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Post by Heather on Jan 9, 2012 23:58:48 GMT -5
Name: Kiersten HF Forum Username: kpaz 1. Where did you first learn about natural diets for ferrets? I saw pictures of European owners feeding raw when researching online. My vet seemed a little wary of it when I brought it up, but after a lot of reading I don't understand why it is standard in the US to feed our animals kibble. 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. I am a little unsure. I would like to feed some whole prey, but I am still researching prices and suppliers. Until then I will have to do frankenprey only. Eventually a mix of the two if it's possible. I am interested in switching them fully to a natural diet. I don't trust kibble.
3. Why are you interested in switching your ferrets to a natural diet? More than anything, I want to provide the healthiest diet and life for my ferrets. I hear them grind their teeth after eating, and I can tell that the kibble isn't cutting it. They mean the world to me, and I want them to be healthy and happy for as long as their little hearts are beating.
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 switching your ferret(s) to a natural diet, but you need to be equally as commit ed. 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? I am a university student, but I have do not live the stereotypical lifestyle of a college student. Expenses are paid via scholarships and my time is devoted to two things: studying and my ferrets. I will spend as much time as possible making this switch, it is a priority.
5. How many ferrets do you currently have? What are their names? Ages? Genders? Do they have any health problems? Are they overweight? Underweight? How long have you had each ferret for? I have three ferrets. My first is my chocolate male Goomba. He is 1 1/2 years old and makes 2 in June. I got him in August of 2010. He has allergies, but other than that he is healthy. He is the largest of the three and slightly pear shaped, but he is pretty strong. He was 3lbs last time he was weighed at the vet; I will weigh them all in grams when I get some batteries in my new scale . My second ferret is a sable female Ellie. I got her right after Goomba, and they are the same age. She grinds her teeth, but the vet did not think it was ulcers. She is the most skittish, and I am going to bring her back to the vet in the next month to pester them some more about her teeth grinding. Other than that she is very active, playful, and healthy. She is the alpha. She is also the tiniest, but I don't think she's underweight. Last time she was weighed she was 2 lbs. Finally, I adopted my third sable male Pippin in March of this year. He is about a year old, I got him when he was 5 months old, and he will make 2 in October. Pippin is healthy, he broke his foot about a month after I got him (He caught it on an FN ramp because the cover had slipped down. I no longer have ramps in it.), but he is playful now. Last time he was weighed he was 2.2lbs, but he's probably closer to Goomba's size now. His tail has lost some fur since the fall, I am keeping a close eye on him and will be taking him to the vet soon; hopefully it's just until he grows his winter coat in.
6. What diet do you currently feed your ferrets? (Please include all treats, supplements, etc) I feed Blue Buffalo Wilderness Kitten and Zupreem Grain-free. They are given FerretLax once a week during shedding seasons or if I suspect they've chewed on something bad (I recently learned pumpkin is healthier for them than this but have yet to try it). I feed them Ferretone every once in a while as a treat and the Bandits chicken treats every once in a blue moon, but they haven't gotten those treats in a long time. Pippin will gnaw on insects if he comes across them
7. Have you ever tried to switch your ferrets to a natural diet in the past? If yes, what happened? I have only tried to get them to try raw chicken, raw beef, boiled chicken, raw egg, and scrambled egg. They weren't interested.
8. What additional information about yourself or your ferrets would you like to share? These are the first pets I've ever had. Someone bought Goomba as an impulse gift for me, thinking ferrets required minimal handling and though it could keep me company when I was going through a really bad bout of depression. She refused to take it back, so I began doing nothing but reading, researching, and changing my lifestyle to suit his needs. School started three weeks later, and I had a hectic schedule that semester, so my boyfriend bought Ellie to keep him company, a FN 142 cage, an air purifier, and the ferrets for dummies book. As for Pippin, his owners did not want to take care of him anymore, and when I met him his cage was caked with feces and full of chewed up rubber toys. I couldn't leave him there. When I brought him home his legs couldn't extend all the way; he was never allowed to play outside his cage and his muscles weren't strong at all. I bathed him and let him out to play, and it was like he didn't know what to do. I stretched his legs everyday and now he can stand on his hind legs like the other two. My ferrets are free roam now. I feel that it is of utmost importance that I do my best to make their lives good. It is a great responsibility, and the most limiting factor is finances, but I do my best to give them the best. Oh, I ask a lot of questions. And I'm a big worrier when it comes to everything, which is another reason why I'm always asking questions.
9. How often during the week do you have access to a computer? Pretty much all the time, many times a day.
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 (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, failure to do so could mean that you are dropped from the program. 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
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Post by katt on Jan 10, 2012 3:23:19 GMT -5
Name: Katt HF Screen Name: hurricanekatt
Location: Anchorage, Alaska Skpye name: hurricane.katt – I am on Skpye a lot so feel free to pop in and chat, or ask questions you want a quick answer to.
About Me: I just graduated in May 2011 with my Bachelor of Science in Biology. I’ll be taking a year off to enjoy myself, work on my application, and hopefully do some volunteer work in Africa before applying for Medical School for the 2010 school year. I love animals and kids and I am hoping to go into a medical field where I can work with kids - possibly pediatric cardiology or oncology, or perhaps general peds, or even family medicine. I really won’t know until I get there and try things out for myself – there’s so much you can do!
My favorite color is..... Green My favorite food is.... Salmon! Yum! My favorite holiday is... Christmas My favorite hobby is... studying. Just kidding. I do love to read though. 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. And the critters of course! Oh, and I am a bit of a forum junkie. Hehe I am on too many forums to count for a variety of things. Mostly animals.
I like to listen to... Almost anything. I like all genres of music (though I do have my favorites – like Rock, and less preferred – like rap/hip hop). My music is pretty diverse. There is no genre I dislike, just specific songs. haha
I collect... pets. Actually, I do collect foreign money. I used to collect stuffed rabbits and model horses and any number of other things too, but with how much I move and the limited storage in my old apartment, I had to slim down. I kept my favorites of course!
Something about me you might be suprised to know... Um…I don’t know that I am that surprising of a person.
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 Ferrets: Koda – male, Real Canadian, I got him when he was about 8 weeks old when I bought him in December 2009, Sable. I gave him raw the second he came home and he immediately ripped into it and started hissing to keep me away from his tasty prize! 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 ferret and he has forced me to learn and learn FAST! He has managed to eat several foreign objects, and is constantly finding new trouble to get into (his nose has a rubber detector in it). He had to have an emergency blockage surgery, which (we believe) ended up being the catalyst that resulted in his IBD. He loves digging the carpet up, or more recently chewing it, has a very serious oral fixation (if his mouth can stretch wide enough for his teeth to touch it – he will chew it), he will rearrange the room to reach things, has learned how to levitate, and is an all 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… He has IBD which we struggled to get control of (and finally succeeded!) with diet. Recently he started showing signs of juvenile adrenal disease and is currently getting Lupron shots while we wait for Des to arrive off of backorder.
Kneai: male, Silber/Black Roan Mitt. I brought Kenai home towards the end of November 2010 when he was about 7-8 weeks old. He is also eating 100% raw diet, whole prey, franken prey, meaty bones you name it! He was a tiny little bag of bones when I brought him home, but he eats like a pig and grows like a weed! He is now huge and rolly-polly! definitely a little porker - he can barely make it out of his rice box because he is so bottom heavy. lmao He finally started shedding some fur and a little winter weight and is slimming up, but he is still a clumsy critter. haha He loves, LOVES toys and is a loveable, goofy little guy and has been helping to keep Koda company and burn off each others energy! He's definitely a little spaz - I thought Koda was until I got Kenai! He's a bit of a simpleton. He has trouble finding the potty box a lot, and he doesn’t learn very fast. He also is much less physically adept at things – he has trouble climbing and getting into/onto/out of things. He is sloooowly figuring out how to control his floppy body, but he definitely has some developmental delays. But, we love him just the same.
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. Unfortunately, his diet is somewhat restricted because of his IBD, but we've finally got a bit of variety back in. I have been reading and learning since before I brought Koda home and learned a lot from the people here on the forum. I am always on the forum, and various websites trying to learn more about ferrets in general, and especially raw diet. My boys are healthy, energetic, have super soft fur, and smell so good that people regularly comment, asking me what perfume or spray I sprayed them (esp Koda) with! I love telling them: Thanks to a raw diet - he just smells that good naturally! When Kenai first came home he had been eating Marshall's kibble and his poops were HUGE and smelled...awful doesn't even come close to describing it! Now he smells much better and his scraggly coat has been replaced by a luxurious pile of fur.
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 and commercially ground raw. I have never fed kibble so I can’t help with picking a good kibble…
My Specialty: Trouble makers! I focus on full switches to raw – no more kibble!
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Post by katt on Jan 10, 2012 3:25:55 GMT -5
Hi! I'm excited to work with you and your business! You'll be my first switch with the new posting system, so just as a reminder for us both: Before being accepted for a mentor, you must have a few things already on hand. 1. a scale for weighing your ferret- preferably in grams. 2. All the makings for a puree soup. This includes chicken(or other meat), liver, heart, and eggshell powder. This you get by rinsing out eggshells, drying them, and then pulverizing them with either a mortar and pestle or a coffee grinder(clean, of course ;D ) 3. Initial picture of ferret before starting switch. Soup for switch: 8oz chicken(or other meat) One chicken liver(or 2oz other liver) 2 chicken hearts(or 1oz other heart) 1/2 tsp eggshell powder If these things are not already on hand, your request will be moved back into the application thread, and the next person accepted instead. The following form is to be filled out weekly so we can keep better tabs on not only how the switch is going, but on the health of your ferret. As well as any potential risks that may arise if they are not eating enough at certain sections of their switch. Please copy/paste this very short questionnaire into your switching thread every Sunday/Monday. 1. Ferret's name: 2. Ferret's weight: 3. Ferret has eaten "X" amount on average per meal. 4. Stools on various proteins. 5. Activity levels: 6. Weekly menu: Example would be: Vincent, 3lbs 2oz(1417g), small chicken wing chopped into 2" pieces, bone and all. Stools good colour and consistency. Played as per normal. Willow, 1lb 4oz(567g), 2 tbsp commercial raw turkey, hand fed. Stools good colour and consistency. Very hyper when up, playing for 2-3 hours at a time. Mr. Frodo, 4lb 4oz(1928g), 1/4c pork slivers mixed with soup. Stools slightly loose, somewhat seedy, and pale in colour. Somewhat more tired, plays for 30 minutes, then finds somewhere to sleep. Flat ferreting more often. Weekly menu was: Monday: chicken legs Tuesday: Commercial raw Wednesday: Soup with pork slivers Etc. Just write what you actually fed them. Also, to help us make sure your ferret is doing well during his switch, a picture from above showing his body shape clearly would be appreciated bi-weekly, but is not essential. You are required to post every second day during the "soup" stage of the transition. From the "sliver" stage, through to large chunks, you will be required to post a minimum of every 3 days. Once you hit the large chunks, once a week will be acceptable. If you wish to post into your thread more often, that will be MORE than welcome The above are simply the minimum requirements so we can help with sticky spots, and not have to "catch up" to where you are presently at. Failure to post as required will result in your switch coming to a standstill and will result in two warnings before being dropped from the mentoring program. If something comes up, and you need to be away, please contact your mentor letting her know how long you will be absent. FAILURE TO SUPPLY THE ABOVE QUESTIONNAIRE WILL RESULT IN TWO WARNINGS, ONE ISSUED IN THE SWITCHING THREAD, THEN NEXT VIA PM- THEN BEING DROPPED FROM THE MENTORING PROGRAM. BEING DROPPED FROM THE MENTORING THREAD WILL BE AT MY DISCRETION You may request readmittance to the mentoring program if you agree to abide by the above rules. But you must wait for the next available mentor. Read more: www.holisticferret60.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=switch&action=display&thread=61#ixzz1j2ekRtqkLet me know if you have the required items and then let's start off with a full run down of their current diet. What are you feeding, how are you feeding (meal times or free range?), etc. Then we'll get started!
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Post by katt on Jan 10, 2012 3:30:15 GMT -5
Also, I apologize in advance but I will be out of town Thurs-Sat (back Sat night) so I'll have Heather or Sherry check in on the thread over the weekend. My first med school interview! Yaay! lol
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Post by kpaz on Jan 10, 2012 14:15:53 GMT -5
Good luck on your interview! How exciting I have the scale, a blender, and the eggshell powders and I am going to shower and buy the chicken, hearts, and livers which are right up the road when I'm done posting here. My ferrets are free roam, and they are currently eating a mix of zupreem grain-free and blue buffalo wilderness kitten food, which is available to them at all times. I am worried about making sure I keep everything hygienic, especially since they stash kibble all over the place. I want to get started as soon as possible, so what arrangements should I make? I read about giving them their own trashcan as a sort of cave to eat; should I go ahead and buy those while I'm at the store? Also, I need to figure out how I can feed them without them stashing it everywhere. If I could switch to certain feeding times, I could either feed them in the cage or in a bathroom. Is that an option? Also, the semester starts back up on Tuesday, so on some days I won't be home until 5:30 I won't be home. I'm not sure how much of a problem that will be, but I can certainly wake up early to feed them before school. Maybe I'm getting ahead of myself!!
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Post by katt on Jan 10, 2012 16:00:06 GMT -5
I'm at work so I ahve to keep my reply brief. I am worried about making sure I keep everything hygienic, especially since they stash kibble all over the place. Don't worry too much about that for their sakes, I'd worry more for your sakes. I'll explain more later. In the meanwhile, a simple rubbermaid tub works great for a feeding den. If you want to pick something up while you're out, you could get a rubbermaid bin and some shower hooks. Check out feeding dens in the cages and rooms board. I'll psot more later when I get off work.
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Post by kpaz on Jan 10, 2012 18:44:33 GMT -5
I have the ingredients now, although the only chicken that was "no preservatives, no steroids, etc., etc." still has about 56mg(2%, I think) of salt. Is that okay, or should I buy a different kind? I bought the rubbermaid tub, although it seems a bit big. I doubt it will fit inside the cage, but if it doesn't I'll just feed them in the part of the room with tiles. I put everything in the freezer for now. How much will the recipe above make? I bought three ice cube trays for storage. Should I go ahead and take the kibble out of their cage and try to give them some tonight, or should I wait until tomorrow? Also, the chicken hearts came with gizzards. I think I'll offer them to the ferrets for fun. Ick!
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Post by katt on Jan 10, 2012 22:01:13 GMT -5
I'll be off of work in about 30-40 min (hopefully) and then heading home (about 20-30 min to get home) to get on the computer. I'll give you a full run down on what to do tonight/tomorrow.
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Post by kpaz on Jan 10, 2012 22:03:37 GMT -5
Sounds good. I set up the tub with a water bowl hooked to the side and just put their food bowl in there for now. I might have to lead Goomba to it though, he's always a bit slow.
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Post by katt on Jan 10, 2012 22:05:40 GMT -5
In the meanwhile, go ahead and mix up some of the soup if you want. You can put some on your finger and let them lick it off (see Scruff N Stuff), and/or try putting a very small amount on their kibble and mixing it in so the kibble has a very light coating. You might have to scruff n stuff a soup-covered kibble to each of them to show them that it's still food. If you've tried that before I post again let me know how it goes. Either way I'll be on in an hour or so. Also, feel free to add me on Skype. hurricane.katt I think is my username. I'm on pretty frequently.
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Post by katt on Jan 10, 2012 22:06:46 GMT -5
Sounds good. I set up the tub with a water bowl hooked to the side and just put their food bowl in there for now. I might have to lead Goomba to it though, he's always a bit slow. He sounds a lot like my Kenai! ;D Kenai's a tad slow as well. We still love him though!
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Post by kpaz on Jan 11, 2012 0:35:04 GMT -5
Everyone is sleeping here now, so I will have to wait until the morning to make it. I realized I bought the wrong kind of shower hooks, so I'll have to make some makeshift clamps to hold the tub in place, seeing as Ellie HAS to crawl around every box and will push until the water bowl is sloshing out everywhere. I'll also set up the scale (open the box and put some batteries in it) and weigh them to keep track of what's going on.
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Post by katt on Jan 11, 2012 0:47:46 GMT -5
Soup for switch: 8oz chicken(or other meat) One chicken liver(or 2oz other liver) 2 chicken hearts(or 1oz other heart) 1/2 tsp eggshell powder Add some kibble to this soup (to make it taste more "appealing") initially, You should be able to blend it in, along with some water. Add as much or as little water as you think you need. You will probably have to start out with a very thin soup, but we will gradually thicken it by decreasing the amount of water and kibble and increasing the amount of real meats! Then use the soup to coat their kibble with, like gravy. Start out with just a light coating. You'll want to scruff n stuff to get them to taste it. Scruff n stuff with the soup, and with the soup-covered kibble. You may need to hand feed them at first, but if they will eat that way that's a good start. Also, have any of your 3 shown any signs of insulinoma at all? The teeth grinding with Ellie makes me wonder if she might have ulcers... Also, with Mr. Goomba, you said he has allergies - what is he allergic to that you know of?
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Post by katt on Jan 11, 2012 0:51:53 GMT -5
Everyone is sleeping here now, so I will have to wait until the morning to make it. I realized I bought the wrong kind of shower hooks, so I'll have to make some makeshift clamps to hold the tub in place, seeing as Ellie HAS to crawl around every box and will push until the water bowl is sloshing out everywhere. I'll also set up the scale (open the box and put some batteries in it) and weigh them to keep track of what's going on. Silly ferrets! ;D I think we keep posting at the same time. It's fine to wait until the morning. The shower hooks can be used to hold the tub in place, and to hold the meat in the tub once they are eating bigger pieces. I personally only feed my ferrets in their cage, they are not allowed to have food outside of the cage. But mine don't free roam o that makes it a little easier. When they are out I just close the cage and they can't get their food and stash it around my room! The feeding den will help to direct stashing to one place (though you'll probably still find the occasional jerky with them being free roamers lol). It also makes clean up a little easier. I use a small rubbermaid bin that fits alongside the litter box in the bottom level of the FN. It takes up about 1/4 of the floor, but most of the food stays in the box instead of all over the cage.
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Post by kpaz on Jan 11, 2012 12:11:08 GMT -5
Ellie grinds her teeth the most, but now they all do. Are ulcers contagious? I've told the vet twice, but for whatever reason she doubts they have ulcers, so I thought maybe it was the food. I'll have to keep pestering her. As for Goomba, he just has a sensitive nose. Sometimes it's season related; he'll have allergy attacks on the same days my boyfriend does, and he hacks and sneezes and sleeps all day, and he won't like to be touched a lot. He was also sensitive to laundry detergent so I switched to a hypoallergenic one for babies and I think it did the trick. If you have any strong soaps or perfumed lotion on your hands he'll huff at you when you pet him, pick up your hand and move it away from his bed, then drop it and turn to go back to sleep in peace. Other times it's more random things, like the rubbermaid tub made him hack and he avoided it for a while, so I wiped it down and washed it out and then he was fine. I'm going to make the soup now; I'll let you know how it goes!
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