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Post by skyandemilia on Jan 11, 2018 16:03:19 GMT -5
Hi. I've been feeding my ferrets Stella & Chewy's frozen duck duck goose. It is 95% meat, organs, and bone. The primary ingredient is "Duck with Ground Bone"
My question is - what are they missing?
It contains ground bone but the bone pieces are too small to clean their teeth. I brush their teeth every few days but I'd prefer if they could keep them clean naturally. So what is the best thing I could supplement their diet with that would clean their teeth?
And besides bone/teeth health, is there anything else that the duck duck goose doesn't give them that they need?
One important note is that one of my ferrets is badly allergic to chicken. Thank you!
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Post by LindaM on Jan 11, 2018 17:42:05 GMT -5
Hi there! You need to be feeding a minimum of 3 different proteins, not just one. And since you are clearly feeding the canine version of S&C (the feline is 98% meat), it means they aren't getting sufficient levels of Taurine either. So, if you wish to continue feeding the canine S&C, you can, but be sure to mix in a little pureed heart when feeding it to make up for the lack of proper Taurine. If you plan to continue with grinds, there is nothing really that will clean their teeth, other than you brushing. You can offer at least 4 bone-in meals in the week, which should keep teeth clean from the bone-crunching, but it will require you to adjust and rebalance your menu. Turkey is easy enough to get a hold of in the store and it offers some bone-in options, eg. wing tips or necks. If you have an Asian store in the area, they'll usually offer whole duck, whole quail, whole rabbit, and frog legs. Those are all great for bone-in meals. Balancing Chart: holisticferretforum.com/natural-diet/raw-diet-the-meat-of-the-site/balancing-frankenprey-with-alternative-meals/Since you mention chicken allergies, if you wish to continue with the grinds for the majority of their menu, I suggest trying other flavors such as Lamb, Rabbit, Venison, etc. Skip the chicken. You can try the beef too, maybe with a bit of extra caution, but not all who are allergic to chicken are allergic to beef too, though those two are the most common ones when it comes to allergies/IBD. If you don't mind, may I ask why you prefer a grinds diet versus a frankenprey or mixed diet of both?
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Post by skyandemilia on Jan 11, 2018 18:49:13 GMT -5
Thank you!! You're right, I am using the canine version. The top ingredients are: "Duck With Ground Bone, Turkey, Turkey Liver, Goose, Turkey Gizzard" Does that not satisfy the 3 proteins because they are all poultry? And if I switch to the feline S&C does that have enough taurine? Anyways that was extremely helpful, thank you!! I will try all of these: - Switching from canine to feline
- Mixing it up with rabbit (I've had no luck in the past, they are too picky, but I'll try again since that's important)
- Wing tips and necks for dental health
Oh and I tried frankenprey once but almost threw up making it. I don't think I can handle that or whole prey
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Post by LindaM on Jan 11, 2018 19:22:34 GMT -5
Technically, no. They really use too little of the others for it to count. The reason we say to do a variety of proteins, is because not every protein has the same amounts of nutrients and minerals, they have varying levels, and by offering more than just one protein, you get to cover any gaps there may be. Variety also helps your ferrets from getting bored with a single protein and refusing to eat it, and from food sensitivities developing from constant overuse of a single protein.
The feline S&C does indeed have enough Taurine vs the canine. Oh, a small note, if you feed one with fish, that can only be a single meal per week.
You can mix a little of the new protein in with one they are used to, and just increase it over the course of a few meals until it's only the new protein, this helps them to get used to it. You can also spoon feed a new protein with them in your lap or with a tiny drizzle of salmon oil as incentive.
As for the Frankenprey, which part of it freaked you out dear? The hearts and organs? Because the largest majority of it is pretty much bone-in meals, and it's all human-grade meat, pretty much the same meat we use for our own food ('cept we don't eat the bones, and some of it "WE" technically may not make for ourselves to eat, but other people might, eg. rabbit). I totally get you on the whole prey, I am working on that one myself still. But by far, doing Frankenprey is quite easy once you get the hang of it, and it really saves money by comparison. Is there anything we might be able to help with or set your mind at ease with? Believe me, I am quite squeamish when it comes to meat, I can tell you so many stories about that, but I am now able to feed a raw Frankenprey diet to our ferrets without much fuss.
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Post by skyandemilia on Jan 11, 2018 21:45:29 GMT -5
Thank you again for such clear and helpful answers! I was ok with the ingredients since I've cooked meat for myself. The part that really made me nauseous was blending it. Seeing what used to be an animal basically turned into mush I know that the frozen raw is literally the same thing but it just made me sick doing it myself
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Post by LindaM on Jan 11, 2018 23:43:41 GMT -5
Ah, I getcha. Yeah, the soup can be a bit freaky at first (this is technically why I don't eat minced/ground chicken, I can't get past the fact the chicken was mangled that way, yet I prefer ground beef instead of normal). But honestly, once you get past that stage, it's pretty easy. You can..bypass it when using commercial though. Same way you use the commercial (I assume you mush it with a spoon a bit?), you can start adding tiny slivers of meat into it, just as you would have when starting to progress onward from the soup stage. And then just continue from there on.
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