (I slept in... oops) and I was trying so hard to get her to eat, I left the bowl in there but every time I leave it in they never touch it. I really don't want to put her back on kibble, I'm afraid she'll keep not eating.. I might just go and buy another bottle of ferretone... agh I don't know what to do! I need someone to slap or shake me right now.
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