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Post by FireAngel on Aug 7, 2015 22:29:53 GMT -5
It's normal for some ferrets to have an increase of appetite during a switch before leveling out again, it's almost as if they are making up for lost time and just soaking up all that healthy goodness. Have fun with food prep day! :heehee: thankfully when they are all off of soup and onto frankenprey prep day is slightly easier and whole prey well that is simple! Lol You are doing great!
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Post by Klarissa on Aug 8, 2015 14:33:15 GMT -5
Thanks for all the support! Bear hasn't been as food motivated as normal, lately. Before getting all "medical emergency" I figured maybe she is just jealous that Willy gets hand fed 1-2 times a day, so I stuck my finger in Bear's bowl, and without prompt she ate 1.5oz. Haha, oh my little Bear <3 So we took Bear out to my parents farm today & took her for a "walk". She had so much fun! Stinky, dirty, little fert!
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Post by Deleted on Aug 8, 2015 14:44:40 GMT -5
That is a lovely picture of Bear. Some ferrets really just need a little nudge. Give Bear some special attention at feeding time and sit with her for a few minutes. She will feel more secure. Also, remember that females eat very little. It's summertime and they eat less. Most females only eat 2 or maybe 3 ounces at the most and that is in the winter. My 3 girls can frighten me with how little they eat. You're doing really well. All of us are nervous at first. It took me almost a year to give up FDR and make the leap into Frankenprey. I had to be sure that I had it right. FireAngel and @julesalot have been giving you very good advice. What they both said is true. It really does get so much easier as you go along. :wave3:
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Post by Klarissa on Aug 8, 2015 15:32:29 GMT -5
Everyone here is so great! This is the only corner of the Internet that doesn't make me want to pull out my hair @julesalot and FireAngel, you guys have been invaluable. Making it this far would've been much harder & taken longer with you. The biggest obstacle I feared switching from Orijen & FDR was knowing I was formulating a balanced diet with frankenprey. I'm confident that they are getting better than ever now. I still can't get over how much Trixie eats She is in a much better mood now that we've given her more space, and her own cage. I feel bad not having her out as much, but she likes it WAY better. I'm going to give Bear more attention, and try and convince the hubby to help hand feed them with me. It can take awhile to feed Willy- sometimes an hour (lick, lick, play, repeat).
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Post by Deleted on Aug 8, 2015 17:39:59 GMT -5
We are all here to help, I'm glad we have been able to help you with your fuzzers. Trixie will slow down in a couple weeks or so with her appetite, I remember going thru that stage, I went thru so much soup it was crazy haha.
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Post by Klarissa on Aug 9, 2015 11:54:26 GMT -5
Trixie was put to sleep at 11:30am today. DIP Trixie. She had been eating so well, devouring everything I have her. I feel like I missed something. She grieved so hard for Rocket... I missed it. We got home last night and she hadn't eaten anything. When I woke her to feed her, her breathing was labored and gurgling. Her eyes were squinty & glazed over. We did round the clock care & her breathing got worse & worse. We took her to the ER vet (no ferret experience) this morning. It doesn't take ferret experience to point out pulmonary edema. DIP Trixie. I'm sorry I let you down.
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Post by FireAngel on Aug 9, 2015 12:35:01 GMT -5
Oh hunny, pulmonary edema comes on quickly and with no warning and has nothing to do with her grieving! You did not miss anything! I have had patients that have been ready for discharge basically and then out of the blue they become anxious and do not want me to leave their sides, saying they cannot breath, if caught in time diuretics can and do help but with a ferret who cannot call out to you in the middle of the night and tell you they are having difficulty breathing and feel anxious catching this in time would have been a miracle. You did not is anything with her, this was just a coincidence. I'm so sorry. D.I.P. Trixie have fun with Rocket
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Post by Klarissa on Aug 9, 2015 12:52:23 GMT -5
I've always been so hellbent on never letting my animals suffer. This time it wasn't even an option. I knew when I got Rocket & Trixie, my time with them would be short, but I didn't think it would be this short.
Trixie is buried right beside Rocket, so they can be together again. DIP.
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Post by FireAngel on Aug 9, 2015 13:25:36 GMT -5
You did everything you could as quickly as you could. How's Bear doing today?
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Post by Klarissa on Aug 9, 2015 13:33:12 GMT -5
Bear is fine. Doesn't even notice. Trixie had taken to beating the crap out of Bear when Rocket passed. They have been separated ever since, as Bear was stressed by it.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 9, 2015 13:49:23 GMT -5
Oh my, Klarissa, I'm so sorry. You did all you could, and Trixie knew that. She was so lucky to have had the time with you that she did. You gave her a life and you were there when it was time for her to cross over into another. D.I.P Trixie baby, I'm sure Rocket was waiting right at the bridge for you to come play.
There isn't much I can say to make any of this easier, but I can tell you that you are a wonderful ferrent and Trixie loved you more than you could fathom for all you've done for her. Ferrets tend to steal pieces of our heart when they leave and a lot of times will leave behind a paw print on your soul. Cherish those paw prints.
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Post by Klarissa on Aug 9, 2015 15:25:10 GMT -5
Thank you both. Trixie wasn't the same after Rocket passed, at least they can be together now. I am thankful that Willy & Bear will not mourn the loss. There is a catch 22 when ferrets form close bonds. This weekend coming up I'm going to get a little ferret tattoo on my foot; for my ferrets who have & my ferrets who will cross the rainbow bridge. They don't live long enough
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Post by Klarissa on Aug 9, 2015 22:52:53 GMT -5
When I got home from work Bear was waiting for me at the fence to their room. I hand fed her some soup; she's had 5 bowls today! It's a bit thinner since I found out Trixie was eating the chunks, while Bear ate the soup for the last while. I'm going to make the batch (I said I was going to make Friday, but still haven't ) puree it thicker. I'm also going to make just organ mix; just heart mix; a bone in mix, and a muscle only mix. I've got her eating chicken, beef, and FDR duck liver. I will start them on pork kidney this week, as well as the organ only mixes. It will all be thick, with tiny chunks, which she eats presently (she likes long pieces opposed to cubed chunks). Willy gets 2 supervised meals of raw soup a day (approx 1.5 tablespoons at each), with kibble in between. I haven't put them together for almost 2 weeks. They can see/sniff each other through a wire fence that divides the room. I moved Willy's bed to back onto the shared fence & Bear's food to be on the shared fence to enforce safe contact. I'm home all day tomorrow, so I can make sure they can't make physical contact. I'm still positive that they will someday get along. They would make such a good duo. Bear doesn't notice Trixie is gone. They have been separated for awhile anyways, as Bear was stressed out by Trixie being aggressive. Bear is still pretty chipper about her outdoor adventures yesterday & has been suuuuper affectionate. I love ferret kisses DIP Trixie & Rocket.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 10, 2015 7:42:01 GMT -5
Aw sweet Bear, my boy will stand and wait by my door for hours sometimes, makes me never want to leave. They do become accustomed to your schedule, smart little buggers!
What type of aggression are you seeing with Bear and Willy? Introductions can be quite difficult to watch, ferrets have to set the pecking order or they'll never live in harmony which means grabbing each other by the neck, dragging one another around, screeching, squealing, fighting, then they are okay. The rule is to leave them be and not separate them unless there is pee, poop or blood. If you do, they'll never get along. My Caillou has to be the "alpha", so with all my girls he was dragging them around and they would make awful noises, but then soon after they were cuddling and bonding. Ah ferrenthood, stressful and wonderful.
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Post by Klarissa on Aug 10, 2015 8:56:25 GMT -5
I've had a business of 6 ferrets previously (kibble fed Orijen though). I had a female who I actually wondered if she was evil, and it took 8 months to finally integrate the last female into the group. Provided no fear defecation or blood is present, I let the scuffle continue. Bear & Willy do a dramatic (LOUD) dance... First Bear starts hissing, as soon as she sees Willy. Bear is vocal wee mite, and of course Willy is confuses because he hasn't done anything. He will go over to her, and she will charge him, than run away. He will chase her into corners. She is screeching & hissing when he hasn't even touched her. Then one last time he will chase her into a corner, she will hiss and dart towards him and he finally attacks. Bear sounds awful, but we sit back and watch. The first time Bear peed/pooed so we stopped. The second Bear made a sudden noise that was much different, so we stopped and Willy had bitten her leg, leaving two little puncture holes. It's like Bear wants to be alpha, but she knows she can't, or won't. Bear was submissive to Trixie, and Willy was submissive to his old pal too. Bear still occasionally makes threats to Willy through the fence, but he barely bats an eye. I haven't tried introducing them for about 2 weeks now. Give Bear's paw time to heal. The last time she hissed and whimpered for 5 minutes after the brawl. Willy didn't seem upset, but then again he was winning. I may put them together again today. Their fights unfortunately get all the dogs (my 2, plus the landlords 2) absolutely freaking out. So I end up with 2 shrieking ferrets, 4 barking dogs, and one nosey landlord at the same time
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