jerkk
Junior Member
Posts: 118 
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Post by jerkk on Jul 22, 2017 16:59:19 GMT -5
Hi, my ferrets have been on raw for a few weeks. I have a grinder that can do bone but I am grinding their meat until I can move up to chunks. However, is it ok if I feed them premixed ground food? (Raw meat, bonemeal for dogs, and ground organs which is 60% heart and gizzard, and 40% kidney and liver.) I've been feeding them that mixed together. I add two spoonfuls of bonemeal per sandwich bag size, and a few spoonfuls of the organ mix as well. Is this ok instead of the "meaty bone one day, organ the other, etc" schedule?
p.s. While their food is ground, it's very coarse and they still get small bits of bone when/if I decide to add chicken wings as well chunks of meat. That and I descale their teeth and clean them as well so everything's ok in the dental department. I'm just asking if this is nutritionally sound.
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Post by LindaM on Jul 22, 2017 19:32:01 GMT -5
Grinds, whether commercial or home-made need to conform to the diet balanced ratios of 10% heart, 10% organs (5% of that should be liver), 10-15% bone, and 65-70% muscle. If it isn't, it isn't balanced and that can be dangerous to a ferret's health. Gizzard is not considered an organ, it is a muscle meat. Heart technically also falls under a muscle meat, but due to it's importance in the ferret diet, I found it easier to just think of heart as its own thing overall.
So if your grind is 40% organs, that's WAY too high in a grind, it should only be the 10%. Using unbalanced grinds will require quite a bit of work and very careful planning to make sure you balance the overall weekly menu to get to the exact ratios of the balanced ferret diet.
Bonemeal is also only ever a temporary solution, and we use human-grade bonemeal when in a pinch, I don't know if they add anything funny to one meant for dogs. The correct amount of bonemeal to use temporarily is 1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon per 10oz of meat.
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jerkk
Junior Member
Posts: 118
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Post by jerkk on Jul 25, 2017 13:11:12 GMT -5
Grinds, whether commercial or home-made need to conform to the diet balanced ratios of 10% heart, 10% organs (5% of that should be liver), 10-15% bone, and 65-70% muscle. If it isn't, it isn't balanced and that can be dangerous to a ferret's health. Gizzard is not considered an organ, it is a muscle meat. Heart technically also falls under a muscle meat, but due to it's importance in the ferret diet, I found it easier to just think of heart as its own thing overall. So if your grind is 40% organs, that's WAY too high in a grind, it should only be the 10%. Using unbalanced grinds will require quite a bit of work and very careful planning to make sure you balance the overall weekly menu to get to the exact ratios of the balanced ferret diet. Bonemeal is also only ever a temporary solution, and we use human-grade bonemeal when in a pinch, I don't know if they add anything funny to one meant for dogs. The correct amount of bonemeal to use temporarily is 1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon per 10oz of meat. ok thank you, should I measure by weight? |
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Post by raynebc on Jul 26, 2017 12:32:07 GMT -5
Yep, measuring by weight is the most reliable way.
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Post by furmamaofmany on Apr 6, 2019 0:38:02 GMT -5
Grinds, whether commercial or home-made need to conform to the diet balanced ratios of 10% heart, 10% organs (5% of that should be liver), 10-15% bone, and 65-70% muscle. If it isn't, it isn't balanced and that can be dangerous to a ferret's health. Gizzard is not considered an organ, it is a muscle meat. Heart technically also falls under a muscle meat, but due to it's importance in the ferret diet, I found it easier to just think of heart as its own thing overall. So if your grind is 40% organs, that's WAY too high in a grind, it should only be the 10%. Using unbalanced grinds will require quite a bit of work and very careful planning to make sure you balance the overall weekly menu to get to the exact ratios of the balanced ferret diet. Bonemeal is also only ever a temporary solution, and we use human-grade bonemeal when in a pinch, I don't know if they add anything funny to one meant for dogs. The correct amount of bonemeal to use temporarily is 1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon per 10oz of meat. |
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Post by furmamaofmany on Apr 6, 2019 0:38:17 GMT -5
Grinds, whether commercial or home-made need to conform to the diet balanced ratios of 10% heart, 10% organs (5% of that should be liver), 10-15% bone, and 65-70% muscle. If it isn't, it isn't balanced and that can be dangerous to a ferret's health. Gizzard is not considered an organ, it is a muscle meat. Heart technically also falls under a muscle meat, but due to it's importance in the ferret diet, I found it easier to just think of heart as its own thing overall. So if your grind is 40% organs, that's WAY too high in a grind, it should only be the 10%. Using unbalanced grinds will require quite a bit of work and very careful planning to make sure you balance the overall weekly menu to get to the exact ratios of the balanced ferret diet. Bonemeal is also only ever a temporary solution, and we use human-grade bonemeal when in a pinch, I don't know if they add anything funny to one meant for dogs. The correct amount of bonemeal to use temporarily is 1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon per 10oz of meat. |
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Post by furmamaofmany on Apr 6, 2019 0:43:36 GMT -5
Lisa M would you be willing to share any recipes for raw diets that have the correct ratios? I recently brought home 3 farrets that are 8-10 weeks old they were on Marshall food. I read what I thought was alot on raw diets but as I have read a few threads on here I feel like I could be lost. I want to make sure I'm giving then6 everything they need, including the correct ratios including bones. I did order human bone meal because I read it was better than animal. Any advice would be greatly appreciated and helpful.
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Post by abbeytheferret6 on Apr 6, 2019 1:09:16 GMT -5
furmamaofmany were you wanting to make the forum soupie --- as you said you bought some bone meal? Is this where you have been reading? holisticferretforum.com/natural-diet/raw-diet-the-meat-of-the-site/We will be glad to help you switch. LindaM visits here on occasion. I think it has been a while since she has been here though. I think she may be on the Holistic Forum Facebook. But just ask some questions and members will be glad to help you. People usually start their ferrets on the soupie unless they are babies/just a few months old. They r usually imprinted on kibble at 1 year old. |
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Post by furmamaofmany on Apr 6, 2019 11:01:12 GMT -5
Yes this is exactly where I was reading about the recipe and bone meal. So I made quite a bit which I don't think it will last long. I would appreciated any advise or recipes. I just want to make sure I'm giving then everything they need. Unfortunately there are so many opinions or ways of doing things I'm not sure if I'm doing it correct, since I'm new to the raw diet.
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Post by abbeytheferret6 on Apr 6, 2019 13:13:50 GMT -5
Stick with the forum soupie. That is the only recipe you need until ur ferret switches. What you can do now is introduce some slivers of meat. Coat some tiny slivers of chicken thigh with the soupie. Slivers or chips can be the size of half of ur pinkie fingernail or smaller if you like. It is a different texture, and some ferrets really can be picky about that. Make more soupie If need to. Also if u have been using chicken stay with that when introducing slivers. You don’t need them to balk at the new texture and a new taste.
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