Lozza's Switching Thread/HurricanKatt

[katt]

Original Thread in Old Forum:
holisticferret.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=newbie&action=display&thread=6089&page=1

Name: Laura Etheredge ☺
HF Forum Username: Lozza

1. Where did you first learn about natural diets for ferrets?

Through a friend i have met on another ferret forum, Mary :-).. i love her!! :-)

2. Please describe the type of diet you would like assistance in switching your ferret(s) to. Be sure to include if you are interested in feeding whole prey (live or frozen-thawed) and if you are wanting to FULLY switch to a natural diet or PARTIALLY. If you are unsure what kind of diet you want to put your ferrets on, please express that and we can help you find the best type of natural diet for your ferret.

At the moment I have started switching to raw food for my ferret’s main meals (Rufus) and I have high quality kibble in his cage for other times for him to snack on.

3. Why are you interested in switching your ferrets to a natural diet?

Because I have heard that it makes for a much healthier and happier ferret.. I love rufus with all my heart and I want to provide the best care for him that I possibly can ☺ I want him to live as long as possible and be as happy as he can possibly be! He is my little man!! ☺

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?

Yes I am aware, and am willing to make the commitment! Anything for rufus! ☺

5. How many ferrets do you currently have? What are their names? Ages? Genders? Do they have any health problems? Are they overweight? Underweight?

Rufus is rough;y 3 – 4 years old. He has been desexed (I did so when I adopted him)… he is quite the fatty (hehe) but has no health problems that I am aware of.. I do not know his history prior to him being seized by the RSPCA (Royal Society for the Protection and Care of Animals) 2 years ago!

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

When I first got Rufus I was feeding him cat food as this was what I was told to feed him. I have now changed to a high quality kitten kibble (with a high level of protein) and am feeding him one meal a day of raw meat (a mixture of different things that I am happy to discuss in greater detail)

7. Have you ever tried to switch your ferrets to a natural diet in the past? If yes, what happened?

Yes I have, so far it seems to be working.. rufus is not fussy AT ALL so is eating everything I have given him… I just need guidance to make sure I am doing the right thing, in the best possible way I can ☺

8. What additional information about yourself or your ferrets would you like to share?

My name is Laura.. I have never owned ferrets prior to Rufus, but I am so happy that I am now a ferret owner, and would like to adopt another ferret when the time is right (for me and rufus) I am a sponge! I am willing to absorb any information you are willing to give me =oD and I will do anything to make sure rufus is happy and healthy. I am very passionate about animal care (I have two dogs) so finding out more about ferret care is very important to me

9. How often during the week do you have access to a computer?

Every day! ☺

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

I will attempt to figure out how to do so!

Hi and welcome to the mentoring program. In a little while your mentor (Hurricanekatt) 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

[katt]

Yay! I have a mentee again! I am excited to get started.
Here's just a little about me...
Name: Katt
HF Screen Name: HurricaneKatt
Location: Anchorage, Alaska
About Me:
My favorite hobby is... studying. Just kidding. I like to do different types of art including drawing and painting. I recently started making dream catchers too. I enjoy horseback riding, playing with my critters, and enjoying time with my boyfriend.

I am a premed student in Alaska graduating this May 2011 with a Biology degree. I’ll be taking a year off to enjoy myself, work on my application, and visit Africa before applying for Medical School in the next round.

I became a mentor because...I really like helping people (hence the whole wanting to be a doctor thing ) and animals. I am a strong supporter of a natural diet and probably bore most people that I meet to death ranting about raw diet and why it is the best way to go…this way I can rant to someone who actually cares!

About My Ferret:
Koda – male, Real Canadian, not quite a year old (was about 8 weeks old when I bought him in December 2009), Sable. I gave him raw the second he came home and neither of us has ever looked back. He is a real trouble maker and is pretty well known around the forums as such. He is my first, and so far only, ferret and though I have not had him long he has forced me to learn and learn FAST! He has managed to eat several rubber objects (had to have surgery!), and is constantly finding new trouble to get into. Loves digging the carpet up, has a very serious oral fixation (if his mouth can stretch wide enough for his teeth to touch it – he will chew it), will rearrange the room to reach things, has learned how to levitate, and is anal around little monster. He is also very strongly bonded to my boyfriend and I, and can be a huge love bug. When the endless energy is finally burned off, he will curl up in our laps, give us kisses, and fall asleep. As you can tell, I have this problem where I can’t stop talking about him or taking pictures of him… We recently discovered that he has IBD and I am actually working with Mustelidmusk on adjusting his diet to keep his belly aches under control. Sometime this winter I plan on getting a second ferret, I am just waiting until the right one comes along, and fidgeting with Koda's diet in the meanwhile.

About My Natural Feeding Experience:
I've been feeding raw since December 2009 when I brought Koda home. Thanks to this forum, I was ready for a fuzzball to come home with my freezer stocked with meats! I gave him a raw chicken wing his first night home and that was the end of that! He is fed frankenprey, f/t roents, and live prey. Right now he gets mainly lamb, rabbit, and rodent because of his IBD, but we are working on adding different meats back into his diet one at a time. I still consider myself fairly new to raw diets compared to a lot of the other people on this forum who have been doign this for years. However, I have been reading and learning since before I brought Koda home. I am always on the forum, and various websites trying to learn more about ferrets in general, and especially raw diet. Koda is healthy, energetic, has super soft fur, and smells so good that people regularly comment, asking me what perfume or spray I sprayed him with! I love telling them: Thanks to a raw diet - he just smells that good naturally!

Type of Mentor:
In Training! I feed frankenprey, raw meats, bone-in meats, ground meats, frozen/thawed rodents, live prey, and recently added (for treats and supplemental) freeze dried raw. I have never fed kibble so I can’t help a ton there on picking a good kibble…
but hopefully we can get rid of it entirely anyways.

My Specialty:
Trouble makers! Especially only ferrets.

[katt]

I wanted to post before I lost it all.
Anyways that is exciting about the meat cleaver and ulu! I absolutely Love my ulu! I'm posting a video on the diff ways I use it eventually I'll let you know when I do. I had a nice Christmas wih the family. My grandfather had mesothelioma and he was here, so that was nice. I don't like to think negatively but I don't get tontravel a d visit relatives much bc of school and it might be the last time I get to see him. He cancer has a 1/10 survival rate. He's had one lung removed and lots of chemo but his pericardium is hardened and he's having trouble. His liver isn't functioning right after the chemo too and henhas many other things goig on. :,( I'm not super close to him but I still love him so it was very special to get to spend Christmas with him. I got a food processor I'm excited to try when I get home too. it is mainly for veggies for my iguana but it can be used on meats too! Yaaay! I'm glad you had a good Chrismtas! labelig and preparing and stashing up food is definitely quite the process. I'll try to get a better look at your pic from a computer later So I can see it better. It's a little dark on my phone. Let menknow how the hunt fir kidney and rabbit and duck goes! I wish we had butchers here that were more willing to sell or give the organ bits. oh well!

[katt]

LOZZA:
Hyia!

I am still alive!

Did you have a good xmas and new years?

OMG that is so exciting! I too feel like i am getting close to figuring it out.. i would just like to go over a few bits and peices to make sure I am feeding him the right things..

I am getting as much different types of food for him as i can find... in a week he would have the following (obviously it varies depending on what i can find at the time!)

Beef Heart
Beef Muscle Meat
Beef Liver

Chicken Liver
Chicken Muscle Meat
Chicken Necks
Chicken Wings

Pork Muscle Meats

Turkey Neck (when i can find it!)
Turkey Muscle Meat

These are the main meats I am using as it is what is available over here. I haven't tried Kangaroo yet, it is a lot more expensive than the other meats so I haven't been able to buy it I know you have said that he will need a lot more variety, but what do I do if i can't find it? is he going to be OK just eating the above meats? Over the course of the week he gets a combination of all of the above meat.. i rotate the meats so he never gets bored, and make sure he gets enough of each type... I remember you mentioned the ratio of meats he should be having but can you please re-remind me what that is? :-) I want to make sure I have it right

Also, i have found more success with him eating all the meat when i only feed him 1 specific type of meat at a time.. i made a few bags up of different amounts of mixed meats and he wasn't very keen on it at all - it seemed he was picking his favourites out of the group of meat and refusing to eat the rest

He is also getting raw eggs once a week.. I want to crush up the egg shells and include them with his food so he is getting more calcium.

He seems very happy and healthy, he is never scratching at the cage for more, and he doesnt have *any* kibble anymore.. hasn't for aaaaaaaages! He is eating pretty much anything.. I very rarely have to throw meat out because he has refused to eat it.

I have reorganised his cage and was very lucky to receive a cuddle cup from a fellow forum member (thanks mary, if you are reading this!) and a hammock amongst other things so he is very happy in his cage during the day when i am not there.. the issue with not using the litter tray seems to be aaaaalmost gone!!

Overall things are going really well with him.. he is so happy, and smelling nice.. I'm very pleased with how settled he is, and if you are happy with things, i am happy to submit 1 a week menu plan (or whatever is required)

[katt]

Quote:
I am still alive!

Did you have a good xmas and new years?


You live! I am glad it was just phone errors! I was beginning to worry that you might actually disappear this time when you are SO close to graduating! :/ I am glad you are back and that my posts finally came through!


Quote:
OMG that is so exciting! I too feel like i am getting close to figuring it out.. i would just like to go over a few bits and peices to make sure I am feeding him the right things..

That is what the end of the program is all about! I am sure that you will still have questions here and there as they pop up even after graduating, but we'll work out all of the remaining kinks and questions that we can before then. Even after you graduate, you can still PM me anytime, and/or make a thread about your question as well.

Quote:

I am getting as much different types of food for him as i can find... in a week he would have the following (obviously it varies depending on what i can find at the time!)

Beef Heart
Beef Muscle Meat
Beef Liver

Chicken Liver
Chicken Muscle Meat
Chicken Necks
Chicken Wings

Pork Muscle Meats

Turkey Neck (when i can find it!)
Turkey Muscle Meat


Ok so you have 4 sources of protein, 2 sources of organ, and 2 sources of bone, plus eggs. Not too bad. If you can perhaps find one more organ type, like kidney or spleen, that would add a missing piece. If you can't find it, he should be ok, but if you can find it it would be good to have. Are you able to find chicken and/or turkey gizzards at all? Those are good to include. Also for variety any other parts of the above animals that you can find would serve as good add ins say every now and then. Such as chicken feet once every 1-3 months, and pork fat once (like get it once and feed the whole package over the course of the week or month) every few months, etc.


Quote:
These are the main meats I am using as it is what is available over here. I haven't tried Kangaroo yet, it is a lot more expensive than the other meats so I haven't been able to buy it I know you have said that he will need a lot more variety, but what do I do if i can't find it? is he going to be OK just eating the above meats? Over the course of the week he gets a combination of all of the above meat.. i rotate the meats so he never gets bored, and make sure he gets enough of each type... I remember you mentioned the ratio of meats he should be having but can you please re-remind me what that is? :-) I want to make sure I have it right

The ratio should be roughly 80% muscle meat, 10% bone, 10% organ. The organ should be at least half liver, which you have covered and the liver from 2 different sources is very good as well. To make sure that you are getting a good balance, when you write up a menu try to be as specific as possible about what amounts of what foods he is getting. Like 2 chicken wings, one liver or 1/3 cup liver, etc. Really the guideline is a minimum of 3 protein sources, more is always better but 3 is the base. You have 4 so don't stress too much. Use that as your basic diet, and then when you can add in other meats here and there as they pop up. You might want to look for a pet store or grocery store that sells commercial ground raw. That is a GREAT Way that I have recently discovered to add a little variety for decent cost. Also, you might look into freeze dried raw. You can order online (not sure if Casey's Hidden Pantry ships internationally, or what Austrailia laws are, but it is worth a try). It is expensive, but you can find some meats you might not get otherwise. It is very very good to have on hand as well if you ever are in a situation where you need a pet sitter but can't find someone who will feed raw, or even if he needs to stay at the vet - most won't feed raw but they should be ok with freeze dried raw. It makes a nice little addition to the diet here and there as a special treat.
Also, during the holidays look around. Often you will see different meats that you don't get other times of the year. I know in most places, Duck is seasonal and can only be bought at Christmas time. Lamb might pop up around say Easter as well. If you see something that is not usually in stock, grab it up and freeze it. You can save little bits to feed over the year like once a month, or just give it to him say over a few weeks. Either way. Also, check out the expiring section of the butcher/deli area of the grocery store. A lot of times they will have meat discounted that is say "expiring" that day or the next day. I have found that his meat, as long as it is not obviously ad, is usually ok for the ferrets. I mean they often stash it a day or two anyways. You can freeze it to prolong its expiration and kill any bacteria as well. But usually the meat is not bad it is just not "fresh" to human standards. Obviously I don't recommend this as your ONLY source of meat, but say if you see some kangaroo there or some quail kidney or unicorn heart or just whatever that you might not normally find.



Quote:
Also, i have found more success with him eating all the meat when i only feed him 1 specific type of meat at a time.. i made a few bags up of different amounts of mixed meats and he wasn't very keen on it at all - it seemed he was picking his favourites out of the group of meat and refusing to eat the rest

That is fine. Every ferret is a little different and their diets need to be tweaked accordingly. The only concern I would have would be the organs. Are you feeding organs whole or in a soup? If whole, does he have an "organ: meal where that day for a meal he gets just liver, or do you say, mix chicken liver with chicken muscle meat?
If feeding whole I would not recommend feeding an entire meal of just organs as that is very rich and can potentially cause tummy upsets. If he picks around things too much still, then you can do organ soup in which on organ days, you make a soup of the organs, and some other muscles and pumpkin. This will get some fiber into him on occasion (pumpkin) and is a great way to give him a little treat and also to keep him enjoying/remembering (in case he ever decided to be picky lol) soup. Then if he ever gets sick and has to have soup, it will be easier to feed him. You can also freeze the organ soup and give him ice cubes of it as treats or fill his bowl and let him have it frozen and he can eat it as it thaws at his leisure.



Quote:
He is also getting raw eggs once a week.. I want to crush up the egg shells and include them with his food so he is getting more calcium.

Awesome. If you can crush the eggshell that is great. Do try to get it powdered if you can though so there are no sharp pieces. It seems funny the shells would bother them when they eat bones, but i have heard of some ferrets having issues with it.


Quote:
He seems very happy and healthy, he is never scratching at the cage for more, and he doesnt have *any* kibble anymore.. hasn't for aaaaaaaages! He is eating pretty much anything.. I very rarely have to throw meat out because he has refused to eat it.

Good boy!

Quote:


I have reorganised his cage and was very lucky to receive a cuddle cup from a fellow forum member (thanks mary, if you are reading this!) and a hammock amongst other things so he is very happy in his cage during the day when i am not there.. the issue with not using the litter tray seems to be aaaaalmost gone!!

Overall things are going really well with him.. he is so happy, and smelling nice.. I'm very pleased with how settled he is, and if you are happy with things, i am happy to submit 1 a week menu plan (or whatever is required)
[/quote]

Aw, I would love to see pictures! I forgot to tell you that I could never open up the last picture you posted. It sounds like he is doing fantastic!

To graduate, you need to submit a week's scheduled menu with what you will feed, and the rough amounts of each item (so we know it's not like one chicken wing and 3 cups of liver - I'm exaggerating here but you get the idea haha). For example:
2 Meals a day
Monday: Chicken wings; 1/3 cup cubed beef
Tuesday: 2 cups organ soup (soup contains approx: 1/2 liver, 1/2 chicken breats, tablespoon pumpkin); turkey neck, turkey breast

yadda yadda. You don't have to be super specific on the amounts, just enough to give an idea of what the proportions are. Then we will tweak anything that needs tweaking.