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Post by bailey on Oct 30, 2011 19:31:15 GMT -5
So today I bought a blender, and some meat, to start my ferrets on raw. I have almost the whole next week off work so I figured it'd be a good time to start since I'll have loads of free time. I blended up a chicken thigh, heart and gizzard, put it in a food bowl and tried to get them to try it. They both sniffed it, and of course wouldn't dare try it on their own. I got some on both their noses to make them try it. Soul, my very not picky boy who enjoys mice, instantly realized "Hey it's tasty!" and ate some out of the bowl. He came back in the kitchen a couple times to get a few more tastes. After I moved it into their cage after I was done cleaning it he even searched the kitchen for the bowl  Heart, my VERY picky girl, shook her head and sprayed little bits of soup all over me, the floor and Soul! And refused to even taste it. She did the same thing with Ferretvite a couple times, so I think a couple more tries and she will give in also...I hope! So now my questions: I looked for hearts and liver, but only found a mixed package of gizzards and hearts. Are gizzards good for them? [Either way it won't go to waste apparently my boyfriend likes fried gizzards...ewww!] How long will chicken stay fresh in the fridge? I only made a bit so I know it'll be fine til it's gone, but for future reference. Will a food processor work just as good, or better, than a blender? The blender has a food processer attachment, so if it will work just as good I'd rather use the processor for ferret food and the blender for human food
How long can a ferret go without eating? Obviously I don't want to starve my little girl, but maybe a little hunger will encourage her to eat it later.
and How long can I leave the soup out in their cage before it goes bad? I think it's six hours but I'm not 100% sure?
Ok I think that's it for now
Thanks for the help! |
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Post by Heather on Oct 30, 2011 22:12:41 GMT -5
Great start  I use a food processor....fried my blender years ago  making soupy  . I have to buy my hearts as a mix too. My guys fight over the gizzards....it's good for cleaning teeth too....guess they will have to fight the boyfriend for the gizzards ;D. He'd better be careful, that's the one thing my guys think is worth fighting for ;D ;D Are you talking how long the soupy will stay in the fridge. I've left it up to about 48 hrs. If I'm going to make up a bigger batch...I will put it in smaller containers and freeze it, defrosting it as needed. In the cage, 4 to 6 hrs max....Now, if you put it in there frozen or only partially thawed it will stay longer. Your ferrets won't touch it if it's gone longer than their system can handle. Ferrets seem to know when it's gone bad A store bought ferret? Pet store ferret? I never let them go longer (without food) than 8 hrs (with many I won't even do that). Rescue...even shorter. Older treated the same even if they've been in my care since kit-dom (they would be on raw anyway, far easier to switch a kit). With all the health issues, hidden issues that ferrets have and carry, I do not let them go for very long at all. I will let them go out to play, leave them until lunch time. By that time I will have tried to feed the raw soupy from either my finger or a spoon while the ferret is sitting on my lap a number of times. I will then at lunch return the fuzz to their cage to eat their kibbles. I will leave them there for about an hour and then let them out again for the whole process to start again. That's how I work it anyway  I think I've covered your questions....keep them coming ciao |
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Post by bailey on Nov 1, 2011 17:55:50 GMT -5
Yep that was all my questions. Thank you  |
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Post by Sherry on Nov 1, 2011 20:10:50 GMT -5
Keep us updated on his progress! That way if you run into a roadblock, we can likely help you past it |
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Post by bailey on Nov 2, 2011 21:53:23 GMT -5
Well of course No one else shares my sheer excitement whenever they do something I'm proud of! So speaking of which: I gave him the last bit of the soup the other day, apparently I didn't blend it long enough cause there was still some chunky bits in it. Soul ate all of it except the biggest chunk. I didn't even expect him to eat the little chunks My little girl actually licked the bit I put on her nose off, which is a step forward. Before she shook it and wiped it all off. Still wouldn't eat out of the bowl but she did sniff it with a bit more interest. Tomorrow I'm gonna make up a bunch more to freeze, hopefully she'll give in and eat some then! |
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Post by Sherry on Nov 2, 2011 21:58:36 GMT -5
First, let me say congrats about your boy that's wonderful!!! For your girl, just keep dabbing it on her nose over and over and over again. Once she tastes it enough that way, she should start taking it from your finger willingly just move from that to a spoon to the dish. |
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Post by bailey on Nov 4, 2011 17:04:44 GMT -5
So I made four different batches of soup, ranging from pure soup to extra chunky. Before I put them all in the freezer I let them check each one out, Soul would eat from each one but the extra chunky Heart showed no interest in any of them. The chicken I had bought had bones in it too, so on a whim I decided to see if either would be interested in it, rather than let it go to waste. I'd cut most of the meat off to put in the food processer, but there was still a layer of meat on it. Well Soul kinda licked at it but wasn't too into it. But to my total astonishment Heart was all about it! [Ok, I cheated a bit and put a drop of Ferretvite on it to get her to lick it] She was gnawing on the fatty parts of meat still stuck to it, and would only eat it when I was holding it [with my fingers WELL out of the way haha] so I slowly moved it closer and closer to the bowl before dropping it in. I added soup to it and surprisingly she started licking up the soup. I seperated their cage so I could make sure they were both eating. I put a bone with meat on it in each of their bowls just to see what would happen. In the morning Soul had eaten most of his food, but hadn't touched the bone. Heart had eaten ALL of hers and had stashed the bone [ew!] When I finally found it quite a lot of meat was eaten off of it She baffles me! Now if I could teach them table manners such as we don't make a mess outside of the bowl, and we don't stash food! Yes I know, hopeless fantasy haha. Heart kinda reminds me of Soul when I tried getting him to eat mice. He showed NO interest in the "first steps" and only ate them when they were bigger and could move around. Ah, ferrets need individual instruction manuals |
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Post by Sherry on Nov 4, 2011 18:40:47 GMT -5
That is fantastic news  Looks like you are going to be able to move straight to some chunky food I'd still try to get them both eating some form of soup, though. That way, when they become ill you'll have something to fall back on that they are familiar with, and it won't be a fight to get them to take it |
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Post by bailey on Nov 5, 2011 15:23:43 GMT -5
Oh yeah they will both eat the pure soup mix, I think having the bone in the bowl just encouraged her to actually taste it. The past few days they've just had the soupy mix, and today I've moved them up to slightly chunky Sadly it didn't thaw as quick as I'd hoped it would in the fridge, so I had just break a few chunks off into their bowl and now have it in the sink [under running water ] Much to my amazement they've actually tried it frozen! I thought for sure I'd have to give them kibble today until it was thawed. They've gotta quit surprising me like this! I'll die from joy |
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Post by Heather on Nov 5, 2011 16:24:29 GMT -5
Congratulations...that's fantastic No, don't ever anticipate...ferrets are full of surprises and just when you think you have them pegged...they throw you a curve ball ;D ;D I have a couple of my guys who love frozen food....especially in the summer. Mice and rats come frozen...ratsicles and mousicles...no accounting for taste Your guys are doing fantastic...by the way...table manners...not going to happen ciao |
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making soupy 
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