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Post by whipple on Aug 15, 2008 0:47:41 GMT -5
So I have heard about raw not being fed the same time as kibble, but then see people suggesting to put raw in *with* kibble.  So I basically understand why not to, but if it is suggested to mix it with kibble, then is the caution really warrented? |
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Post by Forum Administrator on Aug 15, 2008 1:46:21 GMT -5
During the transition if you are mixing raw and kibble you should be mixing a SMALL amount of kibble with the raw. A few sprinkles of kibble on top of some raw food is fine. Ground raw and kibble together in a bowl and fed for weeks and weeks is not. If you get to a point in the switch where you are mixing the two foods (ground and kibble) I would do it as quickly as possible and put in as little kibble as possible. Ferrets are designed to have a rapid digestive tract to reduce the risk of food bourne illness. Mixing raw and kibble slows digestion. Mixing a TINY amount of kibble (to entice them to try raw) wont really slow down digestion that much. So is the caution warrented? Yes, I think so. I wouldnt regularly feed the kibble and the raw together. But then again, I wouldnt feed kibble at all  |
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Post by cristina on Sept 3, 2008 13:55:37 GMT -5
Ok now Im worried after reading this post....I have been feeding kibble mixed with ground raw meat and water for weeks now and gradually adding more and more raw meat. Is this not ok? or will this hurt them???
I really cant get them completely off the kibble yet because my little girl goes on strike and refuses to eat and it actually does take a toll on her body weight and I dont feel comfortable putting her through that. I have tried slipping in some cut up raw chicken thigh meat but it was an absolute no go....
Im confused now and I dont know what to do!
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Post by Forum Administrator on Sept 3, 2008 14:08:47 GMT -5
Its just that it makes the risk that your ferret could get food bourne illness (because the kibble slows down digestion). If they havent yet gotten sick, they are fine.
What methods have you tried for switching your little girl? Does she like duk soup?
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Post by cristina on Sept 3, 2008 14:40:41 GMT -5
Yea she does but now she is use to it so I havent been using it lately so she starts to see it as a "prize" again... they havent been sick at all but Im still very worried now, I had no idea!
Im just going to start cutting up pieces of chicken breast and covering them with crushed kibble and duk soup, thats the only thing I can think of but I honestly dont think they'll eat it.
I have tried raw meat before with duk soup and crushed kibble but no one touched it so I figured they weren't far enough along yet, but I dont want to take that risk of food borne illness anymore...maybe its just that I have been lucky, but I dont wanna press that luck!
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Post by mustelidmusk on Sept 7, 2008 19:10:46 GMT -5
Honestly, I'm not too sure there's much proof, if any at all, supporting the idea that kibble and raw fed together increases the risk of food-borne illness. I actually mentioned this at the Buckeye Bash, and Bob Church didn't seem to think the kibble took any longer to get through the system than the raw. And one I thought about it, my kids' poop rates never varied based upon what they ate.
Also, I fed my brats both for quite some time before I stopped feeding kibble. My 4 never had any problems other than normal diet transition poopies - I even ran stool cultures on my kids' poops during the transition. No problems found.
-jennifer
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Post by jennifer5799 on Sept 25, 2008 8:39:08 GMT -5
I agree with Jennifer. I see this 'warning' repeatedly for all animals (ferrets, cats & dogs) but I have never come across any issues when I've fed my critters both. Maybe if an animal was sick or had a weakened immune system, but I don't think a healthy animal will have any problems.
~Jenn
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