Post by Heather on Sept 16, 2017 11:49:03 GMT -5
Application:
Name: Nicole
HF Forum Username: Bishop24
Please confirm that you are 18 years of age or older:
Yes, I'm 28 π
1. Where did you first learn about natural diets for ferrets?
Research online led me to this forum
2. Please describe the type of diet you would like assistance in switching your ferret(s) to. Be sure to include if you are interested in feeding whole prey (live or frozen-thawed) and if you are wanting to FULLY switch to a natural diet or PARTIALLY. If you are unsure what kind of diet you want to put your ferrets on, please express that and we can help you find the best type of natural diet for your ferret.
I would like to completely switch my ferrets over to frankenprey
3. Why are you interested in switching your ferrets to a natural diet?
I was always concerned with my ferrets health and diet but was weary about making the switch to raw. My ferrets are both pretty picky eaters and switching them off of Marshalls food took a good bit of effort. Making the switch to raw seemed daunting. I was content with them being on "better" quality food until I found out my 18 month old male had bladder stones from eating too much plant based protein and needed surgery to remove them. Now I'm very concerned that my female might have them and my male won't recover from his surgery. I want my guys to live long, happy, healthy lives and raw seems to be the only way to do that.
4. Do you understand that switching your ferret to a natural diet can be a lengthy, arduous process? Its not an overnight switch. It requires a commitment of several months at minimum. Your HF Mentor will be more then happy to assist you in switching your ferret(s) to a natural diet, but you need to be equally as committed. The switch takes time and effort every single day. It can also be extremely frustrating at times. If you aren't willing to tough out a potentially lengthy switching process, you have major life changes approaching (baby on the way, moving, starting school, getting married/divorced, etc), or limited time due to work, then it might be a better idea to wait on switching your ferret's diet until you have more time. Are you willing and realistically able to make the necessary time commitment?
YES! I used that excuse before and I won't make that mistake again. I have nothing new or exciting going on in my life right now (I guess that's good?) and my husband is home for at least a month because of an injury at work
5. How many ferrets do you currently have? What are their names? Ages? Genders? Do they have any health problems? If so, what medications are they currently on? Are they overweight? Underweight? How long have you had each ferret for?
We have two ferrets. Our male ferret, Captain Flint (Flinters) we got just over a year ago and he is 16 months old. He is our "special" cuddly, 2.5 lb warrdy who just got diagnosed with bladder stones. The vet forgot (?!) that we wanted the stones tested but is sure that they weren't cystine stones because they showed up on X-rays. So hopefully it is diet related. He had surgery on sept 11th and is still having trouble urinating. He's on pain medication, antibiotics, and meds to help him pee for the next couple of days and is doing better.
Our female, Mrs Barlow (Missy) is 14 months old and we got her 9 months ago. She is a tiny little girl at 1.3 lbs and has a very nervous personality. Everything terrifies her at first but she is still extremely curious and excellent at getting up/in/under things you thought were ferret proof. It has been harder and slower to bond with her and she goes through "I hate Flinters" moods. I hope that the diet transition will help build trust and bring her closer to us.
6. What diet do you currently feed your ferrets? (Please include all treats, supplements, etc) Do they already eat some form of soup?
They are currently on a mix of Go! Fit and free turkey and duck cat food and Nutrience Sub-zero Fraser valley cat food. They also enjoy a dab of fish oil daily and the occasional piece of n-bone treat. I started blending their kibble into soup 2 days ago. Missy is now eating it out of the bowl but Flinters is still unsure and goes back and forth between being finger-fed and eating out of the bowl.
7. Have you ever tried to switch your ferrets to a natural diet in the past? If yes, what happened?
I tried giving Missy egg and that sort of worked for a while. She did start eating it off my finger but had to be reminded every time that it wasn't poison. I haven't given her any in a while because she has been pooping well. There was also switching them from ferretone to fish oil. At first they both thought it was the most disgusting thing ever and would wipe their fishy faces on my carpet for awhile after trying to give it to them. But they eventually learned that it was the best thing ever!
8. What additional information about yourself or your ferrets would you like to share?
My husband, Dan will be at home with the ferrets during the day for the next while and will be feeding them breakfast. He is softer on the ferrets than me and will need to be... trained to be strong and not give in when they protest their new food
9. How often during the week do you have access to a computer?
24/7. Don't know how else to function
10. Please post a picture of each of your ferrets (if possible).
Flinters-top Missy-bottom
11. Do you have a scale sufficient to measure soup ingredients AND to regularly weigh your ferrets?
It gave mean excuse to go shopping on amazon! It was delivered yesterday
12. Have you met the requirements for this program? Are you at least 18 years of age? Do you have your scale, a place to access meats, hearts, livers, etc?
Yes, I am depressingly older than 18, I have spent lots of money on amazon to weigh and feed my ferrets, and there is literally a butcher downstairs (he is a little weird and I think?? he said he would help but if he gives up problems there are several asian grocery stores nearby and another butcher that I know for sure does raw for pets about 30 min from my house
13. Do you understand that if your mentor or an admin recommends seeking veterinary care and you refuse to seek appropriate care you may be dropped from the mentoring program?
Yes, I should be
14. We occasionally have a wait for a Mentor to be available. While you wait we encourage you to get started by creating your own switching thread under Diet Transitions where all of our mentors and members can help you while you wait for your personal mentor. See here --> holisticferret60.proboards.com/board/66/diet-transitions
Hi and welcome to the mentoring program. In a little while your mentor (Aftershock), will introduce herself and you can get started on a new adventure in natural ferret care and diets. Please remember to post regularly (daily or as per arranged with your mentor) so that your mentor can assist you move along safely in this adventure. If you experience computer difficulties or are going to be away, please notify your mentor and most of all relax and have fun. Your mentor is here to help you on this journey.
ciao
Name: Nicole
HF Forum Username: Bishop24
Please confirm that you are 18 years of age or older:
Yes, I'm 28 π
1. Where did you first learn about natural diets for ferrets?
Research online led me to this forum
2. Please describe the type of diet you would like assistance in switching your ferret(s) to. Be sure to include if you are interested in feeding whole prey (live or frozen-thawed) and if you are wanting to FULLY switch to a natural diet or PARTIALLY. If you are unsure what kind of diet you want to put your ferrets on, please express that and we can help you find the best type of natural diet for your ferret.
I would like to completely switch my ferrets over to frankenprey
3. Why are you interested in switching your ferrets to a natural diet?
I was always concerned with my ferrets health and diet but was weary about making the switch to raw. My ferrets are both pretty picky eaters and switching them off of Marshalls food took a good bit of effort. Making the switch to raw seemed daunting. I was content with them being on "better" quality food until I found out my 18 month old male had bladder stones from eating too much plant based protein and needed surgery to remove them. Now I'm very concerned that my female might have them and my male won't recover from his surgery. I want my guys to live long, happy, healthy lives and raw seems to be the only way to do that.
4. Do you understand that switching your ferret to a natural diet can be a lengthy, arduous process? Its not an overnight switch. It requires a commitment of several months at minimum. Your HF Mentor will be more then happy to assist you in switching your ferret(s) to a natural diet, but you need to be equally as committed. The switch takes time and effort every single day. It can also be extremely frustrating at times. If you aren't willing to tough out a potentially lengthy switching process, you have major life changes approaching (baby on the way, moving, starting school, getting married/divorced, etc), or limited time due to work, then it might be a better idea to wait on switching your ferret's diet until you have more time. Are you willing and realistically able to make the necessary time commitment?
YES! I used that excuse before and I won't make that mistake again. I have nothing new or exciting going on in my life right now (I guess that's good?) and my husband is home for at least a month because of an injury at work
5. How many ferrets do you currently have? What are their names? Ages? Genders? Do they have any health problems? If so, what medications are they currently on? Are they overweight? Underweight? How long have you had each ferret for?
We have two ferrets. Our male ferret, Captain Flint (Flinters) we got just over a year ago and he is 16 months old. He is our "special" cuddly, 2.5 lb warrdy who just got diagnosed with bladder stones. The vet forgot (?!) that we wanted the stones tested but is sure that they weren't cystine stones because they showed up on X-rays. So hopefully it is diet related. He had surgery on sept 11th and is still having trouble urinating. He's on pain medication, antibiotics, and meds to help him pee for the next couple of days and is doing better.
Our female, Mrs Barlow (Missy) is 14 months old and we got her 9 months ago. She is a tiny little girl at 1.3 lbs and has a very nervous personality. Everything terrifies her at first but she is still extremely curious and excellent at getting up/in/under things you thought were ferret proof. It has been harder and slower to bond with her and she goes through "I hate Flinters" moods. I hope that the diet transition will help build trust and bring her closer to us.
6. What diet do you currently feed your ferrets? (Please include all treats, supplements, etc) Do they already eat some form of soup?
They are currently on a mix of Go! Fit and free turkey and duck cat food and Nutrience Sub-zero Fraser valley cat food. They also enjoy a dab of fish oil daily and the occasional piece of n-bone treat. I started blending their kibble into soup 2 days ago. Missy is now eating it out of the bowl but Flinters is still unsure and goes back and forth between being finger-fed and eating out of the bowl.
7. Have you ever tried to switch your ferrets to a natural diet in the past? If yes, what happened?
I tried giving Missy egg and that sort of worked for a while. She did start eating it off my finger but had to be reminded every time that it wasn't poison. I haven't given her any in a while because she has been pooping well. There was also switching them from ferretone to fish oil. At first they both thought it was the most disgusting thing ever and would wipe their fishy faces on my carpet for awhile after trying to give it to them. But they eventually learned that it was the best thing ever!
8. What additional information about yourself or your ferrets would you like to share?
My husband, Dan will be at home with the ferrets during the day for the next while and will be feeding them breakfast. He is softer on the ferrets than me and will need to be... trained to be strong and not give in when they protest their new food
9. How often during the week do you have access to a computer?
24/7. Don't know how else to function
10. Please post a picture of each of your ferrets (if possible).
Flinters-top Missy-bottom
11. Do you have a scale sufficient to measure soup ingredients AND to regularly weigh your ferrets?
It gave mean excuse to go shopping on amazon! It was delivered yesterday
12. Have you met the requirements for this program? Are you at least 18 years of age? Do you have your scale, a place to access meats, hearts, livers, etc?
Yes, I am depressingly older than 18, I have spent lots of money on amazon to weigh and feed my ferrets, and there is literally a butcher downstairs (he is a little weird and I think?? he said he would help but if he gives up problems there are several asian grocery stores nearby and another butcher that I know for sure does raw for pets about 30 min from my house
13. Do you understand that if your mentor or an admin recommends seeking veterinary care and you refuse to seek appropriate care you may be dropped from the mentoring program?
Yes, I should be
14. We occasionally have a wait for a Mentor to be available. While you wait we encourage you to get started by creating your own switching thread under Diet Transitions where all of our mentors and members can help you while you wait for your personal mentor. See here --> holisticferret60.proboards.com/board/66/diet-transitions
Hi and welcome to the mentoring program. In a little while your mentor (Aftershock), will introduce herself and you can get started on a new adventure in natural ferret care and diets. Please remember to post regularly (daily or as per arranged with your mentor) so that your mentor can assist you move along safely in this adventure. If you experience computer difficulties or are going to be away, please notify your mentor and most of all relax and have fun. Your mentor is here to help you on this journey.
ciao