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not eating
Jan 24, 2017 13:12:54 GMT -5
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Post by Deleted on Jan 24, 2017 13:12:54 GMT -5
Hello all, I am new to the group and to forums in general, I have been navigating the site and looking through posts for my answers. I have read most (all i could find) of the sticky posts. Anyway...I just got 2 ferrets 2 days ago, from 2 different people rehoming. the first guy (name lumos) is a 10 month old male (neutered) and extremely scrawny, I weighed him last night at 830.641g (29 ish oz) I made him the raw soup and he's eating like a champ, I'm sure he'll put on weight in no time. Seems like his last owner hadn't fed him a good meal in awhile, didn't even give me any food to switch him from, just told me to buy any ferret food from walmart However my next ferret (name nox) is 2 years old male (neutered) he's looks very healthy, I haven't weighed him yet. But he's a nice sized boy. He was eating wild harvest kibble I made him soup and he wouldn't touch it. I put some on a spoon and he had a few licks. But yesterday barely had any. So this morning I syringe it and got maybe 5ml in his mouth, but he was shaking his head and spitting it out, although u do think some went down. He drank a bunch of water (to get the taste out?) He seemed irratated w me. I've tried mixing the kibble w the soup and he took maybe 2 pieces of kibble. I tried to scruff hum but as I started to he spun his head around, like to nip. I'm a little gun shy of that tbh. He nipped the hubby's foot so I got nervous. If I'm persistant with syringing and filling up his bowl with soup, will he come around? Or will he starve himself? (I will get him weighed tonight, to make sure he's not loosing too much) I know he's past the imprint stage, so I know this won't be easy. Any advise is appreciated thank you
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Post by LindaM on Jan 24, 2017 16:33:29 GMT -5
Hi there, welcome to the forums!
First of, 830g is 1.8lbs, which isn't an entirely horrid weight (though I'd be trying to push it closer to 3lbs for a male, my little sprite is about 2lbs, my male is 4lbs but he is a big boy), and you need to keep in mind that farm ferrets are smaller than they used to be, some breeders have gotten them to increase size a little again. It's great that he's eating so well though, he should start to add a bit of weight soon.
While I understand the need to syringe if they refuse to eat entirely and are sick, I don't recommend doing it right now, you're only going to do more damage. You need to have patience, this transition may take days, to weeks, to months. You can't just force him to change his ways and expect it to take within 2 days, that's way too soon, especially for a ferret in a new living environment when they are already under stress from it.
Most of what you are doing needs to stop, or you are going to create a monster (all are valid methods that do work, yes, but not timed correct right now). For now, get him his kibble so he doesn't starve himself, and slowly start to transition him onto the raw. During the day, take his kibble away for a few hours (having kibble and raw close together will create a bacterial overgrowth), get a raw soupie ready, add a bit of salmon oil into it (they can have up to 1tsp per ferret, per week) and pick up your ferret. Very gently hold it near his nose and mouth, he may try to pull away so don't be forceful, gently dab some of it on his gums. If he squirms and tries to run off, let him, and try again in a little bit. Later, you can give the kibble back if he needs to eat.
This dabbing food on the gums can sometimes take easily, sometimes take a while, just keep at it, and do not try to be forceful about it or they'll associate it with being bad. Once he's taken to licking the food on your fingers, you can try to hold a spoon with some and see if he will lick it, then take the spoon away and give just the bowl.
Other things that can help, especially if you've maxed your oil limit, drizzle a bit of raw egg yolk onto the food (limit is 1 raw egg per ferret, per week, and double in the shedding season). Or if your little one has no problem eating freeze-dried treats, you can rehydrate some and see if he will take to eating that, and then you can use FDR as a transition to raw.
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Post by unclejoe on Jan 24, 2017 17:17:53 GMT -5
You could also try grinding the kibble into powder (coffee grinder works great for this) and add a bit to the soup to add a familiar flavor. Some ferrets take right to a new food and some take a little time.
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not eating
Jan 24, 2017 17:58:13 GMT -5
via mobile
Post by Deleted on Jan 24, 2017 17:58:13 GMT -5
Linda m. In no way am I being forceful, I've been doing everything the forum says to do when switching to a new diet. They say scruff and stuff, I attempted to and got nervous so I didnt. They say spoon feed him, so I did...he took a few licks.they say if he's not eating syringe, so I did. I offered him kibble and soup, he won't go near it. I tried adding salmon oil, I've tried egg. I even gave him kibble in a bowl, he wouldn't eat it. The only way he'll eat kibble is if I put a few pieces on the floor. I understand he won't go straight from kibble to raw overnight but I'm trying to get him to start to switch. I want him to eat raw instead of nasty walmart kibble so he has a healthier and longer life. I'm just trying my best and trying to do everything the forums say. So thanks for telling.me I'm doing everything wrong and creating a monster. I guess I won't be asking for anymore advise from these groups
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Post by LindaM on Jan 24, 2017 18:12:13 GMT -5
@brandy3719 Please, do not take anything I said as me being mean, I'm really not trying to be. We are all just trying to help here, and to stop others from not making a mistake that could make their transition to raw harder than it has to be, for both ferrent and ferret. Like I said, all of those methods have been proven to work, definitely. But not all of them work on every ferret though. And you need to keep in mind what your ferret might find stressful right now, and take that into consideration. I was also going by what you described as your ferrets reactions to each of those methods so far, and responded accordingly. Ferrets do not like being syringe fed, it's a last ditch attempt when we need to get food into them because they are refusing to eat entirely, yours is just refusing to eat what you are currently offering because in his mind it is still poison, and you need to change his mind. So syringe feeding right now, is just going to make him more fearful of what you're offering him. He's new to you and you both need to build a bond of trust with each other, going about this in the most gentle way, is going to get you there faster (again going off how you said he reacted to all that).
With the kibble, are you feeding him the exact brand and flavor that he used to get at his old home? They will refuse other kibbles they are not used to, same as raw. I'm not saying you need to feed him the awful kibbles they give ferrets, dear Lord no, never. But in an effort to make sure he is still eating during this transition, you may have to cave and give him a bit of what he's used to, just to be sure he doesn't starve himself. You could see if he likes freeze-dried raw, many of them love it right from the start, and you can rehydrate that and use it to help him get a taste for raw. You could even try a balanced raw grind like NV Instinct Frozen Rawbites (95% meat), a lot of ferrents have had great success in using those to transition over to raw.
Try the advice about some kibble powder on the food like Unclejoe suggested as well, that one has worked for me too. As has the finger feeding, spoon feeding, adding oil and egg. As well as using freeze-dried raw. But the overall key is patience, you have one that already has taken to raw really well, so half your struggle is already over. I have a little female who HATES to be scruffed and was very wriggly, so we had to use methods that caused her the least stress, because if we tried the scruff and stuff for example, she would lash out from fear because she didn't like it. And I have seen people's ferrets turn into fear biters too, and I wouldn't want that to happen to you, it's very hard, and quite painful to get that habit to break.
If you have any concerns, feel free to send me a message, and I'll talk it over with you.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 24, 2017 18:51:28 GMT -5
Hi Brandy we will get him and you thru this.....true every ferret is different and it takes time and lots of patience. With our 3 over the last year there were times we thought they'd never eat, the younger the better but like we talked it takes sometimes months. Hang in there and welcome to the group.
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Post by boozle on Jan 24, 2017 20:32:37 GMT -5
Hi Brandy. Its great that you want the best for your ferrets. I have adopted several ferrets from different people. Some adjust to their new home quickly and others take some time to get used to the new surroundings and to trust their new family. I adopted 2 in Sept. one boy is about 2 pounds and the other is 3 pounds. The one boy still runs and hides when startled. I then call his name and offer him a lick of salmon oil so he knows that it is okay.
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Post by Celene on Jan 25, 2017 14:34:50 GMT -5
Welcome to the forum @brandy3719!
Ferrets can be really insanely fussy, and sometimes it's very frustrating to get them to try new foods.
My girl Mocha was EXACTLY like Nox! When I tried to introduce soupies or egg or salmon oil, she acted like she legitimately thought I was trying to poison her! She freaked out every time I brought it near her.
Your absolute first priority is to make sure Nox is eating at all. Even if it's the crap kibble, a couple more days of it won't be as bad as him starving entirely.
With the soupies, I would start out as inoffensively as possible. Try and introduce it when he's calm or in a good mood. You can try dabbing a little gently on his gums or nose so he's forced to lick and try it. It will take several (or even many) tries, but eventually he will get used to the flavour. Does he like egg or salmon oil? If he does, to start you can be VERY generous with the blend (even 50% egg, 50% soup), and slowly increase the soup amount until it's all soup. You can also try watering the soup down even more.
Some ferrets also have a problem with the TEXTURE of soup, if they aren't used to eating something that isn't crunchy. You could try making a soup out of his kibble in order to get him used to lapping it up, then replace it with raw soupies.
Make sure you give him lots of cuddles and praise while you introduce the food to make sure he associates it with a good experience. Please keep us updated and good luck!
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Post by Aftershock on Jan 25, 2017 16:10:02 GMT -5
@brandy3719 personally, I think you are awesome for taking these two in! There is NOTHING wrong with realizing that you are not comfortable with doing something. The ferret can definitely feel that from you. As Celene said above, right now, the important thing is him eating in general. Also, my girly Cow shakes her head and sputters (I have no other good way to put it) when I syringe her too. It can take some time for him to trust you, and that's okay. I like to help create trust while scruffing (this is for vet visits, ear cleanings, and in case I need to medicate) by scruffing gently, resting them on my leg, lightling petting down the sides of the neck, down the torso, and under the eyes. I praise, coo, and nod (I have two deaf ferrets) at them while I do this, and just sit and pet them. You should feel their body relax. I had to do this with my female right after we got her because she HATED being scruffed (she would instantly thrash, hiss for about 20-30 min, and lunge bite at you all because you scruffed her) and she ended up getting a UTI after about a week of us having her. As for him eating in general, again, this is most important. I would try serving his kibble to him on a plate. Bowls can be pretty intimidating All new things I give my three go onto a plate. Also, why don't you set up a transition thread here? Us Mentors check these threads pretty often and still offer advice there. ^-^ This way the transition for your newbies (I hope to see pictures soon because I bet they are adorable!) can be kept track of much easier! Deep breath, we are here for you, and you are doing awesome!
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Post by Deleted on Jan 27, 2017 1:32:13 GMT -5
He's doing a bit better. Eating a little soup off a spoon. We offer it until he's had enough and backs off. I've been giving him kibble out of my hand in the morning and soup on a spoon in the evening. Along with soup in bowls for them to get to if they like. Lumos has already started tinsey bits of meat chopped up into the soup. I'd post pics if I knew how on here...
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Post by LindaM on Jan 27, 2017 2:02:08 GMT -5
To upload pics, you will need to use a image hosting site like Photobucket, Tinypic, etc. to upload the photos to, and then copy the link from there, and while you type a message on here you can just paste the link into the post.
Lumos sounds like he is making great progress already and it sounds like you are having some more success with Nox too. Have you been able to get either of them to try a little raw egg yolk or salmon oil, or are they still refusing them?
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Post by Aftershock on Jan 27, 2017 10:20:46 GMT -5
He's doing a bit better. Eating a little soup off a spoon. We offer it until he's had enough and backs off. I've been giving him kibble out of my hand in the morning and soup on a spoon in the evening. Along with soup in bowls for them to get to if they like. Lumos has already started tinsey bits of meat chopped up into the soup. I'd post pics if I knew how on here... I personally suggest Imgur. Photobucket was always a pain that had a ton of ads, and would crash constantly so my pictures were down. When you create an account with a photo hosting website, you upload the picture, click on it, click on the box that says 'forum use', copy, then paste. It is very simple when you get the hang of it. Keep it up! Remember, any step, no matter how small, is still a step! Right now, the main concern is still getting Nox happy and eating normally, even if it is kibble. I'm a bit curious, have you checked inside of his mouth? I just want to rule out any teeth/mouth issues before it is assumed that he is just not used to his new home.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 29, 2017 0:36:22 GMT -5
Yes, checked his mouth. And had my ferret friends check too he's eating a little better, taking more off the spoon each day.
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Post by Heather on Jan 29, 2017 2:35:41 GMT -5
Is that ever the most stubborn expression I've ever seen Those eyes Great progress by the way. Keep at it, it will keep getting easier ciao
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Post by Aftershock on Jan 29, 2017 11:27:46 GMT -5
Awwwwwwwwwwwwww! They are so cuuuuuuuuuute! Keep it up! You are doing great!
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