Wild rats/mice/shrews

[raebees]

I am debating, seriously debating, allowing my ferrets to eat the prey my cat kills. I have not taught my cat to eat whole prey, though she is on a raw diet as well, but I feel bad at all these bodies being left in her games of 'cat and mouse'. 

I know to freeze wild game for a minimum of two weeks. I know to be careful due to poisons other homeowners may use against pests. What else should I keep in mind?

Our nearest neighbors are a quarter of a mile away and we are on 20 acres of wooded, undeveloped land. The cat is a hunter and I frequently find bodies strewn around our main living/working areas. Most of the time I dump them in the compost bin because I can't be certain how long the prey has been dead but sometimes I either catch her with it in her mouth (freshly killed) or, as on this morning, I catch her with a live one that's too far gone. (Did my first CD today, btw. I couldn't stand to watch her play with it and the poor mouse was close to death but still breathing.) 

My little Moxie is ferocious and many times has 'pointed out' dead things on our walks. On a few occasions she has even picked up a body I missed and tried to run off and eat/stash it. While I won't feed her rotted meat, she *prefers* stinky things and I half feel bad for taking away her prize.

What are some potential risks to keep in mind with wild prey, other than poisons and parasites?
Are there any signs I should look for in the prey that they might be unhealthy?
Is this a good idea? (I understand opinions may vary on this 😂)

As a side note, my boyfriend believes that as long as it's been dead no more than a day, it's safe to feed. I'm hesitant to feed anything that I can't say for sure is a fresh kill. What danger is there in feeding prey that may have been killed 12 hours or more before finding? Is it safe to freeze prey to feed if it's not a fresh kill?

The best decision I have ever made was to put them on a raw diet. I get so much satisfaction from seeing them eat their meaties and they are thriving because of it. If I can safely supplement with wild prey, I'm all for it, but this is a new experience for us, having so many 'presents' brought to our door, and I'm unsure how I feel about letting my princesses eat them.

Thanks for your input! 🐭🐁

[abbeytheferret6]

I will let other make comments. 

Only thing I know about is tularemia in rabbits and symptoms are spots on the liver. The disease can be passed to animals and humans. Other symptoms noted here.
www.outdoorhub.com/how-to/2013/02/25/rabbit-hunters-take-note-steps-to-avoid-tularemia/


I have occasionally wondered how long mice and rats have been frozen that I order--a scary thought.

[raebees]

Thank you! As of yet, no bunny bodies have been found but this is helpful because we do have bunnies around (and rabbit is expensive).

I, too, have wondered how long something was frozen before I bought it but I always run under the assumption that it was frozen or kept cool before rot or deterioration occurred. I'm concerned about how high the risk might be if I were to feed a mouse killed but not frozen for a few hours. I know one of my ferrets doesn't care if it's rotting, she finds them in the grass and they are stinky! I don't want to unknowingly make her sick, though.

The most common creature I've been finding, I believe, are voles, though I have found a couple shrews, too. Those aren't as readily available to order online or from a store! 😂

[LindaM]

Uhm, so the smaller the prey, the less time it remains good. I think the general whole prey time frame for being left out as food is between 24 hours and 48 hours. And just like the frankenprey, the smaller the item, the less time it survives compared to a larger item. Heat and humidity obviously also play a role in lessening that time.

Personally.. I'd feel a wee bit sketchy about just letting them have animals out of the wild, even with a neighbor further away, you cannot guarantee that poisoned food hasn't been helped to migrate closer to your home, even in leaving a trail of dead bodies in its progress. And as you know, parasites are also a concern in wild animals, as well as other kinds of diseases.

The problem with all of that is that the animals sometimes do not display any changes in behavior or any physical marks of a problem. So it is hard to know for sure.

[abbeytheferret6]

rabees, I found ths thread. I do not know if there has been a change of heart concerning this
holisticferret60.proboards.com/thread/5421

Still would go with the freeze

[raebees]

Thank you, it does make me feel a bit better. While I will still hesitate to feed the prey if o find it dead already, I think I will start freezing the ones I know we're killed by my cat recently. There is a huge population of voles here and I can't imagine they would be so prolific if they were sickly or poisoned. Thanks for digging that up abbeytheferret6!

[abbeytheferret6]

While I will still hesitate to feed the prey if o find it dead

Read more: holisticferret60.proboards.com/thread/23330/wild-rats-mice-shrews?page=1#ixzz4p3wXiHj5

I would not either.

[Sherry]

While it isn't something most would deliberately set out to do, if you are CERTAIN there has been no poison used(talk to your neighbor to be sure- mice can travel a good distance before succumbing) then just freeze and feed.

[raebees]

Thanks Sherry, I have two in the freezer that I caught in the cats mouth, waiting. The neighbors haven't even noticed an issue and let their cats deal with the rodents so no poison. Last night Moxie found a burrow on our walk and I heard a squeak when she went to dig in. I'm sure she would have gone after it had she not had her harness on! Hopefully she'll appreciate the cat kills!