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Post by Deleted on Aug 6, 2015 9:22:15 GMT -5
I forgot my notebook at home today so I'll post intake amounts later today or tomorrow. We are doing well though. I think I mixed slivers at 80% this morning.
Where do we go next with the transition once they are eating 100% slivers? Do I start over with bigger slivers mixed in with soups and start the process over again at a ratio of soup to bigger slivers/small chunks? Like maybe start at 40 or 50% soup and the rest bigger slivers/small chunks? I made a bit of soup last weekend so hopefully I'll still get a chance to use that up!
Is it a sign that I need to add more egg shell if their poops aren't really solid? Smokey had some nasty poops yesterday (I'm assuming it was him because of where the poops were in the litter box. He always stands in there sideways rather than butt up to the back corner). I noticed there were whole slivers in there too that he must not have really processed. I think some of the chunks were probably rabbit which he has not had before. Should I add more egg shells so the poops aren't so liquid-y? I do about 1/2 tsp per recipe (8 oz muscle meat, 2 oz organ, 1 oz heart = 11oz.) Also, what does it mean that the slivers where still there? He just passed it too quickly because the new protein upset his tummy maybe?
I feel like I had another question but I can't think of it right now. I'll post later if I think of it.
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Post by bitbyter on Aug 6, 2015 9:39:21 GMT -5
once you are on 100% silvers you just slowing start increasing the size. Leave some as slivers but slowly up the size bit by bit to whatever size you are comfortable with. I usually cut everything up into pieces about the size of my thumb. Once they are eating chunks well, then we start adding bone. If you don't have them already you should starting looking for a good pair of shears and a quality meat cleaver.
Yes, you can add more bone meal / eggshell, just don't go overboard with it.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 7, 2015 7:49:09 GMT -5
Ok, I'll do that. What am I going to do with all this soup? should I just save it til we are safely on chunks and then give it once in a while as a treat? I know you said they may not really like soup after being off it but I sure don't want to waste it. I also don't want to slow up our process. we've been at this for a while now!
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Post by Deleted on Aug 8, 2015 11:45:42 GMT -5
8/3 AM - 3.0 oz (50% slivers) 8/3 PM - 0.0 oz 8/3 - overnight 4.5 oz (50% slivers)* 8/4 AM - 1.9 oz (60% slivers) 8/4 PM - 0.0 oz 8/4 - overnight 4.0 oz (65% slivers) 8/5 AM - 3.0 oz (70% slivers) 8/5 PM - 0.0 oz 8/5 - overnight 3.8 oz (75% slivers)* 8/6 AM - 2.7 oz (80% slivers) 8/6 PM - 2.0 oz (FDR) 8/6 - overnight 1.7 oz (FDR) 8/7 AM - 2.0 oz (soup only) 8/7 PM - 0.0 oz 8/7 - overnight 2.0 oz (85% slivers)*
* indicates egg meal
Needless to say, yesterday was another rough day at our house. Smokey passed away. His BG took a dive and we got him in as soon as we realized he was in trouble. I'll spare the details here as I know you read my post on the facebook page.
I did FDR for a couple meals above because I ran out of slivers. Obviously I wouldn't let that happen if we didn't have an alternative. Thankfully we had that alternative so I could wait to make more until this weekend. It's hard for me to guage how much they are going through and how long it takes them to go through it. I'm gaining a better understanding as this phase of the switch goes forward.
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Post by bitbyter on Aug 8, 2015 13:49:53 GMT -5
I'm so sorry for the loss of Smokey. He definitely wasn't in the best of health. You did everything you could for him and he knew you loved him. That's a lot more than many animals get in their lives. You'll see him again one day. I know wherever I end up when it's my time I'll have lots of dooking and fuzzy kisses waiting for me. He'll be waiting for you. That's the best thing about unconditional love...it's forever.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 9, 2015 9:46:34 GMT -5
Aww, thanks Jason. I appreciate that. This is or 5th loss in 7 years. I don't know if that's normal. Sure doesn't seem like it. He's the oldest we've had and even at that, we only had him for 8 months. Our next oldest was Ziggy and he passed at 5 years. He had cancer. I suspect maybe the cancer developed bc I didn't know any better and gave him lots of things he shouldn't have had like ferrevite, ferretone, Cheerios, milk, and even ice cream sometimes. I don't kick myself for that tho because I didn't know. If I did, I most certainly wouldn't have given that to him.
In your experience and the experience you know of others, does 5 losses in 7 years seem like an aweful lot??? I just can't help but think it is.
Also, with Smokey, we took him in knowing he was toward the end of his life and were ok with whatever that meant. I feel like I've done my job for him and then some. He had lots of good experiences with us in 8 months and im sure felt so much love. Even his person that gave him up to us said that i was more of a caretaker and mommy to him in 8 months than her family was to him his entire life. It's sad to think that's true but felt good to have my efforts recognized and appreciated by her.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 9, 2015 9:49:47 GMT -5
With that beig said though, we still have a huge hole in our lives now that he's gone. It's tough when a little one who needs you so much and so often (meds, dip in the sink every few days to clean up poops he may have gotten on himself, BG checks, vigilant monitoring overall) doesn't need you anymore. Thanks again for your thoughtfulness and kind words.
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Post by bitbyter on Aug 9, 2015 10:25:28 GMT -5
Unfortunately with ferrets it isn't unusual. Especially if they are all around the same age. Sherry has lost quite a few in the last years. Heather has as well but she is a rescuer so she see's it much more often.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 11, 2015 10:38:36 GMT -5
That's a huge bummer. I just feel like I've had terrible luck as far as keeping these little guys around because I've always read that their lifespan is usually between 7-9 years. Smokey was our oldest at 6 1/2. Ziggy died of cancer at 5 1/2. Eddie died at 10 months and was ill from the start (We were never able to fully understand what caused him to be ill and looking back, I don't think our vet knew much about ferrets at all). Olive died unexpectedly at 3 years. I now suspect her death was due to a blockage. She was suddenly extremely lethargic and could barely stand. The vet said her stomach was bloated with air and there was nothing they could do (again, the not very knowledgeable vet). Pearl died at just over 5 years, completely unexpected, no clue what went wrong with her. It causes a person to live with such a high level of paranoia that something is going to go wrong at any second. I don't know how people do it that have had ferrets for decades. I love love love ferrets so much but this is emotionally exhausting.
At any rate, Bea is our one and only now and I vow to make each day of her life happy, fulfilling and enjoyable. Unfortunately, Bea will need to be our last ferret though because I just can't handle the paranoia anymore.
I'm basically just venting now, because none of this really has anything to do with our switch. It's just what's on my mind right now. Thanks so much for listening.
Anyway, on with our data:
8/8 AM - 1.2 oz (??% slivers) 8/8 PM - 0.0 oz 8/8 - overnight 0.7 oz (75% slivers) 8/9 AM - 0.2 oz (75% slivers) 8/9 PM - 0.0 oz 8/9 - overnight 1.1 oz (75% slivers) 8/10 AM - 0.3 oz (75% slivers) 8/10 PM - 0.0 oz 8/10 - overnight 2.4 oz (75% slivers)*
* indicates egg meal
Meal on 8/8 - I started with 90% slivers but she wasn't eating that. I am still concerned that she's not eating enough and am watching for signs of depression or change in mood due to the loss of Smokey. To make sure she was eating enough, I added more soup to the mix so she'd hopefully eat. I also gave her some FDR that morning so she was sure to get some food into her. The total listed above includes the FDR.
I suspect that she's not eating as much now for any of the following reasons: 1) She doesn't like, and isn't very used to, turkey thighs yet and that's what we've been having. 2) The slivers are a little too big for her liking 3) She's being stubborn with the ratio increasing. (That's why I scaled back to 75% and kept it there for a few days. I'll see what she's eaten this morning when I run home on lunch in a little while and base my decision to increase the ratio off that.
I did make a half batch of slivers last night with chicken thighs (she seems to like that better) and was sure to slice the chicken, duck heart, and cow liver more thinly than the last batch. I'll be better about increasing the size gradually by adding in some small slivers into the bigger slivers rather than just giving all bigger slivers all at once.
Jeeze! What a process this is!!!
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Post by Deleted on Aug 11, 2015 10:40:36 GMT -5
Weights
Beatrix 1/18 1 lb 15.9 oz 1/25 2 lb 0 oz 2/1 2 lb 1.8 oz 2/8 2 lb 0.4 oz 2/18 2 lb 0.4 oz 3/1 2 lb 1.06 oz 3/8 2 lb 2.3 oz 3/15 2 lb 1.5 oz 3/22 2 lb 3.1 oz 3/28 2 lb 1.2 oz 4/5 2 lb .6 oz 4/12 2 lb 2.3 oz 4/19 2 lb 2.5 oz 4/26 2 lb 2.8 oz 5/3 2 lb 6.1 oz 5/10 2 lb 8.8 oz 5/17 2 lb 10.5 oz 5/23 2 lb 13.7 oz 6/8 2 lb 8.7 oz 6/14 2 lb 7.1 oz 6/21 2 lb 8.8 oz 6/27 2 lb 5.7 oz 7/5 2 lb 5.6 oz 7/12 1 lb 13.0 oz 7/19 2 lb 2.5 oz 7/26 2 lb 1.6 oz 8/1 2 lb 2 oz (Smokey passed at the end of this week. Watching for Bea's weight to drop.) 8/9 2 lb .09 oz
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Post by bitbyter on Aug 11, 2015 11:37:33 GMT -5
Vent all you want. Keep an eye on her as she is in for a big adjustment now being an only ferret. Make sure she doesn't stop eating and watch out for depression.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 12, 2015 9:20:48 GMT -5
Thanks so much, Jason. I appreciate all your support youve given us! You are awesome. Yes, I'll keep a close eye on Bea. Lots of play time, snuggles, and our new favorite -- walks around the neighborhood.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 14, 2015 9:08:52 GMT -5
8/11 AM - 0.3 oz (75% slivers) 8/11 PM - 0.5 oz (75% slivers)8/11 - overnight 0.5 oz (80% slivers) 8/12 AM - 0.3 oz (75% slivers) 8/12 PM - 0.0 oz 8/12 - overnight 2.0 oz (75% slivers)* 8/13 AM - 0.5 oz (80% slivers) 8/13 PM - 0.0 oz 8/13 - overnight 0.9 oz (80% slivers)
* indicates egg meal
I will weigh Bea this weekend but I'm concerned she's not eating enough. Her activity level is normal. She's playful and happy. It's hard to know how much Smokey was eating versus how much Bea was eating. Maybe the amounts above are normal for her and I just assumed she and Smokey shared their meals more 50/50 than they actually did. I'll be able to tell if the amounts she's eating are adequate enough or not by how much she weighs this weekend. Since she's acting fine, I'm not jumping to putting her right on the scale right away. I'd like enough time to pass with her on these amounts so I can tell if it's just a slight fluctuation in weights or if it's something more concerning than that. I usually do weights on Saturdays or Sundays. Fingers crossed!
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Post by bitbyter on Aug 14, 2015 20:34:40 GMT -5
Sounds good!
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Post by Deleted on Aug 18, 2015 14:15:23 GMT -5
Intake
8/14 AM - 0.7 oz (80% slivers) 8/14 PM - 0.5 oz (80% slivers) 8/14 - overnight 0.5 oz (80% slivers) 8/15 AM - 2.4 oz (85% slivers) 8/15 PM - 0.0 oz 8/15 - overnight 0.7 oz (90% slivers) 8/16 AM - 1.0 oz (90% slivers) 8/16 PM - 0.0 oz 8/16 - overnight 1.0 oz (90% slivers) 8/17 AM - 0.6 oz (90% slivers) 8/17 PM - 2.5 oz (0% slivers)* 8/17 - overnight 0.2 oz (90% slivers)
* indicates egg meal
The day I gave an egg meal, I decided to just mix it with some raw soup I had thawed. I didn't want to toss it if I didn't have to since it was thawed and we really aren't having much, if any, soups now. I still have a lot in the freezer but will wait til after our switch is complete to give it very regularly and even at that, I'll give it with egg only. I don't want to waste all that good soup and I feel like it's important to keep her interested in lots of different types of raw so if she gets picky all of a sudden for whatever reason, I have other options for her.
Her weight has maintained even on this small (or what seems small to me) amount of food each meal. That tells me this is all she needs at this point in the season and she isn't just being picky about the size of the slivers or feeling depressed about losing Smokey.
We've started going for walks and she is IN LOVE with it! I think she's even starting to get excited when I put her harness on her. I can't quite tell if the sudden squirrelynes is related or not. But today she got really squirrley all of a sudden when I started putting her harness on her. She ran to the corner and pooped, which seemed out of character for her to act so spastic all of a sudden. Maybe it was an "omg I'm so excited I could poop" poop? Not sure if that's "a thing" or not. haha At any rate, I love how tired out she is after her walk and that makes me feel like a did a good thing for her. <3
Weights
Beatrix 1/18 1 lb 15.9 oz 1/25 2 lb 0 oz 2/1 2 lb 1.8 oz 2/8 2 lb 0.4 oz 2/18 2 lb 0.4 oz 3/1 2 lb 1.06 oz 3/8 2 lb 2.3 oz 3/15 2 lb 1.5 oz 3/22 2 lb 3.1 oz 3/28 2 lb 1.2 oz 4/5 2 lb .6 oz 4/12 2 lb 2.3 oz 4/19 2 lb 2.5 oz 4/26 2 lb 2.8 oz 5/3 2 lb 6.1 oz 5/10 2 lb 8.8 oz 5/17 2 lb 10.5 oz 5/23 2 lb 13.7 oz 6/8 2 lb 8.7 oz 6/14 2 lb 7.1 oz 6/21 2 lb 8.8 oz 6/27 2 lb 5.7 oz 7/5 2 lb 5.6 oz 7/12 1 lb 13.0 oz 7/19 2 lb 2.5 oz 7/26 2 lb 1.6 oz 8/1 2 lb 2 oz (Smokey passed at the end of this week. Watching for Bea's weight to drop.) 8/9 2 lb .09 oz 8/15 2 lb .04 oz
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