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Post by darkmoonslayer on Jul 2, 2011 5:19:50 GMT -5
Hey, I'm Emily, but I prefer to go by Emmers. I'm turning 23 this year and own one female ferret named Sloane.
I've had Sloane for... 2 years, yeah just over 2 years got her in January of 2009. Anyway she's been on several kibble diets and none seemed to help with her poor fur quality and her weight issues (she is quite thin despite being allowed to eat as much as she wants).
I'm kinda hoping a somewhat drastic diet change with help with things.
I've never fed any of my pets a raw diet, simply because I've never had a pet that has done anything but good on standard kibble, but that's probably a testament to my pet's resilience more than the quality of the food they were eating.
Anyway I want to try a raw diet for Sloane. I have tried giving her bits of meat before but she never seemed interested in them and inevitably the dogs would find the meat and scarf it down. So I'm worried about her switch being potentially tricky.
I'm also worried about the expense of a raw diet. I live on an extremely low income and wouldn't even have a ferret in the first place had she not fallen out of the sky into my lap.
Anyway. Hi.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 2, 2011 7:06:42 GMT -5
Hello and welcome to the forum Emmers! You sure have come to the right place!  Raw will defiantly give you more control over your fuzzies diet and hopefully help gain a few pounds on her. Good luck with the switch! Looking forward to reading more about you and Sloane. |
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Post by Sherry on Jul 2, 2011 9:11:07 GMT -5
Hi, and welcome Please, feel free to browse, post ask questions, etc! And you have GOT to give us some pictures of your little Sloane ;D As for the cost of raw. It would be about the equivalent of a higher quality kibble, if not a bit less(because you can usually find sales for meat- not the kibble  ). Start with the raw soupie method listed here: holisticferret60.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=meat&action=display&thread=145And don't forget to sign yourself up for a mentor while you are trying this |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 2, 2011 11:11:03 GMT -5
Welcome to the forum, and you've come to the right place to find a more natural diet for your ferret! There's a wealth of information here, and very helpful and knowledgeable people.
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Post by katt on Jul 2, 2011 11:17:00 GMT -5
Hello! Welcome!  Firt of all...we need PICTURES!   ;D ;D ;D ;D Now onto your questions. Raw should help her to put on muscle weight, though it is always possible there is an underlying issue as well. It will definitely help the quality of her coat, clean her teeth, improve her overall energy and health, eliminate the smell, and decrease the amount of poop! (Who doesn't want less poop? ). As for the expense, feeding raw is actually quite inexpensive. For one ferret, $40 of meat stocked up in the freezer could last you upwards of 4-5 months or more. On a raw diet, they are getting more of what they need from their food and thus are able to eat less. With kibble, the nutrition and protein values are very low (even high quality kibbles cannot compare to raw) and they must eat a LOT more food to get the same level of nutrition. As for the switch - no problem! that's what we do here! Sign up for a mentor in our mentoring program. You will get a mentor who will work with you one on one to guide you through the switch to raw. Ferrets tend to imprint on their food and switching any ferret can be tricky, so what you are saying about Sloane not wanting the chicken is completely normal. Time, patience, and going through a gradual switching process will typically do the trick. Read around, ask questions. We are here to help! Look forward to seeing you around! |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 2, 2011 11:34:48 GMT -5
:DMy Maisey-Mae is a thin little petite, and she gained on raw. She gained the most at her first raw winter................at her winter time weight, she even got cute little fat rolls! She has thinned back out for the summer. Some ferrets are a whippet body type, I've been told. |
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Post by Heather on Jul 2, 2011 13:41:13 GMT -5
Hi and welcome on board. Please feel free to prowl around. You may want to take some time browsing through the diet section. Ask questions, get involved in discussions, ask questions about things that don't make, sense or confuse (believe me these aren't the easiest little ones to look after ) If your interested in switching your little one onto a raw diet then I might suggest a mentor. For some little ones they take to it like they know it's good for them...others are a royal pain ;D A mentor is someone to bounce ideas off of, and generally offer a shoulder to cry on when frustration hits an all time high  ;D ;D As far as cost, for one ferret it shouldn't be that difficult or painful in the pocket book. At first the cost may seem high but once you get your suppliers down, get your little one on a menu that you can plan for, buy your meats on sale, it works out that (in my area anyway) it's a lot cheaper than high end kibbles. It also works in dealing with the vetting. I find that my little ones are healthier, live longer and cost me less at the vets. That doesn't mean that they don't get sick, don't get the horrible ferret diseases because they do, but I've had a number of fuzzes live well past 8 or 9 yrs (my oldest was about 12 or so..in fact was switched onto a raw diet at 10) The diet also means that they seem to cope better while dealing with these diseases I hope that we will be seeing you around and of course pictures will be expected ;D ;D ciao |
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Post by miamiferret2 on Jul 2, 2011 14:59:10 GMT -5
Hello and welcome.
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Post by darkmoonslayer on Jul 2, 2011 20:27:22 GMT -5
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Post by Deleted on Jul 2, 2011 23:19:30 GMT -5
Sloane looks like a sweetheart!
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Post by darkmoonslayer on Jul 2, 2011 23:26:31 GMT -5
Sloane really is a sweetie. She often spend the night sleeping between my knees or across one fo my legs.  |
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Post by Sherry on Jul 3, 2011 11:18:42 GMT -5
Oh, what a little beauty  |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 3, 2011 16:43:22 GMT -5
Hi and Welcome to the group! Everyone here is awesome and feeding raw has done wonders for my dogs and 11 fuzz! (my cats, well they are uber stubborn and will go on hunger strike rather than eat raw...monsters!)
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Post by darlene on Jul 3, 2011 22:12:04 GMT -5
Hi and welcome to the group Sloane is very pretty.,lots of great pics you have of her
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Post by Deleted on Jul 4, 2011 2:52:12 GMT -5
Welcome to the board Emmers and Salone, who btw is such a beautiful girl!!!!!! Loooving that coat! Getting an older pre-kibble eating ferret to eat raw can be a pain in the butt, but its worth it. You can start her off with soupies, she probably wont be interested, you can blend in some of her kibble to help her realize that its food- you can blend in treats to help her realize its food- you can try to hand feed her.. put liquidy treats on on side of a plate and soupie on the other, when shes into eating spin the plate so she starts eating the soupie... there are countless switching methods and if all else fails you can give her some in a syringe. The point is, right now she doesnt realize its food and she has to learn first, she will probably fight you and gag and act like shes choaking and then rub her face on the carpet but thats because she isnt used to the texture. Believe me though, its worth the argument/fight and hissy-fits. It will def help her put on the lbs. My older male, Mojito, gave me a h-e- double hocky stick of a time switching but after 3-4 months of trying (i think it was) he is now the first to run to the meat when I put it in their room. I have 3 ferrets and I find that raw is cheaper than kibble... Plus, once you really get into it you will find your self searching craigslist and freecycle for cheap/free unwanted chics/rabbits/squirrles etc. in your area. I just got 3 roosters from my uncle, my fiancee went out and killed them and then we cleaned and cut them and fed them to the fuzz. Its a very rewarding experience, let me tell you. I hope you decide to do it. I dont know if youll find this useful but, my youngest (Southern Comfort, aka SoCo) is 6 months old and four lbs... i started him on raw when he was 11 weeks old kit and he is by far the biggest ferret between my 3, my best friends 4 and he is even a smidgin bigger than TTFR's biggest boy (shes another member of the board and she has 13 ferrets) and her boy (Taz) is a month older than SoCo... SoCo is a foodie though. My female, Kahlua, was (like Mojito) adopted at an older age and she put on SO MUCH weight when I switched her to raw. Im thinking maybe a pound/pound and a half. Before she dropped her winter weight she was so much huskier than normal that she needed help to climb into boxes and she naturally has a thinner, whippet style frame. It is definately going to help weight gain. However, as Katt said, there could be an underlying issue. We'll pray there isnt, but keep in mind that it is always a danger. When I got Mojito he was the epitome of chunky and beautful, soon though, he started dropping weight. I thought it was the season change but it wasnt... Soon we had to start treating him for adrenal, now he is being treated for adrenal and insulinoma and ulcers... but on a lighter note- things are not always as bad as they seem. Like, when I got Kahlua she LOOKED adrenal and it turned out that she was just extremly malnurited (I got them like 7 months apart from different previous owners, Kahlua I got first) so sometimes you really cant tell with these little critters. But of course also keep in mind that we will be more than happy to help her on her way to being Salone at her Healthiest |
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;D ;D As far as cost, for one ferret it shouldn't be that difficult or painful in the pocket book. 
