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Post by gfountain on Sept 12, 2015 12:12:41 GMT -5
Good find on the chicken hearts!
After talking to the other mentors, we all agree that Marty HAS to have another bone in meat. Layla really needs another also because fish doesn't have enough calcium to be a main bone source. How do you feel about doing whole prey? One of the mentors mentioned that she gets adult mice fairly cheaply when she buys them in bulk from rodentpro. Is that something that you could do?
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Post by gfountain on Sept 12, 2015 12:24:32 GMT -5
According to Google, which I know is not always accurate, you are 35 miles from Olympia. That's about a 45 minute drive, too far to go every week, but could you go once every couple of months and stock up? You should be able to find everything you need there and if you can get enough for a couple of months, you can spend an afternoon portioning it all out and put it in the freezer. Then you'll be set for a while and won't have to worry about running out.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 12, 2015 16:47:55 GMT -5
I don't have the money to pay for the huge shipping costs, not to mention the freezer space for buying in bulk. Keep in mind I live with other people, and they're already getting pissed off with me about how much freezer space the ferrets take up. Another freezer isn't an option, because electric bills get sky high here. I guess I have no choice but to buy the overly expensive rabbit. I really can't afford it, and I don't even know if they have the rabbit regularly. I'll buy it for now, but I'm really sick of going hungry. I don't blame you or the ferrets, I just want to have more than one freakin meal a day.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 12, 2015 16:48:56 GMT -5
What would I be stocking up on in Olympia? Also, are there any fish that have good enough calcium? Fish is cheaper than rabbit from what I've seen. What about adding bone meal to the fish with their bones in too, if the problem is calcium?
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Post by gfountain on Sept 12, 2015 17:12:15 GMT -5
How many people are sharing freezer space? How do you store meat in the freezer? Is it still in the store packaging or do you portion it out when you get it? The reason I ask is because putting meal size portions into baggies and smashing them flat or rolling them like sausages means that you can get much more food into the same space. One of the mentors said she shared a normal fridge freezer with a roommate and she could get almost 2 months worth of ferret meals plus her own food into her half of the freezer.
Another mentor said that she really had to learn to LOOK for meat. She lives, like you, in the middle of nowhere but she has found farmers and hunters in the area to be extremely helpful in sourcing meat. She also just recently discovered a butcher almost next door to the vet she has been using for years. She never knew he was there. Have you asked around town to see if anyone can help you source another meat? Is there a farmers market? Talk to the manager of your grocery store. They should be able to order something for you. Maybe ask for a whole turkey. There are a LOT of meals in one turkey. The largest bones can be smashed up small enough for them to eat and if there is too much breast meat, you can eat it too. You don't need to go hungry just because your ferrets are eating raw. Also check on pork riblets or pork buttons. If the store doesn't have them, ask them to order them for you. Those bones should be soft enough for the ferrets to eat, or they can be smashed up.
You said you have a lot of rabbits around your place. Can you find someone who would kill them for you? I understand you not being able to do it yourself. I sure couldn't kill them, but once they're dead, they're just meat.
I'm not trying to be pushy or force you to spend money you don't have. I just want you to check all your options and I want you to not starve yourself! You won't be doing anyone any favors if you get sick because you're not eating properly.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 12, 2015 17:34:04 GMT -5
There are 4 people sharing the freezer space, but sometimes one other person in the house eat with us. We have a fridge freezer, where I've been keeping the ferret food, my chicken breast, as well as ice bottles and ice cubes, and a chest freezer that I can't use for myself anymore. I portion it out within a few days of getting it. They're wrapped in poly vinyl in 2 ounce packages and then put in zip lock bags. Right now there are a few things not portioned that I'll get to in a day or so.
I don't know how to go about asking around. I live about 10 minutes out of the actual city of Roy, which has no industry except for a gas station. The nearest butcher is the one that has the overpriced rabbit, and that's about 20 minutes away in good traffic. Roy doesn't have a Farmer's Market or grocery store, and the stores I went to all said they couldn't help me find *insert huge list of things I've asked for*. If the bones of a turkey can be smashed up, why couldn't I get the legs or thighs? I'll ask around again about riblets and buttons, but my butcher wasn't even any help unfortunately.
My housemate has been the person everyone seems to go to to help them do the hard things, like put dying kittens out of their misery, so I could get him to help, but I don't know how to go about catching them without a cat getting to them. I've been trying to catch mice, but all I caught was ants and I can't go near the trap until they're gone (I'm terrified of ants).
I know you're trying to help, its just really hard to be stonewalled everywhere I go, as well as spending money so often, which is really freaking me out. I haven't been able to buy anything that I'm actually 100% ok with buying for months. I also don't have any more commissions lined up, so unless business starts booming after my birthday, come November I'm not going to have money.
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Post by gfountain on Sept 12, 2015 19:21:11 GMT -5
It is hard to be stonewalled. I completely understand that. And it makes it even harder to get out there and ask questions.
Where are you getting the meat that you've been feeding? What other kinds of stores are in the area? Pet stores, farm supply store, anything?
Turkey legs and thighs are the toughest bones on a turkey and therefore the hardest to eat. They are also the bones most likely to cause problems. However, if you can get them, let's try them. Just get a small package and we'll see how they do with them. You'll have to either smash the bones small enough to be swallowed, or small enough that they can chew them while still leaving them too big for the ferrets to swallow whole. And watch them while they eat. You need to be there to make sure they don't have any problems.
So do you have to share the fridge freezer with 4 other people, or do some of them use the chest freezer? Not trying to be nosy, just trying to understand how much space you have. When you put the food in baggies, make sure you squeeze all the air out. If you smash them flat, being careful not to poke holes with the bones, you can stack them and take up less space.
What does the butcher butcher? Maybe there is something else that he handles that you could use that would be cheaper than the rabbit. Ask him where he gets the rabbit. Maybe you could contact the hunter or breeder directly.
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Post by gfountain on Sept 12, 2015 19:25:32 GMT -5
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Post by gfountain on Sept 12, 2015 19:29:15 GMT -5
They sell ground pet food and raw bones. Tell them what you need and ask them what kind of bones they can get. www.stewartsmeatmarket.com/freshmeats/petfood.htmlAccording to the website, they have geese and duck for $3.50 and $4.00 a pound. They also have awesome exotic meats that I know are out of your price range (mine also!) but surely if they have all of that, they'll know where you can get what you need. Just go in there confidently and tell them what you need. Don't be ashamed of telling them you can't afford something. If you project a timid or shamed image, they'll be more likely to blow you off. Just tell them you're feeding 2 ferrets their natural diet and you don't have a ton of money and you need a good long-term source of small boned animals. If they know you'll be a repeat customer, they're more likely to offer you good deals.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 12, 2015 20:22:33 GMT -5
Stewarts is the place I go to get the beef heart and kidney, and where the rabbit is. They only sell big bones for pets because of the stigma that they can't eat small bones, and they're literally only the bones, most of them have been smoked or flavored, and every time I've asked for chicken backs/necks/bone, they haven't had any. They have signs up with everything I could ever need and can afford, but they don't actually have it in stock, and when I asked about it they say "We don't have any" and can't tell me when they'll get more. They don't have any goose or duck right now. Its a really busy butcher, its tough to get the person helping you to actually talk with you. They ask what you want and just immediately leave to get it, they don't even tell you the price until its time to pay. They have quail that are something like 9 dollars each. Pheasant is cheaper but I've never seen it in stock.
Just recently, they got fed up with me using "half the chest freezer" (most of "half the freezer" was filled up with a huge turkey and a bunch of pork roasts). So I moved all of the things from the fridge freezer into the chest freezer, and all the ferret food into the fridge freezer. So for now, I have the fridge freezer to myself until they change their mind. The fridge freezer is about half full, but a bit less once I get everything portioned out.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 12, 2015 20:25:19 GMT -5
On the bright side, I thawed out and cooked a chicken breast, so I'm full fed right now! I let the bbq burn a bit, so it smells like teriyaki but tastes super smokey. I have two left so I'll have to set aside some money for myself soon.
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Post by gfountain on Sept 13, 2015 10:37:58 GMT -5
I wondered if Stewart's is where you went. Try calling and making an appointment with the manager/owner. Tell them that you know they're always busy, so you'd like to SCHEDULE a few minutes to talk about what you need and if they can provide it or not. If he/she won't schedule a meeting, you can always mention social media reviews. No one wants a bad review on social media.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 13, 2015 16:14:09 GMT -5
I'll try next time I'm able to go.
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Post by gfountain on Sept 15, 2015 8:27:31 GMT -5
So where are we with the switching process? I think we just need to find another meat, right? How are their poops, activity, etc.? Are you still increasing the size of their chunks?
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Post by Deleted on Sept 15, 2015 20:00:13 GMT -5
Just another meat, and I still have to smash up a lot of bones or they won't touch them except to get the meat off. Their poops look fine, both their energy levels are hard to keep up with (I'm used to having only one ferret to watch out for)! I'm trying to increase the sizes, but not having a mallet and having to break the bones with the cleaver makes that a little difficult. Marty has been more willing to work on larger pieces, so on chicken thigh days I'm leaving them in four big chunks with the bits of bone cut/crushed along the edges.
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