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Post by Deleted on Jun 11, 2011 13:46:43 GMT -5
How long after switching a ferret to raw do the poops start to look like normal raw fed poops?
Does that question make sense? lol
Luna has been on raw since she came.... 3 weeks and her poops are all over the board, from green to normal to runny to mucus to normal... to even a weird good formed whitish grey poop (which I haven't seen in any ferret poop chart)
She eats everything, bone and all, and gets the same menu Zeke does, and his poops are normal.
The others took much longer to transition so the poops took longer to transition. Luna on the other hand ate a chicken wing the second day and never looked back LOL
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Post by Heather on Jun 11, 2011 13:51:27 GMT -5
I find the poops are totally dependent on what's been fed  Dark slimy poos, blood and organs. Tightly wound light poos, mice. Dark loose stools, rats, which later become lighter and wound like the mice as they eat the skin and fur (organs and brains go first) Some fuzzes are less variable than others. I think like humans some are more sensitive to food changes than others. Does that help at all? ciao |
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Post by Deleted on Jun 11, 2011 13:53:46 GMT -5
lol not really.  I do see the different poops with the organs etc, but if she is eating the same meal as zeke I'd expect her stools to be the same as his. no? they are not so was wondering if it was because she's so newly on raw, of if something else might be the issue. |
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Post by Heather on Jun 11, 2011 14:02:06 GMT -5
I can feed the same meal across the board...say mice and I will get 10 different types of stools. They will be similar but some will be drier, more liquid...I won't say green that sound like a stomach upset. Is she ok otherwise?
ciao
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Post by Deleted on Jun 11, 2011 14:38:12 GMT -5
Is it varying with protein? I would start a chart and document what food produce that stool. See if there's a pattern.
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Post by Sherry on Jun 11, 2011 17:44:14 GMT -5
Any idea what she was eating previously? If it was a low quality kibble, it will likely take her body a bit longer to adjust to the higher protein values.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 11, 2011 18:45:34 GMT -5
Yes heather she is great other wise, high energy, inquistive, stubborn, playful, sock thief. Eats anything you give her.
Not sure about which protiens, jackie thats a good idea, i'll start adding that to my notes.
Sherry they just said it was ferret kibble they got at the pet store, so guessing marshalls as that's seen in most pets stores around here.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 11, 2011 19:38:43 GMT -5
My girls have been on raw for about a month now, maybe longer and their poops are finally just starting to really be more consistent. I find that my one ferret Olivia still gets those really weird light greyish/mucousy/undigested food poops you mentioned above occassionaly, and I haven't really been able to track it to a certain protein. It just seems that sometimes the food passes through too quickly. My girls were on super crappy kibble at the pet store too, and despite being so young, it has taken their digestive systems a while to start consistently pushing out good looking poops. I guess we just have to be patient? EDIT: Do we have a ferret poop chart somewhere on this forum? Or do you have a link to any good ones?  |
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Post by Deleted on Jun 11, 2011 20:06:12 GMT -5
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Post by Deleted on Jun 11, 2011 20:25:43 GMT -5
Thanks, that chart is awewsome!
It is missing the lighter coloured poops though like you said. Does anyone else have idea what grey/very light coloured poops could indicate?
I'll definitly have to take some pics the next time I see it.
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Post by Heather on Jun 11, 2011 21:08:13 GMT -5
It is difficult to point a finger at a stool colour and say this is because of this....it's like saying because my ferret has clay coloured stools that she has lymphoma or is in kidney failure. This along with other symptoms might indeed be the case...but it's the other symptoms that are the key components. When feeding a natural diet you will see a wide range of really funky colours and consistencies depending on what has been fed and how the body processed the proteins. Aremis had lymphomas, because of how his body processed proteins and digested foods, I always knew before he went into a decline because his stools would go white and had the consistency of lepages glue. That doesn't mean that if someone else's ferret has pale or whitish stools that they have lymphomas. I don't want people to panic because of a couple of funky stools. It may be a reason to look at what is going on with your ferret, it's diet, it's activity levels, sleep patterns....the check list is endless. Remember, stool checks are only one piece of the puzzle that makes up a whole method of diagnosing
ciao
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Post by miamiferret2 on Jun 11, 2011 22:01:05 GMT -5
I would not be concerned if he is eating, drinking, playing & acting normal.
Sonnys stools are never consistent. They are whitish if he's had too much fat, dark when he's eaten hearts or livers. Sometimes they are a greyish color.sometimes I see bones in his poops, sometimez I don't. Sometimes they are seedy. Sometimes they have a green tinge. The smoothest "nicest looking" poops are when I give him pumpkin and right now that is only a few times per week bc we are out of the shed season. I am getting used the inconsistent poops with the raw meat diet.
I do not become alarmed if I see a weird poop because he acts / plays like normal.
With all the crap that I've been through with very sick terminally ill ferrets (believe me, I've seen some BAD poops with a lot of fresh red blood in them)
now I only become concerned in the following situations: if I see red "frank" blood in the poop; hear whimpering while a ferret is pooping, see very runny or watery diarrhea for more than 3 consecutive bowel movements; see more than 3 bright green poops in a row; or if I see consistent black globs, strings or "coffee grounds" in the poop + teeth grinding & lethargy or decreased appetite.
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Post by miamiferret2 on Jun 11, 2011 22:03:57 GMT -5
BTW, I have never had a ferret that didn't have some mucousy weird colored stools during coat changes. Shed season does cause them stress.
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Post by Sherry on Jun 11, 2011 22:35:50 GMT -5
I only become concerned in the following situations: if I see red "frank" blood in the poop; hear whimpering while a ferret is pooping, see very runny or watery diarrhea for more than 3 consecutive bowel movements; see more than 3 bright green poops in a row; or if I see consistent black globs, strings or "coffee grounds" in the poop + teeth grinding & lethargy or decreased appetite. And quite frankly, that's the best way to look at it! Thank you for phrasing it so well  |
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Post by Deleted on Jun 11, 2011 23:57:11 GMT -5
Agreed, very well put and great advice! I think poop is one of those things that just changes to drive us worry warts crazy  Of course with Olivia's already mysterious health, I can't help but worry when the poop starts doing sporadic weird things too |
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Dark slimy poos, blood and organs. Tightly wound light poos, mice. Dark loose stools, rats, which later become lighter and wound like the mice as they eat the skin and fur (organs and brains go first) Some fuzzes are less variable than others. I think like humans some are more sensitive to food changes than others. Does that help at all?
