Kaitlyn
Junior Member
Raw and Whole Prey Feeder
Occupation: Wife, Dog Enthusiest, Ferret Lover, and Gecko Chew Toy
Posts: 170
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Post by Kaitlyn on Sept 16, 2017 19:54:05 GMT -5
So I brought the boys home. We're already in love.
I have them some small bits of beef for dinner, they were pretty interested at first, then turned there noses up in favor of napping in their new hammocks.
I bought a bag of Marshals. Because that's what they've been eating. But I can't bring myself to give it to them.
Should I just leave the bowl over night? I mean they have had a big day. Or should I make them some soup?
Ratchet is only 2 months, Paint is 3 or 4. Their paperwork wasn't super specific.
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Post by LindaM on Sept 16, 2017 21:41:42 GMT -5
Beef has a strong smell and taste as compared to other meats. Which is why most of us start off using a mild meat like chicken, it tends to have more success to start off with.
Pork is another mild meat.
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Kaitlyn
Junior Member
Raw and Whole Prey Feeder
Occupation: Wife, Dog Enthusiest, Ferret Lover, and Gecko Chew Toy
Posts: 170
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Post by Kaitlyn on Sept 16, 2017 22:02:04 GMT -5
I'll leave the beef overnight, and try chicken in the morning. If they won't touch that, I'll break down and give them some kibble. I don't want to starve them, but that marshalls food is crap!
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Kaitlyn
Junior Member
Raw and Whole Prey Feeder
Occupation: Wife, Dog Enthusiest, Ferret Lover, and Gecko Chew Toy
Posts: 170
|
Post by Kaitlyn on Sept 17, 2017 8:27:46 GMT -5
Ugh...just gave some slivers of chicken this morning. Paint sniffed it, and promptly tried to dump the bowl. They're not interested at all in trying meat.
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Post by abbeytheferret6 on Sept 17, 2017 11:49:31 GMT -5
Looks like your going to have to make a soupie:) Blend: 8 oz of chicken breast or thigh 1 oz of hearts 1 oz chicken liver 1/2 to 3/4 oz of powdered eggshell or human grade bone-meal (just plain, no added vitamins)
I water it to about consistency of meat baby food.
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Post by LindaM on Sept 17, 2017 13:39:50 GMT -5
Time to go soupie! Use the recipe Abbey posted. It tends to come out kinda like a yogurt consistency, which is pretty much like baby food as Abbey said. Try to follow the Grab'n'Dab method as well. You can do this all throughout the day as you have time, or in a timed session of 20-30 minutes, dabbing every 5 minutes.
Grab your ferret and place them on your lap, dip finger into soupie, and dab onto their mouth/nose/gums. This will encourage them to lick it off and thus get the taste in their mouth. Do not fret if they shake their head and try to make off, this will likely happen a few times. Little kids don't tend to like veggies either... and this is the same process, LOL. You will be teaching them that this is food, and not poison.
Let us know how it goes, whether you make any progress or not, and we'll see what else can be done. Just be aware it may take a day or two. Until then, you may have to resolve to offering them some kibble so they do not starve themselves, until you can get them to eat from the soupie by themselves (meaning they will see it as food then), and once you're at that stage you can throw that bag of kibble as far as you'd like. : )
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Kaitlyn
Junior Member
Raw and Whole Prey Feeder
Occupation: Wife, Dog Enthusiest, Ferret Lover, and Gecko Chew Toy
Posts: 170
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Post by Kaitlyn on Sept 17, 2017 13:59:16 GMT -5
Yeah, we have eggs drying out as we speak to make some soup for the boys tonight. I put a handful of kibble in there so they have something to eat.
My fear with the stuff and scruff method, they're not wild about handling to begin with and Paint especially is a nippy little thing. I don't to make them fear me since they're so new. Will this damage out relationship to try getting them to eat soup?
Trust me, there will be a bonfire and much dancing when that kibble is tossed.
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Post by LindaM on Sept 17, 2017 14:08:50 GMT -5
Hmm, personally, I've actually never needed to scruff and stuff much myself. I have used the Grab'n'Dab method a bunch though. But I do know that the Scruff'n'Stuff method indeed does work for people. Loki never minded scruffing in any way, Athena... she despised it and I just couldn't scruff her for the LONGEST time, it made her retaliate in anger, and with Ares and Apollo, I never needed to for food anyway. But all that aside.. scruffing is something you absolutely must try to teach your ferrets. But NEVER for discipline though. Because scruffing is often necessary when it comes to medical reasons like visiting the vet, check-ups and medications, it is important that they will allow scruffing. Therefore they need to associate it with something good and pleasant, eg. treats and praise. Whenever you scruff, follow up with a reward. Hmmm.. Katt also has a video on here somewhere where she shows a wonderful bonding method that involves gentle scruffing, when I first got Loki, I did that with him and honestly, all my lot let me do it to them. They love it, they turn into butter, I don't even do the scruff part of it anymore. katt, could you please post a link to that video for us, I can't seem to find it right now.
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Kaitlyn
Junior Member
Raw and Whole Prey Feeder
Occupation: Wife, Dog Enthusiest, Ferret Lover, and Gecko Chew Toy
Posts: 170
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Post by Kaitlyn on Sept 17, 2017 20:22:24 GMT -5
Well, we managed to get some soup in them.
I think my husband got more all over Ratchets face than in him.
I got Paint willingly licking it off my fingers for a little bit. Them his patience at being held ran out and he wanted down.
Right now they're zooming around the room, and I left a bowl with some soup in it out, hopefully they're hungry enough to eat it.
They did eat a little kibble this afternoon, but not a whole bunch.
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Kaitlyn
Junior Member
Raw and Whole Prey Feeder
Occupation: Wife, Dog Enthusiest, Ferret Lover, and Gecko Chew Toy
Posts: 170
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Post by Kaitlyn on Sept 18, 2017 7:44:36 GMT -5
I'm proud to report that the bowl of soupie left with the boys over night was licked clean this morning! Instead of grab and dab, I just gave them a bowl this morning, so we'll see how it goes!
Edit: Took the boys to get checked out by a vet today. Ratchet has been sneezing. He has a respiratory infection. So both boys are getting daily antibiotics and some anti inflammtorys to bring Ratchets fever down and insure Paint doesn't catch it.
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Post by LindaM on Sept 18, 2017 16:23:06 GMT -5
Aww, I'm sorry to hear that, poor little Ratchet! But... I am very happy to hear that the little snooters gobbled up their soup last night. Let me know how it goes with that today.
As for respiratory infections.. sadly, rather common in fuzzies but should never be ignored. There are things you can do at home to lessen the risk some too. It's best to wash their bedding with a fragrance free and dye free detergent. I'm asthmatic, so we wash all our clothing in one already, we use All Free & Clear, which is hypoallergenic, fragrance free and dye free. Don't use perfumes near them, it can upset wee nosies. Same goes, and even more so, for air fresheners, incenses and scented candles, most often because these include EO's (Essential Oils which are toxic). Dust and dirt can cause some irritation too, and hair from other pets can cause extra sneezing as well. We had to clean extra well because of our cat, who sheds all the time.. the stinker.
Oh, and if you don't know yet.. fuzzies cannot get the rhinovirus (common cold) from their humans, BUT they can definitely get the flu from us and it hits them harder and longer than us. So steer clear of wee babies when you have the flu or fear it might be flu and not a simple cold. I try to stay away and have hubby handle the kids if I even think it might be a possible flu but not sure. Better safe than sorry, right?
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Kaitlyn
Junior Member
Raw and Whole Prey Feeder
Occupation: Wife, Dog Enthusiest, Ferret Lover, and Gecko Chew Toy
Posts: 170
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Post by Kaitlyn on Sept 18, 2017 19:58:42 GMT -5
Today they ate most of it. There's still some in the bowl, but I'll take what I can get at this point. I'm considering cutting up some tiny chunks of chicken to mix in with their soup tonight.
Also, their poop smells REALLY bad, like a skunk died in their cage or something. Is that normal? Will it always be this way on raw?
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Post by LindaM on Sept 18, 2017 21:54:13 GMT -5
No dear, it will not always be this horrendous, I promise. But for now, it is a necessary evil. They will be going through what is known as the Detox phase.. and those are detox poops. Nasty, stinky things! Detox poops can range all over the place in consistency and color too and yes.. you guessed it, smells awful. These can continue for around 4-6 weeks. Once that passes, on raw most poopies barely have a smell, other than organ and heart poops.. those are still stinky to me.
During the Detox phase, it's common for fuzzies to eat more than they usually would too. Think of it like making up for lost nutrients.
See if they will try some tiny slivers and let me know how that goes, maybe there will be more success this time around. If not, then you can always continue with the soup as is for a bit more and try again. The fact that they will eat the soup is already progress.
Are you still offering kibble? How much soupie are you offering them? Are you weighing the meals before giving and after taking the bowl back and marking it down in a book somewhere? This is usually advised to get a better idea of averages that your fuzzies will eat by tracking their intake and adjusting accordingly over the course of a week or two. Also, are you weighing the wee fuzzies? It's pretty helpful and important to do in a switch.
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Kaitlyn
Junior Member
Raw and Whole Prey Feeder
Occupation: Wife, Dog Enthusiest, Ferret Lover, and Gecko Chew Toy
Posts: 170
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Post by Kaitlyn on Sept 19, 2017 10:29:18 GMT -5
Thanks Linda!
Slivers mixed with their soup didn't go too well. They just ate around them.
I'm not still offering kibble since they're eating the soup so well. I have not been weighing the meals, but took your advice and weighed their bowl this morning. I'm offering 4 oz of soup. I'm not sure how much they should be eating, so if this is all gone, I'll offer 5oz this evening and so on until I hit the right amount for them with a little left over. I know kits eat more than adults. The fuzzies were weighed at the vet yesterday, and I will be weighing them daily, starting tonight, to be sure that Ratchet is actually eating. I know Paint is, because he shoves his whole face in the food dish. But have yet to actually witness Ratchet eating.
I'll touch base again tonight. We need to make more soupie. They went through it pretty fast.
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Post by LindaM on Sept 19, 2017 13:30:09 GMT -5
Stinkers...
Well, either way, it is good that they are eating soup fully by themselves, and yes, no more need for any kibble then. Feel free to burn at will. ; P
You don't necessarily have to do a daily weigh in, twice a week or a weekly weight should be fine. But if Ratchet is really a concern, feel free to do more if it brings you peace of mind. It is perfectly normal for weights to fluctuate a bit, and there can be a good bit of that at the start of a raw diet. Usually, it can go one way or the other, A) ferret loses fat first and then starts building muscle, B) ferret keeps fat and builds muscle first before losing the fat. Thus some might look like they're skinny while losing weight and others like they're fat and just picking up more. But we keep track of the weights to see if anyone is going too far off on either sides and might need some extra attention to their diet if so.
You have young kits, Ratchet at least should literally be a tummy with teeth and Paint may very well still be too since he's pretty young too. Kits will eat up to 4x the amount an adult will average. And just so you know for later on, or if you decide to add an older ferret at any stage, these are the adult averages: Female adult averages 1-3oz of food per day. Male adult averages 2-5oz of food per day (there's a bit of variance there.. some do 2-4oz average others more like 3-5oz). While this rule doesn't apply to kits, it does later on to adults; Age, Gender and Seasonal changes affect the appetite of a ferret, as can health. Winter will see your fuzzies eat more, slow down and pick up chubbiness, up to 40% of their body weight. Come the Spring and Summer, and they will get more active, slim down and lose up to 40% of their body weight. It can be a shocker the first time, thus it's good to keep track of weights, so you don't get gray hairs in the following years when it isn't something major. ^^ I believe your ferrets' first winter will also see them at their heaviest generally.
Have you tried offering either of the little stinkers any raw eggs yet? Do you know the rules and benefit of giving raw egg?
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