Transitioning to Raw Meat...

[LexiH]

Just a quick question, when transitioning to an all raw meat diet, do you have to do it slowly and over time? Or can you just stop feeding kibble and give raw immediately, such as in the case of if you have a kit who takes to raw right away? Just wondering if a quick switch would upset their stomachs, because I know with kibble you are supposed to wean them off one kibble slowly if switching to another.

[raynebc]

I've switched a pair of ferrets from kibble to raw cold turkey. As long as you can convince them to eat the new food readily, you can switch immediately.

[LexiH]

Ok thanks:)

[LindaM]

Older ferrets often need some more convincing, but kits will switch pretty much right away. When I got Ares and Apollo at 7 months of age, they got put onto raw the very day I got them. Just be sure your ferrets are indeed eating the new food before completely taking away old food for good, as some ferrets may try to starve themselves if they only have something they do not yet view as food.

[abbeytheferret6]

I switched mine to soupie immediately by the repeated process of holding them, daubing mouth, and letting them go.

With my last ferret, I did gently prise her mouth open and put soupie in on the side. She was more stubborn than others. She was one of those that would rather do without than eat raw. It worked like a charm after few times. I tried the method of scruffing to make her yawn.  However, she would not yawn and got offended by the scruff---maybe because there wasn't much to scruff:))

The soupie recipe is on this site
holisticferretforum.com/natural-diet/raw-diet-the-meat-of-the-site/

[Sherry]

As the others have said- if they readily accept it and eat it on their own, ditch the kibble.

[LexiH]

Great! Thanks so much for your advice everyone. This forum is an amazing place 😄