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Post by Deleted on Sept 18, 2011 18:26:13 GMT -5
I know there's been a million freeze-dried threads lately and I've gone and read over all of them, but I still have a few questions I couldn't find answers to in the other threads. I will be blindly ordering from Casey's Hidden Pantry since none of the freeze-dried foods I want are availible here and it's the only place that ships to Canada. If it wasn't $20 for shipping, I'd order the little "sample pack" and see what my girls like, but since $20 is pretty expensive shipping on a $5-10 order of samples, I'd much rather just order a few bags and hope for the best. ;D I know they like Wysong Archetypal-1 so I'm going to order that since it's $5 cheaper than I can get it here, and I've heard such great reviews about Duck Duck Goose that I think I'll order than too, but I wanted to order one more (preferably a kitty cat version with less veggies) but wasn't sure which one to go with... www.caseyshiddenpantry.com/food.htmlThere's the link. does anyone have any recommendations? The cat nuggets look good but the "pumpkin seeds" worry me... are there actual whole seeds in there? Are these safe to give? Also I've heard that the nuggets are a bit hard. Are steaks or the ground up sprinkles usually a better hit with ferrets? There's also "freeze dried sprinkles" by AFS - that don't look bad but they have "dried kelp" is this okay for ferrets? I guess my main question is... even though most of the freeze-dried foods are only 4-5% veggies/fruits... are there any fruits/veggies that ferrets absolutely shouldnt have (i.e. toxic or choking hazards). Otherwise... any of the freeze dried foods listed on this site would technically be good/okay for ferrets right? Sorry for all the questions and if I've asked stuff that's been asked before I just don't want to go ordering a whole bunch of food and then realize it's not good for them. Thanks
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Post by katt on Sept 18, 2011 18:39:58 GMT -5
I recommend S&C's Dandy Lamb...
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Post by Sherry on Sept 18, 2011 18:41:11 GMT -5
Any of the freeze dried on there are safe. Dora has her own ferrets, and this is what they eat That said- mine did NOT like the nuggets. Some love them, though. Never tried the Vital Essentials. She didn't have that at the time. They weren't overly fond of the AFS sprinkles, either. I'd also stay away from the Ziwipeak. I've heard too many stories of ferrets holding out for that stuff once they tried it ;D
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Post by Deleted on Sept 18, 2011 18:55:12 GMT -5
I like all of S&C stuff. Duck duck is a fav, along with chicken. Lamb is not liked as much here, but I mix it with duck and have no issues. Haven't tried the new feline versions.
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Post by goingpostal on Sept 18, 2011 20:25:57 GMT -5
I've fed S & C's duck, lamb and chicken patties, they seem to love them all, also have the asf beef niblets which they also really like, surprising as they won't touch beef otherwise, they've tried the beef patties and ate them fine too. I guess mine aren't too picky, they seem to think the freeze dried is crack or something, I wanted something I could leave in for my older thin male but they'll eat and eat and eat! So I use it as a once a week variety add in instead. The ziwipeak they liked at first but then not so much and they didn't like the dog version at all, it was venison/fish I think.
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Post by miamiferret2 on Sept 18, 2011 20:41:42 GMT -5
Sonny also loves the Wysong Archetypal 1 for ferrets. and, despite all their ingredient changes, i still think its the best one out there. that one is two thumbs up. Stella & Chewys is great. i have nothing bad to say about it really. the one they seem to like the most is the canine "Duck Duck Goose" that one is Sonny's favorite hands down. he also eats dandy lamb and big beef dinner from S & C canine versions. fyi, the canine versions have taurine so they are fine. from the feline versions of S & C he eats "Chick Chick Chicken" --he likes it. thumbs up. i recently ordered a bag of the beef nuggets S & C feline version but hasn't arrived yet so i have no feed back on that. the feline versions of the S & C do NOT contain any plant/veg matter. the canine contains less than 5% plant/veg matter so it is fine i guess. i prefer the feline formulas of S & C. however, i continue to purchase the canine versions bc it SUCKS that the feline versions don't have duck or LAMB! grrrr. you will not find big chunks of pumpkin seeds in either cat or dog version of the freeze dried s & c. my ferret (and dog) also like Vital Essentials Beef Niblets and Chicken Niblets. these are HARD. good lord, i soak these in warm water to rehydrate and it takes forever. the beef vital essentials i know for sure has no plant/veg matter. the chicken i don't think has any either. but i'm not sure. the wysong archetype burgers are beef & chicken and are basically the same ingredients as the OLD archetypal 1 before they changed it last year. Dog loves them. ferret does not care for them. i would pass on those for the ferrets. the vital essentials beef and chicken patties are exactly (almost identical) to the wysong archetype burgers. my ferret doesn't care for them either. the dog loves them. so, i'd pass on these too if i were you (for the ferrets) AFS sprinkles the dog ate them all in one sitting. the ferret didn't really care. i'd pass on that. ziwipeak, my ferret won't eat it. i have heard that some ferrets when they start eating ziwi they become ziwi junkies. my dog LOVES ziwipeak. Sonny likes to steal the dog's food. (dog is on commercial and grocery store bought raw diet so its okay for Sonny to steal his food) so the ferret likes to "check out" what is in his bowl that day. if he sees ziwi, he won't touch it. he's like "nah, i'll pass on that!" LOL treats: the bravo turkey hearts are good. the dog loves them but i don't buy them too often bc i can buy chicken hearts at the grocery stores here for way less. that is about all i've purchased from caseys hidden pantry (looks like i've pretty much tried everything they have! lol) fyi, i'm in the united states and i also paid $20 for shipping on my most recent order. but i bought about $180 worth of food from them.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 18, 2011 21:15:37 GMT -5
Thank you all for the awesome responses! Thanks miamiferret - you just made my job of deciding so much easier!!! I'm thinking I'll order a bunch too and make the $20 shipping worth it. Plus freeze dried has been a lifesaver lately with my stupid health and school and my stupid brain always forgetting to defrost raw.
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Post by katt on Sept 18, 2011 21:31:31 GMT -5
...you know you don't have to defrost it right? I give my boys frozen meals all the time! ;D serves as a toy, chew toy, and a meal all in one!
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Post by miamiferret2 on Sept 18, 2011 22:29:04 GMT -5
Yeah my dog eats frozen chicken and turkey all the time. LOL. he likes frozen chicken hearts too. lol. frozen liver is like a blood slushy for him. great for those hot summer florida days.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 18, 2011 22:54:49 GMT -5
Haha oh I know but silly me froze all the meat in large chunks thinking "oh I'll just cut it up in smaller pieces when I defrost it and feed it to them" and my lazy monsters will only eat it if it's cut up nicely for them. They won't even eat a chicken neck or chicken wing unless it's cut up for them, Grrrrr!
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Post by Deleted on Sept 18, 2011 22:58:40 GMT -5
And I'm yet to find a cutting tool sharp enough to cut through frozen bone - so if anyone knows of one let me know!
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Post by Deleted on Sept 18, 2011 23:15:12 GMT -5
Haha oh I know but silly me froze all the meat in large chunks thinking "oh I'll just cut it up in smaller pieces when I defrost it and feed it to them" and my lazy monsters will only eat it if it's cut up nicely for them. They won't even eat a chicken neck or chicken wing unless it's cut up for them, Grrrrr! Mine are the same way about food. Everything needs to be cut up into long pieces (go figure ). Necks need to be crushed and cut up in long pieces. Pixie and Dixie will eat wing tips off a hook occasionally. And I'm yet to find a cutting tool sharp enough to cut through frozen bone - so if anyone knows of one let me know! I use a ulu knife (from Katt) to get the bone exposed, and then my hammer to pulverize the bones. My knife is pretty dull but its still doing the job fairly well
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Post by Sherry on Sept 19, 2011 8:22:35 GMT -5
I use a good heavy cleaver Goes through almost anything
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Post by Deleted on Sept 19, 2011 18:09:38 GMT -5
Sounds like you've got some spoiled little monsters too Jackie! ;D I've considered ordering a ulu knife from Katt but honestly after watching one of the videos she posted, I am almost positive I'd loose a finger using one! I am very tool inept... I haven't even been successful is smashing bones with a hammer I always miss the bone and end up hurting myself I use a good heavy cleaver Goes through almost anything What exactly is a cleaver? ;D
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Post by Deleted on Sept 19, 2011 18:17:15 GMT -5
I think it's like a butchers knife (those big scary knives ;D) en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cleaver_(knife)I am always terrified I'll lose a finger one day. Luckily, I still have them all and I've only managed to cut myself with scissors (go figure ;D)
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