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Post by Blue on Dec 2, 2015 9:20:51 GMT -5
Wine sweaters? Is that like wine coolers that are knitted? Good luck with that! (And get pictures.) Aww, and little Zeke is catching up with his buddies So yesterday during the day she ate another 0.3 oz in her cage, so that's a grand total of 0.6 oz eaten from that Tue AM meal! Last night wasn't so good, she only ate 0.1 oz all together, including overnight. I guess she had no space left after the 0.6 oz! So this means that so far: Fri PM 0.4 oz thigh Sat AM 0.2 oz thigh Sat PM 0.3 oz thigh Sun AM 0.1 oz thigh weight: 1 lb 12.5 oz 11/29/15 Sun PM 0.1 oz thigh Mon AM 0.2 oz thigh Mon PM 0.2 oz 1/3 heart + 2/3 thigh Tue AM 0.6 oz 1/3 heart + 2/3 thigh Tue PM 0.1 oz 1/3 heart + 2/3 thigh So from those last 3 meals she's eaten 0.3 oz heart, 0.6 oz thigh. I need to calculate the weekly proportions to see how off/on track I am. Wed AM so far 0.1 oz And she tried to steal my passport this morning, speaking of which: my vacations dates are 12/9 (next week!!) to 1/1. Caroline is taking Maisie, should I go back to soup for that? It sounds like the best. Poor Maisie but I am getting to see all my family in 3 different countries!
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Post by bitbyter on Dec 2, 2015 14:31:42 GMT -5
She looks fine body shape wise.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 2, 2015 15:41:11 GMT -5
What a wonderful Christmas for you all to be together!!! I still can't believe it's December already! Since we're making such great progress, I'd prefer us not too go back to soup. I know you tried some grinds...Could she have that while you're away? It would be like a chunky soup, so she can still be working on her chewing. Plus it will be balanced with bones- we will have to make sure there's enough taurine. Let me know what you think! Tonight I will attempt the "sweaters" (insert evil laughter)!
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Post by Deleted on Dec 4, 2015 7:58:53 GMT -5
Happy Friday! Just checking in to see how things are going and if you thought about the grinds idea?
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Post by Blue on Dec 4, 2015 12:32:16 GMT -5
Happy Friday to you too! Did you attempt the sweaters? Do you have any embarrassing pics? I've been thinking a lot about what to do over Xmas, and I don't think I can get her on grinds happily enough in less than a week. Even just the chicken grind has chunks bigger than what I'm giving her now, then there's the texture, and the fact that she's picky about every single new flavor that crosses her plate so we'd also have to deal with getting her used to 2 new flavors. I was thinking of a compromise. She's been doing pretty well lately. I gave her an egg yesterday morning and then last night switched to chicken thigh and a bit of lamb instead of heart, since her last few meals have been 33% heart and 100% chicken. Although raw diet question: can heart count as "muscle meat" since excess taurine isn't a problem? I.e. it's a minimum of 10%, but maximum is only defined by needing bone, liver, and other organ? Just wondering. Anyway, last night she did her typical 0.2 oz and I'm off, then overnight another 0.1 oz (yay!) so a total of 0.3 oz. And this morning! This morning I gave her 0.7 oz thigh, 0.3 oz liver, and she ate 0.6 oz in one go!!! Maybe because she really likes the liver, but that was just the best so far, and more like a normal amount of food. So I was thinking: how about if at the bottom of ice cube tray I put a few chunks, and actually do it in correct proportions for a fully balanced raw diet, and then at least I know she'll eat the soup, and if she eats the rest, even better?! Especially since the sitter holds her while feeding her and doesn't mind finger feeding when she gets difficult with a soup batch change. Does that sound reasonable? That way we get: - comfort food for Maisie while I'm gone - a few chunks to try to keep her used to it, and who knows, the sitter might help! - balanced chunks to get me used to a truly balanced diet And then when she gets back, straight back to slivers/chunks, using some of her preferred options (i.e. not heart or beef!) I see a long weekend spent in the kitchen with my snazzy apron on!
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Post by Deleted on Dec 5, 2015 18:35:02 GMT -5
Unsuccessful, so far, with the sweaters. I was able to get the santa coat over Reshi's head, but he was really wiggling to get free. As bad as I want them to wear it, I don't want them to be stressed. I will keep trying though...in little intervals! Yes, heart can be considered a muscle meat. For the frankenprey menu, 2-4 meals are muscle meats while 1.5 meals need to be heart-as taurine is needed in their diet. Good job on knowing that! The soup cubes with slivers sounds like the best idea. Where all are you traveling? I bet you can't wait to see everyone!
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Post by Deleted on Dec 7, 2015 15:37:12 GMT -5
Just checking in I want to make sure we are on the same page before your vacation... (are you going to post to the thread, what will Maisie be eating, what is Maisie's weight before you go, etc)
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Post by Blue on Dec 8, 2015 10:53:58 GMT -5
Hi! I weighed Maisie this morning before eating or drinking anything (last time she drank a lot beforehand), and her weight is pretty low, especially for this time of year: 12/8/15 1 lb 9.5 oz Still, she seems happy and full of beans. I made the soup a little thicker/chunkier than usual, but I'm rather relieved that's what she'll be eating for the next 3 weeks. And if anything else is wrong (please no! ) my sitter has the same vet I do, and my credit card is on file for Maisie. So I'm taking her this afternoon -- I'm really hoping for a positive reaction when she sees the sitter! I'm leaving tomorrow, and will travel back 1/1, and will probably pick her up on Sun 1/3. I won't post to this thread officially while I'm away, but if something funny happens, I'll let you know (no kibble stealing! what would be awesome would be if she started stealing grinds).
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Post by Deleted on Dec 9, 2015 11:35:25 GMT -5
I hope the drop off went well! Her weight is a little low, but it's not too low for a female and her age. I'm glad we have it here to compare when you get back!
That would be great if she would steal grinds! Haha!
Have a wonderful trip!!
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Post by Sherry on Dec 20, 2015 11:42:19 GMT -5
Hi, just stepping in here for an assist For now your best bet is going to be to work toward grinds for her, either commercial or home made(if you have a grinder that can handle bone). Unfortunately bonemeal is cooked, and as such is basically just calcium. Eggshell powder is pretty much pure calcium. So your ferret is missing a number of micronutrients found in actual raw bone and bone marrow. And has been on soup for WAY too long. Once you are back in and settled I would like you to pick up some commercial raw to start her on.
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Post by Blue on Jan 4, 2016 17:22:40 GMT -5
Hi guys and Happy New Year! Yeah, Sherry , I came to that conclusion too. I think I have some chicken Rad Cat in the freezer (which we both hate so far but we'll get over it). So status: I got her back from the sitter yesterday and her weight this morning before eating was 1 lb 11 oz which is below last year's weight, I think. I need to check the vet records, I hadn't started recording her weight yet this time last year. The sitter said that she was acting really hungry even after eating and that she supplemented with baby chicken food/broth (meat only, no additives. She's an awesome sitter.) Last night she had the very last soup cube I had, and this morning I offered her 1 oz chicken thigh finely sliced with no water added. She'd eaten 0.4 oz by the time I left for work. Eating it without water is actually great progress, so hopefully that'll help her transition over to grinds. Although I could add water to grinds no problem, I guess. She seems in fantastic form, she ran around dancing and checking things out for a full hour yesterday when we got back home, and this morning she was wide awake. No hibernation here! I just hope my bad cold isn't actually the flu because if Maisie caught it that would be awful. (I thought it was a cold I'd picked up on holiday so didn't take any precautions with her, but today I'm thinking it might be a new bug I picked up on the plane. Pleeease Maisie stay healthy!) So, I need to defrost the Rad Cat and split it up into manageable portions? I'll try mixing it in with some egg maybe? She hasn't had an egg in over a week (refused one for the first time at the sitter's). Or maybe make some more soup and do a progressive transition with that?
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Post by Blue on Jan 5, 2016 10:11:25 GMT -5
So far, success! I made some old school soup with 50% water, and did 1/4 grind, 3/4 soup this morning. She ate it all without a bleat. 2 oz total -- she starts throwing up at 2.5-3 oz, silly thing. And just now as I'm leaving for the day, I did a 50-50 soup/grind, just 0.6 oz total, and she started eating it happily. Her being so much less fussy is all due to ferretmomma, she really cracked the whip before Xmas and gave me the strength to resist a flat ferret with sorrowful eyes. So hopefully this will continue to go well. Tonight, 3/4 grind? Or is that too fast? Thanks! Rad Cat - chicken soup - chicken thigh & liver with pork heart
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Post by Sherry on Jan 5, 2016 11:32:36 GMT -5
I start mine on a full raw transition with 100% grind the day they come in the door, so no it isn't too fast As long as she goes with it, then it's working!
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Post by Blue on Jan 5, 2016 12:31:58 GMT -5
Great, thanks! I'm surprised she's taking to it so well. Last time I tried she ignored it.
Some practical questions about grinds: do you defrost the whole thing, separate it into individual portions, and then refreeze for later? Right now I just have the Rad Cat defrosting in the fridge.
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Post by Sherry on Jan 6, 2016 12:07:59 GMT -5
As I buy my meat in bulk where possible, that is what I usually wind up doing
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