Experienced keepers please take a look at my raw diet plan

[Molly]

Hello,


I would really appreciate if the experienced ferret keepers can take a look at my weekly raw feeding schedule (below) and tell me if it is balanced. Is there anything I need to change? Feed less of? Feed more of?

I feel like I'm feeding too much hearts/organ. Also, my ferrets poops look very chalky when given a lot of bone in meats, which is why I provide 2 boneless beef meals.

I did read the frankenprey menu and balancing whole prey/grinds. I tried to follow it the best I could.


I would greatly appreciate ANY advice. I'm placing another order this week from hare-today.


MONDAY:
AM: Mutton (Grind)
PM: Beef (muscle)

TUESDAY:
AM: Hearts (turkey)
PM: Duck neck (bone in)

WEDNESDAY:
AM: Rabbit (grind)
PM: Quail (bone in)

THURSDAY:
AM: Kidneys (lamb)
PM: Quail (bone in)

FRIDAY:
AM: Duck (Grind)
PM: Hearts (duck)

SATURDAY:
AM: Duck neck (bone in)
PM: Liver (pork + beef)


SUNDAY:
AM: Turkey neck (bone in)
PM: Beef (muscle)

[LindaM]

Yeah, this meal plan isn't balanced. There is too much heart and why kidney and liver separate meals? I'll go through it properly and advise on it and what you can change to balance it when I get home in a bit.

[pegleg]

What grinds are you using? Not all are balanced.

[LindaM]

Okay, so first, yes that's too much heart. This is what the full Frankenprey menu requires:
1.5 meals of Heart
1.5 meals of Organs (half liver + half other organ)
7-9 meals of Bone-In
2-4 meals of Muscle

Now, you're trying to feed liver and kidney separate, that's not going to work well, because then you're feeding way too much organs. Do your organ meal of half liver and half other, like kidney. I got your message about worrying about picking favorites from this, if you are truly concerned, blend them together in the blender and tada.. they can't pick out a favorite from a pate/soup.

I also have to ask, are your grinds balanced? Where are you getting them from and do you know if they are a whole animal grind or perhaps know the ratios of the grind.

When you bring grinds into your Frankenprey menu, it requires some extra balancing, using this Balancing Chart.
holisticferretforum.com/natural-diet/raw-diet-the-meat-of-the-site/balancing-frankenprey-with-alternative-meals/
Since when using a balanced grind, you are technically feeding heart, organ, bone and muscle all in a single meal, this means your usual amounts of each meal type will decrease some. There is also currently still an error on the chart with choosing 3 grinds, so instead pick either if you want to do 2 or 4.

With 2 grinds, you will have 1.5 heart meals, 1.5 organ meals, 1 muscle and 8 bone-in.
With 4 grinds, you will have 1 heart meal, 1 organ meal, 1 muscle meal, and 7 bone-in.
Now since you say your ferrets seem to get constipated on the larger amount of bone-in meals, they probably will do okay by changing one of the bone-in to muscle.

And when you need to do the 1.5 meals ones, you can do a full meal of hearts, a full meal of organs and one meal of half heart and half organs (1/4 liver + 1/4 other organ).