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Post by tayrawrrr on Feb 10, 2011 21:22:08 GMT -5
Okay! Thanks!
He ate the turkey I gave him tonight and seemed to really like it...I gave him beef Tuesday night, which he ate was a bit less enthusiastic about.
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Post by Sherry on Feb 10, 2011 23:07:41 GMT -5
You'll find there are some meats he prefers to others. As long as he eats them, even if it's a bit less, it's fine. It's important to keep the variety in there, not just so he gets enough nutrients, but if he thinks holding out will be successful, he'll quit eating the meats he's not as fond of, and you'll have a ferret who will only eat chicken and turkey on your hands, lol!
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Post by tayrawrrr on Feb 11, 2011 13:04:13 GMT -5
Understood! He will definitely be getting a variety  |
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Post by Sherry on Feb 12, 2011 17:10:55 GMT -5
So how's he doing so far?
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Post by tayrawrrr on Feb 14, 2011 9:58:12 GMT -5
He's going great!! He eats pretty much anything I give him. Would it be too soon to try some frozen thawed mice?
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Post by Sherry on Feb 14, 2011 10:37:49 GMT -5
Not at all! Go ahead, and see how he does. Since he's doing so well, I think we need to get him worked up to a more balanced diet as well. What I'd like you to do is set up a weekly menu plan with what you are presently feeding him, so we can work out any kinks in it, and make sure he's getting the best we can give him |
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Post by tayrawrrr on Feb 14, 2011 19:09:25 GMT -5
Sounds good! I will do that tomorrow and send it off to you!  |
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Post by tayrawrrr on Feb 18, 2011 11:20:22 GMT -5
I'm so sorry I haven't responded yet, I've been swamped with school and work!!! Generally, he gets a drumstick on bone in days, and I've been alternating between turkey and chicken for muscle. I'm going to the store tomorrow to get more food for my guy, he eats so much!!! He did well with beef steak, so I'll grab some more of that. I'm also going to make an order from haretoday. As for more variety, what else should I try?? I picked up two small Cornish hens, as well, that I'm thawing for him. How long do you think that can be left in? He's been getting drumsticks a lot, because I want him to have access to food constantly since he's a growing boy!! He eats everything down to the bone, and I can see he does gnaw on the bone a bit, but not much. Is that normal, is he getting what he should be just from that?? Sorry, lots of questions!!  |
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Post by Sherry on Feb 19, 2011 0:19:15 GMT -5
Hey, ask away! Can you get him some wings, or necks? He really needs the calcium, especially while he's growing. In the interim, you can add some powdered eggshell to his meat(1/2 tsp per 8 oz meat), but he won't get all the trace minerals from eggshell. He needs consumable bone. The cornish hen is fantastic for that.
Bone in means he eats most, if not all, of the bone itself. So- cornish hen, chicken wings, necks, ribs, spine. Turkey necks, ribs, wing tips. Duck neck, ribs, wing tips. Quail, rabbit, pork spine, rib ends. Mice, rats, guinea pig, etc.
How is he doing with organ meats? And have you been able to get him any heart meat? Taurine is something else he REALLY needs right now. You can use a supplement if you can't get it.
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Post by tayrawrrr on Feb 20, 2011 23:29:48 GMT -5
I did manage to get him chicken wings and turkey necks! Also got some more Beef--It's mostly marrow bone(?) and some actual meat on there. If he can't have this, I'm sure my dogs will like to gnaw on it I gave him a cornish hen today, and he went straight for the liver it came with. I can try and get some other animal' liver. What other organ meats should I try?? I have a package of gizzards and hearts, but it is mostly gizzards. I will have to order some chicken hearts online, I guess! I've checked a few different stores and couldn't find them!! I will look around a bit more before ordering online. Until then, I did read the thread Katt posted about supplements, and was wondering if that was a good idea for MoJo? I'll look at a few of the sites that've been posted. I just don't know about portion wise what he would be getting! Especially since he's growing, and it's a bit hard to tell if he's getting all that he should  I always see chicken FEET (gross!!  ) but could he have that?? Would it be nutritional or more of a treat? Also, I just wanted to give you a heads-up! The next few weeks are going to be a bit hectic, so it may take me a few days to respond, but I'll try and reply ASAP!! I DO have crushed eggshell powder that I'll add to his meat for a bit, just to be safe. |
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Post by Sherry on Feb 21, 2011 0:41:00 GMT -5
That's wonderful about the wings and neck! Give the bone in to him for 8- 9 meals a week. And that boy loves liver??? Wow- I'm insanely jealous  For the beef bone, no reason he can't eat the meat away from the bone. It should keep him busy for a while The dogs can have the bone afterwards! For the heart, try talking either to a butcher, or even your local grocery store meat manager. They can tell you if they keep it in one particular spot(here it's in the frozen section, along by the frozen turkeys). You can use any heart, doesn't have to be chicken. Most of mine just accept chicken and turkey heart easier. If he's eating bone and liver, the only supplement he needs right now would be taurine. One half of a 500mg capsule a day sprinkled on his food will suffice. Although they cannot overdose on taurine, since the body simply excretes what it doesn't need. Other organs besides liver would be things like kidney, lung, spleen, brain, thymus, pancreas- basically any part of the body that secretes. As for the chicken's feet- get them! They are a great source of glucosamine- and make a wonderfully healthy snack for him If you do feed them as a meal, make sure to add some meat along with them, since they obviously don't have any ;D Since he's doing so well, I'd start introducing new meats at around the rate of one every three to four days. That will give you enough time to notice if he has any sensitivities to anything in particular. My Boris can't have any chicken. Vincent cannot have beef organ, he's violently allergic to them- but can eat the muscle meat, go figure . I also think you need to start looking at setting him up a regular schedule. Here's a very general one: Mon. muscle meats Tues. bone in meats Wed. whole prey Thur. organ for one meal, bone in for the other Fri. muscle meats Sat. bone in meats Sun. bone in meat |
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Post by tayrawrrr on Feb 25, 2011 20:33:06 GMT -5
With the chicken feet, there's the nails and all. He can eat those okay?
I actually have been following the general schedule that I asked you about a few posts back. Right now, I have food constantly available to me....Should I not do this? I figured because he's growing it would be best, but now I'm not sure!
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Post by Sherry on Feb 25, 2011 21:02:11 GMT -5
Definitely a good idea to start with a balanced diet wherever possible! As for the chicken feet- if he can't eat them, he won't After all- mice, rats, rabbits, etc, all have teeth and claws |
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Post by tayrawrrr on Feb 28, 2011 20:20:46 GMT -5
Okay, sounds good!! Again, I'm really sorry about taking so long to answer! Things are a bit crazy right now! But MoJo is doing great! |
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Post by Sherry on Feb 28, 2011 20:28:47 GMT -5
That's ok! You keep posting every 3-4 days, and I'm fine with that Let me know how they are doing with their food, though ;D |
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