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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2016 11:55:34 GMT -5
Switching DiaryCurrent Weight: 1 lb 1.3 oz (490.45 Grams)Current Photo: 1/31/16
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2016 11:55:45 GMT -5
My Mentor ApplicationName: Desiree HF Forum Username: Chibisaurus Please confirm that you are 18 years of age or older: I confirm. 1. Where did you first learn about natural diets for ferrets?Google research (which brought me to these forums!) 2. Please describe the type of diet you would like assistance in switching your ferret(s) to. Be sure to include if you are interested in feeding whole prey (live or frozen-thawed) and if you are wanting to FULLY switch to a natural diet or PARTIALLY. If you are unsure what kind of diet you want to put your ferrets on, please express that and we can help you find the best type of natural diet for your ferret.I'm not 100% sure! I want to get her OFF kibble, because I know it's not healthy for her! I would like to try to stick to meats that we already purchase if possible! I'm fine with feeding mice (live or frozen.. whichever is better!) I would like to keep rabbit, Pigeon ect out of her diet. At least for now. 3. Why are you interested in switching your ferrets to a natural diet?I want my babies to be as healthy as possible, I'm the same way with my cats and dogs (They get chicken and rice allll the time!) 4. Do you understand that switching your ferret to a natural diet can be a lengthy, arduous process? Its not an overnight switch. It requires a commitment of several months at minimum. Your HF Mentor will be more then happy to assist you in switching your ferret(s) to a natural diet, but you need to be equally as committed. The switch takes time and effort every single day. It can also be extremely frustrating at times. If you aren't willing to tough out a potentially lengthy switching process, you have major life changes approaching (baby on the way, moving, starting school, getting married/divorced, etc), or limited time due to work, then it might be a better idea to wait on switching your ferret's diet until you have more time. Are you willing and realistically able to make the neccessary time commitment?Yes, I work from home, and am home almost all day every day! 5. How many ferrets do you currently have? What are their names? Ages? Genders? Do they have any health problems? Are they overweight? Underweight? How long have you had each ferret for?Currently I have a single ferret Hermonie, She is female, No known health issues, and she is 1 lb 1.3 oz (490.45 grams), So I believe she might be a little underweight. I have had her since Saturday 1/30/16, we picked her up at about 8pm! 6. What diet do you currently feed your ferrets? (Please include all treats, supplements, etc) Do they already eat some form of soup? We are currently feeding her Kitten Chow (Eek! I know bad mommy!) This is what was given to us for her! 7. Have you ever tried to switch your ferrets to a natural diet in the past? If yes, what happened?No, this is my first Ferret. 8. What additional information about yourself or your ferrets would you like to share?I'm a pretty easy going person, This is my first ferret and I want her to be as healthy as possible! 9. How often during the week do you have access to a computer?Everyday! 10. Please post a picture of each of your ferrets (if possible). 11. Have you met the requirements for this program? Are you at least 18 years of age? Do you have your scale, a place to access meats, hearts, livers, etc?Scale - Yes Place to access Meats - Ye 18 - Yes
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2016 11:56:42 GMT -5
Form to use 1. Ferret's name:
2. Ferret's weight:
3. Ferret has eaten "X" amount on average per meal.
4. Stools on various proteins.
5. Activity levels:
6. Weekly menu:
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2016 12:29:28 GMT -5
2/1/2016;
Shopping for supplies for Soup, Will be making/freezing tonight and starting the Soup stage tomorrow!
Questions : Do I still leave kibble with her? How many cubes a Day do I feed her? Do I defrost cube before feeding? Or give frozen? How long do I prep the eggshells? and how long do they need to dry?
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2016 13:11:05 GMT -5
1. It depends on how well she will eat the soupie. If she is really stubborn, you can leave a little out at night. I did that with senior. However, If she takes to it, you do not have to. With my last ferret, I did not. She came with some really bad kibble, and I did not want to spend nearly 20 dollars on something she would not be eating but a few times.
2. When I put my soupies in ice cube tray, I had it on the scale and it measured about one ounce of weight per cube. Mine can eat up to 2 cubes a meal. I would start out with 2 cubes. Better to have a little left over. For supper try 2 again. A little left over lets u know they got full, but if it is a lot you can adjust.
3. I defrosted mine in baggie in water--- some defrost over night. If you do the baggie thing, when the food is defrosted, move it all to one side, and then cut the opposite side off. I make a huge corner cut.
4. I am thinking 24 hours is sufficient. You r just wanting that membrane not to be tacky.
Not a mentor, so they may have better info, but that is how i did it.
If you have a baby, then feed four times a day.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2016 13:52:24 GMT -5
Hi Desiree or would you prefer to be called Chibisaurus? Hermione is darling and sounds like a healthy happy girl now that she has found her forever home. When you get a chance, please post two pictures of her. One where she is dangling and one from the top of her. This let's me get a feel for her weight. She is small now but until I see her pictures, I won't know if she is underweight. Females tend to be light and if she is a whippet body type (like the whippet dog) then she will be light and sleek. I see you have your supplies ready and you have a good place to buy food for her. A regular grocery store will supply most items but a good Asian Market is just the place for finding the organs that her weekly menu will require. As you know, I have requested you as my new Mentee. We can work on this thread until we are approved to work together or until another Mentor is assigned and then you will still have a good head start. I'll answer your questions first: Do I still leave kibble with her?Hermione is over two years old and will have imprinted on her kibble. That means that she will not recognize other foods as food. You will need to be patient with her and persuade her to trust you that you are actually offering her real food. We don't like to feed kibble too close to raw food because they digest at different rates so I will ask you to remove the kibble for a few hours prior to offering her the soupie recipe. Until you feel like she is happily accepting the soupie, leave the kibble for her overnight and during the daytime, you will try offering the soupie several times a day. How many cubes a Day do I feed her?If you freeze the soupie without adding any water, then when the time comes to serve her the soupie, you will add some warm water to it and make a thin soup to begin with. The first time you offer the soupie, one cube should be enough. Females eat on average 2-3 ounces a day. They eat a bit more in the Winter and a bit less in the Spring. Do I defrost cube before feeding? Or give frozen?
Defrost the cubes before serving. Add some warm water and make it into a thin soup for the first few days. The idea is to slowly make the soup thicker and then once she is comfortable with that, then we will begin adding tiny slivers to her soup and get her use to eating little pieces of chicken. Once she is eating slivers, you will start reducing the amount of soup and adding more pieces of the chicken until it is all slivers. How long do I prep the eggshells? and how long do they need to dry?
You're in a dry climate so it should only take a day or two for the eggshells to dry out Just give them a quick rinse and put them in an open container on a paper towel. When they are dry, you can use a clean coffee grinder (I bought one just for this) or a magic bullet/blender/food processor and grind them into a fine powder. This will store well in a container in a dry place. My computer is running slow so I'm going to post this and let it rest then I'll come back on in a bit.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2016 15:52:53 GMT -5
@poncesmom Thank you! So I'm starting to prep the soupi now! I shouldn't add any water before freezing? And use a little water when defrosting? Edit: I also couldn't find straight heart. Just gizzard and hearts.. is this okay? or should i just use heart pieces?
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2016 16:07:41 GMT -5
I like to freeze it without any water. Then when you are ready to serve, add some warm water and Voila! instant soupie.
After the soupie is made, sit on the floor with Hermione and a towel and a spoon. Put her on your lap and lay your other hand across her, just to let her know you are there.
Dab a bit on her mouth and she will have to lick it off. She may want to get down and run away but gently pick her up and talk nicely to her.
Try again. If she licks the soup off then you offer some from a spoon. I bought some colorful plastic baby spoons for this. If she licks it off the spoon, give her a few more spoons of soupie and try for that "just one more bite". Your confidence and making her feel secure will go a long way towards a successful switch.
If Hermione really resists and appears uncomfortable then let her down and try again in a few hours. She has to get use to this new food and you want mealtimes to be fun and pleasant.
Think of her as a two year old toddler. If she refuses her good food and you give in and offer the Happy meal, she is smart enough to hold out and wait for the kibble.
Give her a few days of trying this and we'll see how well it goes over. There are a few tricks up my sleeve for a super stubborn ferret but were going to think positive and I suspect she will enjoy the extra attention and you are building a stronger bond with her.
It will be fun hearing how the both of you do for your first time. (dance)
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2016 16:30:14 GMT -5
I like to freeze it without any water. Then when you are ready to serve, add some warm water and Voila! instant soupie. After the soupie is made, sit on the floor with Hermione and a towel and a spoon. Put her on your lap and lay your other hand across her, just to let her know you are there. Dab a bit on her mouth and she will have to lick it off. She may want to get down and run away but gently pick her up and talk nicely to her. Try again. If she licks the soup off then you offer some from a spoon. I bought some colorful plastic baby spoons for this. If she licks it off the spoon, give her a few more spoons of soupie and try for that "just one more bite". Your confidence and making her feel secure will go a long way towards a successful switch. If Hermione really resists and appears uncomfortable then let her down and try again in a few hours. She has to get use to this new food and you want mealtimes to be fun and pleasant. Think of her as a two year old toddler. If she refuses her good food and you give in and offer the Happy meal, she is smart enough to hold out and wait for the kibble. Give her a few days of trying this and we'll see how well it goes over. There are a few tricks up my sleeve for a super stubborn ferret but were going to think positive and I suspect she will enjoy the extra attention and you are building a stronger bond with her. It will be fun hearing how the both of you do for your first time. (dance) Soupi is made, Saved a little to the side to try this out! I will be back in a bit and let you know how it goes!!!!
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2016 16:54:38 GMT -5
First try with Soupie, I put a little on her nose, she licked it off then ran, when she came back i tried the spoon she sniffed and backed up, so I put a little more on her nose, she bit me and started to shake. I took her kibble out of her cage area, and put her in it with the spoon for a short time out for biting.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2016 17:48:41 GMT -5
Okay, she was startled. She simply doesn't know what this soupie was and didn't understand. The bite was instinctual, so she really didn't mean it. I wouldn't put the spoon in the time out sin bin, you don't want her to associate that spoon with punishment. Time outs should never be for more than two minutes and I'd try not to do those around feeding time.
Remember to make it as pleasurable as you can. This was not an unusual first attempt. Since she reacted by being a bit frightened, wait until tomorrow and try again. Let her have her kibble in a few hours, we don't want her to go hungry.
If you get the same reaction again, don't punish her. Pick her up and snuggle her and talk to her gently. She needs to get use to the smell first and while I don't always suggest this, if she reacts with fear again, then crush up a little of the kibble and sprinkle it on top. She will smell the familiar smell first and that can encourage her to trust the new food.
Don't be discouraged by this first attempt. It can take quite a few tries sometimes. We'll just keep on working with her and she will come around. Don't worry, just be patient and loving.
The next time you try the soupie, play with her first. Get her happy and jumping around and then try a small dab on her nose. Keep playing and see how she reacts.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2016 18:17:11 GMT -5
My response disappeared so I'll post again. I hope you don't get a double message. The first attempt was normal. Don't be discouraged. Remember this is not a food that Hermione recognizes. She was frightened and bit instinctively. I would not recommend putting her spoon in the sin bin with her. You want her to associate the spoon with pleasure not punishment. Any time outs should never be for more than two minutes. They simply forget why they are in there. Tonight was enough for both of you. In a little while put her kibble back in and we'll try again tomorrow. She had her first taste and her first smell, so that's a start. Tomorrow when you try again, play with her first. Get her happy and playful and then try a dab on her nose. If she reacts with fright again, don't punish her. Simply wait awhile and try again. You could try crushing up a piece or two of the kibble and sprinkle it on top of the soupie. This will make it smell familiar. Hermione had a perfectly normal reaction. She is two and a half and has imprinted on her kibble. We want her to enjoy her mealtimes and bond with you during them. You both did just fine and don't let this first attempt worry you. She will come around and learn to like her soupie. You both did fine for your first time. Now I have to sign off but will check back in again in the morning. Give your girl a hug and tell her that she is a good girl.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2016 18:50:06 GMT -5
yeah, i took her right back out.. i could hear her climbing.. i felt bad lol we will try again tomorrow
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2016 23:39:03 GMT -5
Soupie all made My other half is calling them "ferret pops" lol
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Post by Deleted on Feb 2, 2016 10:12:00 GMT -5
2/2/16 Took Kibble away from Hermione first thing this morning, Going to give it a little while for the cube to defrost and try again! Have her playing on the bed with Mia (She doesn't want me at the moment, she wants the warm fluffy doggie!)
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