Upsidedown's Switching Thread/Sherry

[Heather]

1. Where did you first learn about natural diets for ferrets?
I was thinking about switching my dogs and Saunga wasn't looking as good as he used to, so I googled it and it brought me here

2. Please describe the type of diet you would like assistance in switching your ferret(s) to.
This is where I'm not entirely sure. Because I can be out of town a fair bit what I will most likely be able to do is a mixture of pre-packaged raw, ie Primal for cats or Wysong or something like that, and actual meat.

3. Why are you interested in switching your ferrets to a natural diet?
Saunga was looking a little worse for wear, and I am hoping this will help with that.

4. Do you understand that switching your ferret to a natural diet can be a lengthy, arduous process? Its not an overnight switch. It can be a commitment of several weeks or even months. Your HF Mentor will be more then happy to assist you in switchng your ferret(s) to a natural diet, but you need to be equally as commited. If you aren't willing to tough out a potentially lengthy switching process, or if you have major life changes approaching (baby on the way, moving, starting school, getting married/divorced, etc) then it might be a better idea to wait on switching your ferret's diet until you have more time. Are you willing to make the commitment?
Totally and completely

5. How many ferrets do you currently have? What are their names? Ages? Genders? Do they have any health problems? Are they overweight? Underweight?
One currently, Saunga a male who will be 7 in October. He seems generally healthy, although his full brother died of cancer 2 years ago and that is something I keep in mind. He may be a bit underweight and his coat texture is not great.

6. What diet do you currently feed your ferrets? (Please include all treats, supplements, etc)
Zupreem grain free.

7. Have you ever tried to switch your ferrets to a natural diet in the past? If yes, what happened?
Nope, I have offered him little bits of chicken before which he ignored.

8. What additional information about yourself or your ferrets would you like to share?
Saunga is the last remaining of a group of 3. His brother died 2 years ago, and his absolute best friend in the universe died this past April. I think he is a little depressed about being a single ferret, and I have been trying to enrich his life to the best of my ability as it is not a great time to add another ferret to the mix. He has always been the sweetest and biggest snuggle bug ever, when he was younger we would find him curled up in a pile of stuffed animals, and now that I am basically his only companion he is very very attatched. I make one of my cats Roxxy hang out with him as much as she will tolerate him, as I think he needs some other animal interaction and she is pretty sure he is an annoying kitten who won't leave her alone.

9. How often during the week do you have access to a computer?
Generally 5-7 days a week.

10. Please post a picture of each of your ferrets (if possible).

Hi and welcome to the mentoring program. In a little while your mentor (sherry) will introduce herself and you can get started on a new adventure in natural ferret care and diets. Please remember to post regularly (daily or as per arranged with your mentor) so that your mentor can assist you move along safely in this adventure. If you experience computer difficulties or are going to be away, please notify your mentor and most of all relax and have fun . Your mentor is here to help you on this journey.
ciao

[Sherry]

Hello there! I'm Sherrylynne, and I'll be your mentor for their switch
First, a little about me. I'm 51, and have my own housecleaning business here in Calgary Alberta. I have 4 cats, ranging in age from 6yrs, to 17(only one would eat raw, unfortunately :. I also have 8 ferrets. Boris and Vincent came first, two brothers, a sable and albino. Then Sinnead(rip). I got her when she was 2. She passed at almost the age of 8, had adrenal for 3 years, treated with lupron for 2 of those.
After that came my first deaf ferret, Lucrezia. A marked DEW. Then two foster ferrets, whom we fell in love with and adopted- Zeus and Athena, both two years old at that time. Also both adrenal, and on lupron.
After that, a little abused ferret we called Willow. She was the worst fear biter I've had, although now she's becoming a sweetie . Then, Emily. 1 month younger than Willow, and those two have bonded strongly. She's the only one Willow wasn't terrified of.Suki is the last one, I swear! She was a little 8 month old darling the pet store was having a hard time selling, so were getting ready to send her back!
While transitioning the first four, Boris was my hold out. EVERYTHING I gave him was poison, in his mind . Worst little drama queen I've seen yet . Twisting to get away, gagging, retching- he did all of it! Then one day- he ate it! Every single piece on the plate ! Those four haven't looked back. Although Boris would still be a kibble head if I let him.
The next two for transitioning were the fosters. Until we adopted them, I could only supplement with raw. So in order not to cause unnecessary tummy upsets(mixing kibble and raw too closely can cause some problems- more about that later), I'd give them raw one day, and kibble on a different day. So, by the time we adopted, they had no problem with 100% raw diet.
With Willow, I brought her home, and she flatly refused to eat the totally ferret kibble, so I went back to the pet store and got her a small bag of the crap they were feeding them there, and brought it home. I tried to give her some, but she just upset the dish. So- I tried her with some chicken breast. She ate it up! Hasn't had kibble since . Emily came to us as a raw fed ferret, so no issues there. Suki was another kibble head, but caging her in the daytime with Miss Emily showed her how to eat raw.
That's me and mine in a nutshell

The reason I started looking a raw feeding was something my vet said to me. I was, at the time, giving them small pieces of fruit for treats. She told me that was VERY bad for them, and in fact, some studies have started to link early feeding of sugars with insulinoma later in life. So- I started thinking. Kibbles are full of carbs. It's all those grains/veg/fruits in them. Those are converted to sugars by the body. To me then, sugar= potential insulinoma.
So, I started checking out various diets. I had no idea what an obligate carnivore was at the time. I found out! Not much wonder there was soooo much poop in the box! I may as well have been tossing my money in there. They can't process anything that's not meat based! So I feed meat
Their fur is softer, their energy levels are amazing- no mad rushes then crashing. Even my three year old's teeth are amazing. No plaque whatsoever Healing is faster, and if they do get ill, they have more reserves to rely on than when they were just kibble fed!
And there is a LOT LESS POOP!!!! Yay!
I'm looking forward to helping your little ones get on a much healthier diet, and having fun while we're at it ;D

[upsidedown]

Eek, I'm sorry it took me a couple days to post, I hadn't noticed the thread had gone up! I will try to be more vigilant, I promise!

I really wish I could have some ferret friends for Saunga, but it is really not a good time, and I'm not sure I could find a buddy with an appropriate energy level for him. At this point he plays and plays for about 30 min max, then crashes and says it's snuggle time haha. Though, that could change with a different diet.

So basically we are at the very beginning. He was being free fed and I have started to give him his food once or twice a day and then take it away after about an hour or so. I have also started moistening it so he can get used to a different texture than he is used to. But I have really no idea what to do next haha.

[Sherry]

Not a problem Alright! Let's get this show on the road How is he toward anything new? As in new foods, etc? If he's adventurous enough, you can try some kibble sized bits of chicken covered in pulverized kibble(sort of like breading your own!) and see what he thinks of it.
If he's not, you might be further ahead trying him with some puree raw chicken(any cut), with enough water added to make it "soupy". Odds are you'll have to dab some on the end of his nose so he has to lick it off. Just keep doing that over, and over, and over again while he's out and about.
Grab him while he's going by, and dab. What you are trying to do is get him to a) taste it, and b) work his way from licking it from his nose, to from your finger, then from a spoon.
If you have the stuff already, you can puree about 8 oz of chicken meat, 1 liver, and a couple hearts, 1/2 tsp eggshell powder, and water. If you don't have that to hand, and want to start right away, just use the chicken and water, and pick up the liver and heart.
Best way I've found to grind eggshells is to rinse them after breaking them for your breakfast, and let them dry for a day or two, then pop them in a clean coffee grinder. Others use a mortar and pestle, but I'm frankly too lazy for that ;D
Let me know how it goes!

[Sherry]

Hi, still there?

[Sherry]

updates?