|
Post by Deleted on Apr 13, 2015 12:17:48 GMT -5
So I just cut up the beef heart I had in the freezer to start preparing the soup, still need a few things...like a blender. Anyways I just want to say the these two better love my cooking because the smell of raw beef heart is NOT the most pleasent thing I have ever smelled, and I'm a vet tech so you know I have smelled some funky stuff! Needless to say everything is cut up and prepackaged into 1oz baggies so all I have to do is grab, unthaw, and blend I already have a descent amount of ground egg shells from the two eggs a week the munchkins eat. I get paid Friday so I will be making a trip to the store to get liver, muscle meat, and a blender Super excited!
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 13, 2015 12:24:26 GMT -5
They are both beautiful. I've never brought anyone home because of their coloring, but I confess to really wanting a blaze. My husband has cut me off (hah, at least until we get back from vacation...foolish man).
Pick up some Vick's Vapor rub and dab it under your nose, when you're prepping meat. Then you won't notice the smell.
Yeah for Payday! (dance) You're off to a great start. :wave2:
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 13, 2015 12:45:10 GMT -5
I actually didn't pick this pair because of their coloring. I met about 4 pairs they thought were a good match for me and these two were the most interactive with me. She had a lot of beautiful ferrets, all in their own special way
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 13, 2015 12:49:37 GMT -5
That's the problem...they are all beautiful and I want each and every one. Sigh...
|
|
|
Post by Celene on Apr 13, 2015 13:22:18 GMT -5
This won't help now (especially since you don't have a blender yet) but in the future you can make a large batch, blend it all together at once, and then pour into ice cube trays. That way you don't need to blend every day, just thaw
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 18, 2015 21:18:37 GMT -5
Well I made soup for the first time....I will need some practice lol It didn't turn out like much of a soup but more lumpy with slivers in it. It was kinda thick too . Neither was interested in it without some coaxing. Leo started to eat the soup off the spoon after one scruff and stuff. I set him down after a few licks and he went to town, even eating a few chunks! So proud of him! He only ate about 2 ounces but a great start. He weighted 2.6 pounds starting this journey. Jade was another story. After a scruff and stuff she was excited to lick some off the spoon but only about an ounce if that. She was NOT thrilled about the chunks and slivers that were in the soup lol. I am still very proud of her. She weighted 1.6 pounds starting this journey. I will try again tomorrow when I bring them to work with me. They will also get their biweekly egg yoke since they are still a little itchy from sheading. I didn't get any pictures but will try tomorrow if they even want the soup Soup consisted of the following: 1 oz beef heart 1 oz chicken liver 8 oz chicken leg 1 tsp crushed egg shell Super excited to see what happens tomorrow! I will pull their kibble at 7:30am and probably won't feed them till after a good play session or till 11am...even thought they play for over 7 hours lol.
|
|
|
Post by Celene on Apr 18, 2015 21:55:15 GMT -5
Congrats! Was the soup watered down at all when you weighed it? My girls only eat about 1.5 - 1.75 oz of meat per day, and weigh about 1.5 lbs each so an ounce per meal for a girl isn't so bad. I think boys usually eat about 3-6 oz of food per day, but it really depends on their size and level of activity. I would say that definitely sounds like a good start. If Jade is still hesitant after a couple meals you can try drizzling just a little egg yolk on top to get her started. You * can* also water the soup down, but if they're eating it as is there's really no reason to... It would be like putting training wheels when a kid had already started to ride a 2-wheel bike. As soon as they are both eating the soup on their own I would pull kibble altogether and feed soup only. During this phase you will also want to brush their teeth a couple times a week. PS - the soup recipe we use calls for 3/4 tsp of eggshell for that amount. A little extra probably won't hurt, but if you see their poops are a little hard you might want to cut back a bit.
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 19, 2015 8:14:44 GMT -5
It was very very thick....not sure why lol I ended up putting about a whole cup of water in to get it even a little bit creamy. I think it might be because of the size of my blender. It was the only one they had and only fits 3 cups in it. I think next time I will blend each portion separately then just hand mix them together. Trial and error is the only way to go with anything that don't have instructions so I figure I'm off to a good start Is there any other muscle meat I could use besides leg? I haven't found any off the bone and I feel like I waste a lot trying to cut it from the bone.
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 19, 2015 9:00:48 GMT -5
Well we tried again... Leo was all for it...even ate a piece of freeze dried chicken breast before he has not wanted to touch it since I bought it a week ago! He finished off his whole bowl in about a minute! He had a few tablespoons and half an egg yoke mixed in. Didn't even have to scruff and stuff! Then there is Jade lol... She didn't have to be scuffed to intice her to eat the 2 tablespoons and half an egg yoke. She only managed to want a few licks but she keeps going back to it intermittently since...playing is more important! I am very proud of my babies! I will keep this up for a week and if they eat consistently I'll start upping the size of the chunks
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 19, 2015 9:41:18 GMT -5
Jade found a chunk in her soup about the size of a quarter....She ate it all!!!!!!!!!
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 19, 2015 10:12:01 GMT -5
What good little fuzzies. They sound like they will do well. We suggest chicken thighs. It's a dark meat and fatty. Fat equals energy for ferrets. The breast is lean (and expensive), so it's not ideal. It's easier to work with, but try thighs.
They are both beautiful. I want a blaze so much. My husband says No more ferrets. I have two whites, two champagnes and a masked sable. So, I need another sable to match Roamy and if I get a blaze, then I would need another blaze. That's how Ferret Math gets you and that's why my husband being a smart man, says No More Ferrets. (silly man).
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 19, 2015 10:33:30 GMT -5
They had a blaze at the petco I went to last week and if Jade would like other ferrets besides Leo I probably would have gotten him lol Jade is a very finicky girl with her friends...all others are enemys that must be destroyed Maybe when I get my own place I could get another pair. My boyfriend didn't like ferrets till he met mine, he says ferrets stink!...crazy man! My two have made him love ferrets and know now that they do not stink. He will love them even more when I get them on whole prey....that's why he loves snakes lol
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 19, 2015 10:40:50 GMT -5
They had a blaze at the petco I went to last week and if Jade would like other ferrets besides Leo I probably would have gotten him lol Jade is a very finicky girl with her friends...all others are enemys that must be destroyed Maybe when I get my own place I could get another pair. My boyfriend didn't like ferrets till he met mine, he says ferrets stink!...crazy man! My two have made him love ferrets and know now that they do not stink. He will love them even more when I get them on whole prey....that's why he loves snakes lol Petco's are killers. Lately, I've seen blazes at three different Petco's. I'm trying to leave room for someone who needs us. Plus vacation is coming up, so now is not a good time for adding someone. Roamy is too aggressive and it takes awhile to integrate anyone new. Your boyfriend is going to be so surprised when your ferrets get grapetails from the raw. Their poops will smell less and be smaller. I have a lousy sense of smell, so I wouldn't mind if mine were not descented and poofed. I'm dying to smell a poofer.
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 19, 2015 10:43:28 GMT -5
I'm not even sure if the people at petco knew that the ferret was even deaf I just hope someone who knows about deaf ferrets gets him. I would got Leo and Jade at a rescue and would take another rescue in a heartbeat
|
|
|
Post by Celene on Apr 19, 2015 13:11:12 GMT -5
Ooooooh, Jade and the chunk is so exciting! If she's open minded enough to start eating actual pieces of meat so soon, that definitely bodes well for the switch. I would recommend trying to hand feed small slivers of meat daily with the fuzzies to see how it goes.
As @poncesmom said, the reason we recommend thigh is because it is fattier and therefore more nutritious for ferrets. Technically you can replace the chicken with any meat, but usually chicken is the mildest tasting and easiest for them to accept in the beginning. Since you're pureeing it anyway in the beginning you could always use ground chicken thigh as well, although then you don't end up with the little chunks of meat for your ferrets to find and munch on.
|
|