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Post by gfountain on Jan 10, 2015 13:47:32 GMT -5
Poor Ty... We took away his easy meals, lol. If he's not losing weight and activity and poos are good, I wouldn't worry about him not eating as much. The soup was full of water, so he's likely getting as much nourishment from the smaller amount of chunks as he did with all that soup. Check weights again on all of them just to be sure. Also, once their bodies feel like they've 'caught up' on the missing nutrients from the kibble years, they do cut back on their intake. Ty may have just reached that point. How big are those chunks now? And what ratio of chunks/soup are you using?
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Post by Deleted on Jan 10, 2015 14:56:40 GMT -5
They've been on soup since September 9th. They were eating more than they are now so I thought they would have leveled out already or does that not really happen until later on?
The chunks are still the size of dimes but a few are nickel sized by accident. Linus ate a nickeled sized one last night. Ty is eating some chunks now but much prefers to lick around them. I know he will catch on at some point and I hope soon. Should I still add some heart and livers to every meal and see how they do? I took your idea and shaved some off frozen pieces and it worked great.
The ration is leaning toward 3/4 chunks to 1/4 soupie. I did step back a little with Ty but Linus seems to be okay with it so far.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 11, 2015 12:21:36 GMT -5
Neither ate well last night. What should I do? Should I add more soup? Make the pieces smaller?
Charlie is still eating well but doesn't seem to be putting on any weight. He's been on the CC for a week yesterday. Maybe it will take a while? I've also noticed that he's pawing at his mouth again yesterday. Not sure what to do I already upped his carafate maybe I'll use the Pepcid as well to see if that makes a difference. Last week I upped his Pred from .3 to .325. It helped for a week but not I'm not sure if it should be upped again? Any thoughts?
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Post by gfountain on Jan 11, 2015 14:46:54 GMT -5
Wow, so no kibble since September! I didn't realize it had been that long. They should have leveled out by this time, but like I said the soup was a lot of water so even with the smaller amount of chunks, they're likely getting the same amount of nutrients. Did you check weights on them yet? When you say the chunks are dime size it makes me think they're round. ?? Try cutting them long and thin rather than round or cube shaped. Then hold an end of one and play tug of war with Ty. See if that will get him more interested in the chunks. Do they LIKE the heart and liver? That's really what I was trying to find out by adding some in right now. If they like them, we have another weapon in our arsenal. If they don't, we have another job ahead of us, lol. Most ferrets seem to like heart and only tolerate organs. It does take a little time to put on weight, but at least Charlie is eating happily, right? And as much as I wish it were, CC isn't a miracle food. I hate that he's pawing at his mouth again. That means some kind of discomfort. I don't know what to tell you about his meds. I'll check with the other mentors and see what they say. Make sure I have this all correct.. He's 7 years old, adrenal, has insulinomia, a mass in his belly. He's on Carafate and pred. Anything else?
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Post by Deleted on Jan 11, 2015 15:36:42 GMT -5
He's 8 now, just had a birthday, he's also on Pepcid (famotadine) .25 before meals, thanks I appreciate you checking for me. Last time this happened I upped everything he was on slightly and it helped but I'm not sure how high I can go. Here is what I did: Carafate was .5 upped to .6 Pepcid was .25 upped to .3 Pred was .3 upped to .325 So good news Linus ate his entire bowl today. He started on the floor by himself but walked away half way through so I put him on my lap and he finished the rest for a total of 2.5oz this morning. I also tried the nail cutting with the EVOO and it worked FANTASTIC! happy dance! Ty, on the other hand, ate half so 1.2 oz for him. Oh I've been cutting them in chunks. I'll try slivers for Ty and I'll also try the tug of war thing too. About the heart and livers should I try them in the soup mix from now on as shaved or should I try slivers? Do you recommend doing them at the same time or try heart one meal and livers the next? Yes, I started to switch on my own but it was hard bc I had lots of questions. I sort of hit a wall with Charlie then he got sick and I decided to pause until I had some help which Is why I'm thrilled to have you!!
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Post by gfountain on Jan 11, 2015 15:53:33 GMT -5
We're going to be working toward a whole meal of heart and a whole meal of organs rather than having to mix them in with their other meats. Since we're still waiting on Ty to get on board with the chunks, let's not worry about the heart or organ just now. Imbalances in the diet aren't going to show up for quite a while so we've got some time before we need to start worrying. Besides, they're still getting some in the soup. Once Ty decides chunks won't kill him, we'll move forward with the hearts and organs. Does Ty seem to like hearts?
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Post by Deleted on Jan 11, 2015 18:57:24 GMT -5
Well he ate the shavings but I'm not sure. He seems to be the kind of ferret that thinks all new things are poison but once he gets it he's full steam ahead. He's driving me a little batty bc he was doing SO well with the chunks before Charlie got sick. Linus is acting like Ty was and Ty is acting how Linus was as if their roles were reversed. Linus LOVES the EVOO. Ty still thanks it's poison. However, I'm going to put some on his belly tonight and see if he'll let me cut his nails. I am hopeful but then again
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Post by gfountain on Jan 11, 2015 19:14:29 GMT -5
Lol, gotta love 'em! They always keep us on our toes!
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Post by Deleted on Jan 12, 2015 9:56:35 GMT -5
Well EVOO is a no go for TY but I smeared some baby food on his belly and that worked. However, he eats so darn fast I had to add more in the middle of my trimming. Lol
They both ate well last night. Linus ate his entire bowl 2.5oz. Ty ate most and still licked around quite a few slivers. Grrrrrr
Charlie is still pawing at his mouth at times. I have no idea why. Could the meds have stopped working?
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Post by gfountain on Jan 12, 2015 10:17:45 GMT -5
Check Charlie's mouth for sores. Sometimes the pred can cause mouth ulcers. I'm still waiting to hear back about his meds.
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Post by gfountain on Jan 12, 2015 10:20:08 GMT -5
What is his BG?
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Post by Deleted on Jan 12, 2015 15:33:41 GMT -5
I have the monitor but I don't have any test strips. I'll go out and get some. Okay I'll check his mouth. That's a two person job bc Charlie won't open his mouth for anything. Lol. It should be interesting.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 12, 2015 18:50:44 GMT -5
Okay went out and got the test strips. His BG is 53 which was taken after about a 2 hour fast. I know he has Insulinoma. Should I up his Pred? Right now he's at .325 2x a day.
Dinner:
Linus did awesome at all 3oz chunks and all... 3/4 chunks 1/4 soupie
Ty ate around the chunks but did eat a few.. (Bang head against wall). What should I do with him? I'm going to give it an hour and try again. Maybe I'll have better luck. I know he's hungry.
Oh I've been meaning to ask you. We have marrow bones in our grocery store and I read on here somewhere that the ferrets love marrow. Is this something I can give them as a treat? Not the bones but the marrow?
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Post by gfountain on Jan 12, 2015 19:55:24 GMT -5
His pred dosage is still low enough that it CAN be increased. It could also be split into 3 doses rather than 2. Check for mouth ulcers if you can, but the low BG can cause nausea which can present as pawing at the mouth. Your best bet is to call your vet and discuss the options. Things to discuss...increasing dosage, splitting the dose, ulcers, changing the meds entirely. For Ty, give him a good meal of whatever he'll eat tonight, then tomorrow do some tough love. Just small chunks, no soup. He KNOWS how to eat them, he's just being stubborn.
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Post by gfountain on Jan 12, 2015 19:55:58 GMT -5
Marrow is very nutritious, so yes on the marrow bones.
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