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Post by meli on Aug 16, 2008 14:25:05 GMT -5
So I decided to give my boys some enrichment. I went and bought two mice. The not so cute ones lol a black and a white one. Hocus went in with the black one. The mouse stood frozen in one corner of the bin while Hocus sniffed around. He slowly approached the mouse and ludged for it, grabbing it by the belly. He let it go, allowing the mouse to run to one corner. Hocus went in again this time for the kill. He grab the mouse by the neck and held it in place. The mouse became stiff and died. Pocus was entered in the bin with the white mouse already frozen in fear. This one gave a chase as pocus (looking like a gigantic beast) went in for immediate attack. He grabbed the mouse as he caught up to it, paralyzing the mouse. It didn't die yet. He played with it a bit. The white mouse screamed. Pocus seemed to enjoy it. Decided to add Hocus in for some support. They grabbed the mouse each at one end. Poor little mouse didn't see it coming. It died instantly once both boys grabbed hold. It was amazing to see them in action. They seemed to be so free and filled with their predatory instincts. I'm very proud!  |
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Post by suds on Aug 16, 2008 15:18:47 GMT -5
what no photo's?
I am not sure i could handle the screams though. I would have paniced and dispatched him myself . great job !! so did they eat them rite away or carry them around proudly to show off there catch?
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Post by meli on Aug 16, 2008 17:34:43 GMT -5
They wanted to play after they killed em so I had to put them in their cage so they can eat them. I was pretty impressed.
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Post by ferretpalooza on Aug 16, 2008 18:58:50 GMT -5
They ate the whole mice?  Boudreaux will kill them, every now and then there is a little screaming but not much. The most he has ever eaten was the head though so Im not into letting him kill them just for killing sake. It is amazing to see them hunt like they were created to do, isnt it??? |
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Post by josiesmom on Aug 16, 2008 21:17:24 GMT -5
Great Job!
Yes, the new hunters are a bit confused how to grab the mouse at first. But it doesn't take very many mice to figure it out.
With several ferrets its easier to ensure the mouse gets eaten so the animal isn't wasted. But it is NOT uncommon for them to just eat the mouse brains immediately and then let the body age a bit- usually it gets eaten within a 24 hour period.
I offered a particularly large mouse last week to one ferret who killed it, ate one hind leg and the liver then stashed it in a corner of the dining den.
So I put another ferret in with the mouse and this ferret ate the forelimbs and neck.
The next ferret ate the other hind leg and haunch.
Just the head, a strip of backbone and part of the hind quarters remained. The next ferret ate the head, leaving the nose and whiskers!
The last ferret polished off the backbone and remaining haunch.
All I had to clean up was a nose, the fore paws and the stomach with intestines!
One mouse fed 5 ferrets!
Any uneaten mouse bodies can always be added to a soup mix.
Luckily for the mouse, ferrets only play with their food AFTER it is dispatched. Not like a cat which plays with the food before it dies.
Cheers,
Kim
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Post by Forum Administrator on Aug 17, 2008 0:18:02 GMT -5
Congrats Meli! My boys suck at hunting  if their food wasnt pre-killed they'd starve lol |
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Post by meli on Aug 17, 2008 0:55:28 GMT -5
They ate them all. I'm telling you..for being 6 months these guys are huge lol theres some ferts at our local petco here that I know are older then my guys, but my boys have em beat in size..my mom went to the beach today and said some guy had his two ferrets there..she said mine were bigger and cuter then his haha so being raw and whole prey fed these boys are beautiful.   Here the mice are already dead. I have video but its dark and you can barely see s285.photobucket.com/albums/ll57/sassymeli80/?action=view¤t=Mypictures003-3.flv |
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Post by harrisi on Aug 17, 2008 6:07:27 GMT -5
Great to see them hunt isnt it? I blocked off a room a while ago and let my boys have some rats...They killed them and left them alone lol. Will you be doing this again with them?
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Post by whipple on Aug 17, 2008 14:27:48 GMT -5
That's awesome! And they are huge! My boys are all hovering around 2 1/2 lbs, and your one guy in the video is just gigantic. I can't wait to start breeding so they can do a mass "cull". Now that has to be interesting to watch. |
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Post by meli on Aug 17, 2008 16:45:14 GMT -5
I do plan on giving them mouse enrichment once a week to once every two weeks. The last time they were weighed they were 2.5 pounds..I know they now have to be 3 to 3.5 pounds with pocus being the 3.5 pounds. Their coats are amazing. I really wish you all could see them in person.
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Post by pear2apple on Aug 18, 2008 10:53:04 GMT -5
Wow Meli! They are big!! And its summer! What will they be like with their winter fat?! OMG! LOL
I want big ferrets now! Apple is a little over 2lbs and Kiwi is right at about 1lb. She is too small for me. I can feel her rib cage too much.
But yeah, Apple doesn't kill so quickly, but its so fun to watch!
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Post by meli on Aug 18, 2008 11:23:06 GMT -5
My guys would probably be HUGE in the winter haha..pocus colors are changing though..hes looking very cool and hocus is more of a chamapagne now.
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Post by charmantpapillon on Aug 18, 2008 13:34:59 GMT -5
the video was awesome to watch =) how old are hocus and pocus?
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Post by meli on Aug 18, 2008 23:01:12 GMT -5
they are about 6 months
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Post by charmantpapillon on Aug 18, 2008 23:20:20 GMT -5
ooh ooh *hopes beast is that big in 3 months* I am now prod to say that my 3 month old monster is 2.5 pounds =x and tyou dont realize how BIG he is untill hes next to an avg ferret =x
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