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Post by Celene on Jan 26, 2017 13:33:03 GMT -5
How are things going? I just wanted to let you know that as per the Mentoring Program Rules: You are required to post every second day during the "soup" stage of the transition. From the "sliver" stage, through to large chunks, you will be required to post a minimum of every 3 days. Once you hit the large chunks, once a week will be acceptable. If you wish to post into your thread more often, that will be MORE than welcome The above are simply the minimum requirements so we can help with sticky spots, and not have to "catch up" to where you are presently at.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 28, 2017 18:27:30 GMT -5
I apologize! Things at work have been crazy. I will type up his menu as soon as I make it home. He is doing well. Starting to eat the beef and rabbit grounds on his own. His fur is starting to fill out now too (:
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Post by Deleted on Jan 28, 2017 19:59:29 GMT -5
This week's menu was : Mon AM:rabbit Mon PM: chicken wing
Tues AM:beef Tues PM:turkey with duck heart
Wed AM: chicken neck Wed PM: rabbit
Thur AM: chicken wing Thur PM: beef with egg yolk
Fri AM: turkey Fri PM: chicken neck
SAT AM: rabbit SAT PM: chicken wing
Sun AM: beef Sun AM: turkey
And I know you want me to move to slivers but I'm unsure as to what type of slivers to get..
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Post by Celene on Jan 29, 2017 17:02:02 GMT -5
You can either start slivers with a protein that has already been introduced (chicken, beef or rabbit), or try starting a new protein altogether such as pork. Basically, buy a bunch of meat and cut them into long, thin pieces. You can try started with pieces about the size of a bobby pin, and if he takes to that quickly, then move up in size. As you make the pieces thicker, it helps if the ends are tapered/pointy (at least at one end) to give him an easy place to start. Let me know how it goes!
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Post by Deleted on Jan 30, 2017 5:38:52 GMT -5
I think pork is a great place to start! I will stop by the store tomorrow and grab some!
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Post by Celene on Jan 30, 2017 12:37:10 GMT -5
Pork is a great option - all of mine love it! If possible, try to buy a fattier cut, as ferrets get their energy from fats similar to how humans get theirs from carbs. Let me know how it goes
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Post by Deleted on Jan 31, 2017 18:28:22 GMT -5
Awesome! I can't wait for him to try it
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Post by Celene on Feb 1, 2017 16:55:29 GMT -5
Have you had a chance to pick up pork yet? In the meantime, here is a mini lesson on eggs, since (in most climates) it will be shedding season soon. During shedding, a great way to help prevent hairballs is feeding egg. The lecithin in yolks helps break up hairballs before they form by dissolving the fat that binds them. A ferret can have up to 1 egg each per week (a little more during shedding season) but a whole egg at once can be hard on their digestive system so what I would recommend is mixing up an egg (yolk and whites together) and feeding 1/3rd of it at a time, keeping the rest in a container in the fridge.
Alternately, you could just feed a yolk (half of one to start) and save the whites for omelettes for yourself or something. One thing you don't want to do is feed whites alone, as they contain avidin, which binds biotin and can lead to a biotin deficiency over time. Thankfully, yolks are VERY high in biotin so feeding the whole egg together is perfectly safe.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 2, 2017 5:13:34 GMT -5
I picked up pork yesterday! Who knew skinning it would be so hard! Haha. We did manage to get all the fat off the skin to mix in with the rest of the meat though! I gave it to him for dinner last night. He didn't eat it all but he did eat some of it so that's good! I cut it into large chunks. That didn't seem to bother him. He has 14 portions of it left in the freezer before we have to buy more.
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Post by Celene on Feb 3, 2017 15:31:19 GMT -5
That's awesome that he took straight to it!
Since the eventual goal is a full frankenprey diet, the next step will be introducing a new bone-in meat source (chunks, not grind) such as rabbit or quail. Do you have access to either of these?
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Post by Deleted on Feb 4, 2017 6:20:38 GMT -5
The local butcher has frozen whole rabbit and quail. They can grind it for me but it's not really a grind. They end up as pretty large chunks! I will go on Monday or Tuesday. I'll get a picture of the chunks to make sure that it's sufficient (:
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Post by Celene on Feb 6, 2017 10:29:43 GMT -5
I would love to see the photos! Eventually though you will need to chop them yourself into larger chunks at least as big as your thumb
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Post by Deleted on Feb 6, 2017 14:23:31 GMT -5
Noted! I will post some pictures when I go
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Post by Deleted on Feb 7, 2017 2:08:10 GMT -5
I made a video of him chowing down on some pork!
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Post by Deleted on Feb 8, 2017 5:07:42 GMT -5
I'm going to be going underway today! I will be back on the 10th.
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