How Much and Often to Feed Young Ferret?

[Abigail]

Hello ~

I am new to the world of ferrets, and recently got my first ferret (as an adult, I’ve had them growing up. I’m 22 now), and recently made the switch to a raw diet.

My question is : My ferret is about 3 months old, and he just tried his first soup yesterday, and over the course of about 7 hours (he ate around 1-1.5 ounces) he finished all of it! Should I be giving him more food after he eats it all, or be doing every 12 hours or so?

Thanks!
Abigail

[LindaM]

Feed that wee one as much as he wants for now. Kits eat a lot, and their little bodies need all that food to grow big and strong.

To give you an idea:
The adult female will eat on average 1-3oz of food per day.
The adult male will eat on average 2-5oz of food per day.

Kits can eat up to 4x the amounts of their adult counterpart.

You can actually try a chicken wing with him, whole at first and if not, then maybe cut into 3 sections. Interest him in playing with it with him, like tied to a stick like a cat chaser toy. Kits don't always need to start at the soup phase like older ferrets and can usually move their switch along really quickly or even skip some of the steps ahead.

[Heather]

At 3 months of age, you're probably going to need feed 4x a day. Usually around 4 months of age they start cutting back (so does their growth), so are comfortable eating 3x a day. They will eventually cut themselves back to twice at around 5 or 6 months
ciao

[Abigail]

Thanks you two! He is eating a ton right now, but I dont mind , whatever will keep him happy and healthy!

[Abigail]

He is currently eating anything I hand him lol. I went from the soup to a chicken wing, and he is eating like mad lol, this was a super easy switch for both him and me lol!

[LindaM]

Excellent! That's great to hear. Be sure to offer him a minimum of at least 3-4 different proteins overall in his menu. His bone-in meals should have a minimum of at least 2 different proteins. And just to make sure your menu is balanced, and you know how many meals of which to feed, as well as offer some great idea on what variety to offer, I'm gonna link to the Basic Frankenprey Menu below.

holisticferretforum.com/natural-diet/raw-diet-the-meat-of-the-site/basic-frankenprey-menu/

And remember, if you get stuck anywhere or have a question, you're always welcome to ask!

[Abigail]

Thank you Linda! I offer as much as I can I have chicken wings (and necks coming from hare-today), beef grind, goat grind, duck grind, rabbit grind, quail grind, some bison kidney, pork livers, lamb heart, turkey heart, turkey liver, I also have some pork/beef muscle meat, and some gizzards He eats a ton so I hope this will last a little while lol! Ill be getting some bulk grinds sometime next month (two different 5lb grinds of whatever sounds 'yummy' lol). He is already spoiled silly!

[Heather]

You can't spoil a kit with food. The more variety you feed now the less likely he's going to refuse a given protein when he's older
ciao

[Abigail]

True, but I do consider him spoiled with everything he gets and already has / experiences lol