How to feed raw to kits often enough?

[maurc43]

Hello, I work 8am to 5pm monday through friday. I've read in multiple places that kits need to eat 3 to 4 times a day so I was wondering how people do that have to work. Do people just leave raw meat in their cage until they get home?

Also, If i'm feeding in their cage, do I need to take out their fleece I have covering the floor or will I need to change it everyday so it doesn't stink or have bacteria all over it.

How long is it safe to leave raw meat out? My vet that is against raw diets for pets so I want to make sure I take precautions so they don't get sick. Also, Is it okay to refreeze what they don't eat so I can offer it to them later if it's been sitting for a couple hours?

[LindaM]

I "free-fed" my lot when I had kits. I'd put out only 2 meals for the entire day, a morning/AM meal and an evening/PM meal, BUT I'd leave the bowls down until it is time to change meals, then I'd replace with the next meal.

During the first while, you may want to keep a diary of feeding. Make a note of the amount of food offered by weighing it and then feeding, and again when taking the bowl back to weigh leftovers at changing time. I like using multiple of the same bowls, so I can tare/zero my scale to the weight of an empty bowl, and thus get a food only weight.

If bowls are empty at meal change, it could be someone didn't get enough food to eat. If there is a lot remaining, then you fed too much. I always try to aim for a bite or two left at the changing time, so I know everyone had enough available to them.

Keep in mind, kits can eat up to 4x the amount an adult of the same gender would. Adult female on average eats 1-3oz per day. Adult male on average eats 2-5oz per day.

I would not refreeze something that's been out a while, especially if it had been frozen and thawed and frozen once before. I try to stick to the usual food safety rules. If frozen raw meat is thawed inside the fridge, it can be refrozen once again. If it's been out of the fridge for 2 or more hours, then do not refreeze it.

How long to leave Raw out for:
Soups: 6-8 hours
Grinds: 8-12 hours
Chunks: 10-24 hours (depending on size eg. the bigger the chunks are, the longer they'll last)
Bone-in Meats: 12-24 hours (again, depending on size)
Whole Prey: up to 48 hours

[maurc43]

Okay thank you! You mentioned you feed yours in bowls... does each ferret get their own bowl? Do you put anything under the bowl so they don't get meat juice everywhere? Or do you just wash whatever you keep in the cage often and it's fine?

[LindaM]

I have several sizes of restaurant supply quality stainless bowls, they're pretty flat, which the ferrets and cat like. Some days the ferrets each get their own bowl (always on a day I offer grinds/heart/organs). Other days, I just plop down one large bowl with food in.

My ferrets aren't caged. They have their own 300sft bedroom to themselves, and free-roam the entire downstairs of our home morning till midnight or when we go to bed around 1am or 2am. And they most definitely drag their meat wherever the heck they like. I've had to scrub carpet under the desk next to their daddy's desk downstairs.

Whether you offer a bowl or not, chances are your ferrets will feel the need to stash, or eat elsewhere. There are tricks to help this. Some attach meat to shower hooks in the cage so they can't stash meat, though some ferrets might rip off some and stash anyway. Providing a feeding den can help, especially with multiple ferrets, but each will need one. You can use a box and toss after a few uses, or a plastic storage container with an opening cut into it.

Older photos of the bowls I use, this is the smallest size ones.

[Sherry]

For me, I serve grinds and organs on a flat dish, like you would use for a bread plate. Regular meat is just given on the cage floor. It is an easy wipe up afterwards. I just give a spray of vinegar/water mix and wipe next meal time before putting down the new meal.