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Post by amymelissa on Dec 19, 2008 22:28:12 GMT -5
She only had them for about a week.
Heather posted pictures of what a 9 week old kit's teeth look like and Damien's look exactly like that. Bandit's teeth look even younger. Teeth by the big front ones are just now breaking the surface on Bandit. I posted pictures of them.
Tonight we made a new soup. 1lb raw turkey, 1 chicken breast, 1 chicken thigh, half a chicken neck, 4 livers and 2 eggs. Hope I didn't mess it up!
I started measuring how much they eat.
Taz eats 1 table spoon 4 x a day. She was up to 6 but has settled down into 4. Her coat is so soft now and it is much fuller. When we first got her it was course and thin!
The boys are eating about 2 1/2 - 3 table spoons (they share a plate) 4 x a day.
I put out a raw chicken wing just to see what they'd do and Damien was licking it. I hadn't scored it yet so he didn't try to eat it but sure was licking the heck out of it. Bandit wasn't interested in it though.
The boys coats are very thin. Is that a kit thing? A Marshal's thing?
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Post by amymelissa on Dec 19, 2008 22:53:46 GMT -5
Just had a thought. How much should I be giving them to eat. They are scarfing down 2 1/2 table spoons and would eat more if I put it out. Should I give it to them till they are done or is how much they are eating fine?
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Post by amymelissa on Dec 20, 2008 2:20:48 GMT -5
Guess what the boys did last night...    Bandit really liked the bone. Once he got the meat off he just kept on chewing on the bone. Then Damien came and stole it from him. The last picture they were playing tug with it lol So my question is (I think they are about 9 - 10 weeks old) will chicken drumsticks be to large for them? Should we score them like we did the wings? I should still give them the soup, right? Michael said that they aren't eating the skin but rather around, and under it. I think it's harder for them to eat. Is there anyway to make it easier for them? I heard some cracking and my first thought was "oh my God their teeth" but Bandit kept on eating without missing a beat. I'm guessing what I heard was the bone? Damien wasn't interested at first until after I heard the cracking noise from Bandit when he was eating. Michael said that Damien doesn't really eat the bone just cracks it and then licks the heck out of the marrow! I'm not sure if Bandit is eating the bone or not but I know he's cracking them. So now I just have to get Taz on board. I'm going to put a wing in her cage tonignt and see what, if anything, she does with it. *update* The wing was a no go for Taz. She didn't so much as nibble it  |
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Post by amymelissa on Dec 20, 2008 12:24:01 GMT -5
This morning Bandit ate 3 table spoons for breakfast and Damien ate 4 and they still wanted more!!!!
We didn't give them more because I wasn't sure if we should or not. I still have the wing they didn't finish last night is it ok to let them finish it later today?
I'm not sure how much to feed them. Can you walk me through how much they should be eating?
I'm guessing based on the photo's of a 9 week old kits teeth that Bandit is under 9 weeks and Damien is about 9 weeks old.
On a side note I've noticed how much the boys stink compared to Taz.
*update*
I went ahead and let the boys have the wings about 30 min ago. Bandit chewed a little bit but then was done. Damien on the other hand is STILL eating on that wing!
I've read on a couple of threads about how ferrets don't overeat but I'm wondering about Damien, he sure is eating a lot. Double what Bandit is eating and 3x what Taz is eating.
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Post by tsslilsis on Dec 20, 2008 15:24:09 GMT -5
She only had them for about a week. Heather posted pictures of what a 9 week old kit's teeth look like and Damien's look exactly like that. Bandit's teeth look even younger. Teeth by the big front ones are just now breaking the surface on Bandit. I posted pictures of them. Tonight we made a new soup. 1lb raw turkey, 1 chicken breast, 1 chicken thigh, half a chicken neck, 4 livers and 2 eggs. Hope I didn't mess it up! I started measuring how much they eat. Taz eats 1 table spoon 4 x a day. She was up to 6 but has settled down into 4. Her coat is so soft now and it is much fuller. When we first got her it was course and thin! The boys are eating about 2 1/2 - 3 table spoons (they share a plate) 4 x a day. I put out a raw chicken wing just to see what they'd do and Damien was licking it. I hadn't scored it yet so he didn't try to eat it but sure was licking the heck out of it. Bandit wasn't interested in it though. The boys coats are very thin. Is that a kit thing? A Marshal's thing? Seeing as they are aparently 9 weeks or under I'm sure it is just because their coats haven't had a lot of time to grow in and thicken. Just had a thought. How much should I be giving them to eat. They are scarfing down 2 1/2 table spoons and would eat more if I put it out. Should I give it to them till they are done or is how much they are eating fine? Keep feeding them until they have had their fill. They are like puppies and will eat a lot as they grow. They know when enough is enough.  Guess what the boys did last night... Bandit really liked the bone. Once he got the meat off he just kept on chewing on the bone. Then Damien came and stole it from him. The last picture they were playing tug with it lol So my question is (I think they are about 9 - 10 weeks old) will chicken drumsticks be to large for them? Should we score them like we did the wings? I should still give them the soup, right? Michael said that they aren't eating the skin but rather around, and under it. I think it's harder for them to eat. Is there anyway to make it easier for them? I heard some cracking and my first thought was "oh my God their teeth" but Bandit kept on eating without missing a beat. I'm guessing what I heard was the bone? Damien wasn't interested at first until after I heard the cracking noise from Bandit when he was eating. Michael said that Damien doesn't really eat the bone just cracks it and then licks the heck out of the marrow! I'm not sure if Bandit is eating the bone or not but I know he's cracking them. So now I just have to get Taz on board. I'm going to put a wing in her cage tonignt and see what, if anything, she does with it. *update* The wing was a no go for Taz. She didn't so much as nibble it You could cut the skin off and chunk it up and put it to the side.. If you want you could give them soup for breakfast and wings for dinner or vise versa.. Since they are still teething that may be why they aren't really eating the bone, but they are trying and I'm sure its helping with the teething so you can continue on with that. It might releave some of Damiens distructiveness. You could try scoring a chicken wing for Taz. The marrow is very "yummy" and it may intise her. And yes, any left overs can be offered again later on. They won't over eat. I bet Damien is just going to be a big guy when he grows up. Ferrets are much better at knowing when they are full than dogs are. Whew.. I hope I got everything!! -~Ketlin |
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Post by amymelissa on Dec 20, 2008 16:09:33 GMT -5
Yeap you covered everything  So far they eaten ground turkey and chicken. I'm going to try game hens (quail or pheasant) and pork. That would put them up to 4 different meats. I also was thinking of trying goat (meat not bones) but didn't know if that would be good? What about quail eggs instead of chicken eggs for variety? One week chicken eggs the next quail eggs. I'm also going to look around for rabbit. We're trying to not have to order it online and use what we can find around here, mainly because of cost. Who would have thought Taz would be the "hard" one to switch lol At this point I think the boys will try anything and we will be able to give it to them on the bone. Since they aren't able to eat the bone yet then they still need the eggshell in the soup or ground up chicken bones, right? On a side note Bandit has come to the conclusion that hammocks are evil and must die too! I'm going to have to get them some chew toys. N-bones? |
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Post by tsslilsis on Dec 20, 2008 23:08:39 GMT -5
Game hens packaged at the normal grocery stores are small chickens labled with a "Fancy" name. Feeding different ages of meat are great but it is still prefered to have at least three species of meat.
Goat is great!! That use to make up a big part of my ferrets diet. We never bought it from stores but instead got a few goats from someone that were old and in pain (They had arthritis and were suffering).. So instead of getting dumped in the woods behind the farm they got used. They gave them to us for free and did the deed and we did the chopped up and all that.
I think a mixture of quail and chicken eggs would be great!! It would be more variety.
Yes, it would still be a good idea to give them food with ground bone or egg shell in it. I think it would still be good to give them wings for teething.. But also I think that if your able to try giving them chicken ribs they may be able to eat those fine.
I have never used N-bones.. The ferrets got feline greenies when they were kibble fed but thats about it. You can try N-bones if you like. Maybe even bully sticks?
-~Ketlin
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Post by amymelissa on Dec 20, 2008 23:39:24 GMT -5
I remember someone saying that the cornish game hens were actually just young chickens. I am going to try and get quail and pheasant. We have several specialty stores in town that might carry game birds. There is also a butcher close by that might have some meats we can get. We haven't checked yet but are going to try.
What about dehydrated duck and lamb fillets? They are made as dog treats but they are 100% duck and lamb. The dogs love them! If they are ok for them would they count as a meat source?
*update*
Tonight the boys ate a entire chicken wing together. I would say it was pretty close to each eating 50% of the wing. Bandit was up but Damien was sleeping so Bandit got to work on that wing. Half way through it he got sleepy and went to bed and in the process woke up Damien who finished most the wing off. I put it in as a chew toy so we didn't score it or take the skin off thinking it would last longer and they ate almost all of it. Bone, meat, skin, everything!!! There is maybe 1" of bone left if that much.
Can I try leg bones with them or are they to young? Should I put two wings in there at night? What about necks, how many? They really are little piggies and eat a lot more than Taz does!
Does eating off the bone make them tired? They seem to be really sleepy after the wings but want to play after soup.
As I'm typing this I can hear one of the boys up eating what is left of the wing!
*update 2*
This morning the boys ate 1/2 (we measured) cup of soup together. Then looked at us like where is the rest. We didn't give them more but will give them 2 wings tonight and more soup again around 5 ish.
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Post by tsslilsis on Dec 21, 2008 23:04:20 GMT -5
Yes, those would count as a meat source but obviously couldn't be a diet staple or anything like that.
Yes, you can go ahead and give them legs. They were probably able to eat wings all along but just hadn't opened up to the idea at first.
Chicken necks would be fine. They are mostly bone though so I would probably just try one for the time being and see if they can handle that well.
They might have tired out because of the bone.. Like if your eating a lesser cut of beef for example, it will be tough and need a lot of chewing and your jaw will get tired.. Since they are new to bones they've not truly worked those jaw muscles yet.
They sure are eating well!
-~Ketlin
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Post by amymelissa on Dec 22, 2008 14:41:16 GMT -5
Not much to report. We gave the boys a thigh last night and they ate it. Well they are still eating it. I put it in their cage last night around 1am. They were able to crack and eat some of the bone. They ate off all the skin, some of the meat and some of the bone.
Taz is a stinker and still wont eat off the meat off the bone but she does get bone in the soup.
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Post by tsslilsis on Dec 22, 2008 15:18:17 GMT -5
I'll give you a couple ideas to see if we can get Taz to eat some bone in chicken.
Giuli suggests taking a wing and stripping most of the meat off of it.. Wait til she is hungry and then offer it. The only way for her to eat is for her to eat the bone, too.
My sister suggests taking a wing and cutting it into three sections.. Cut the tip into three sections, cut the flat in half length wise and then cut each half into three, then cut the drumette into three. Meat shears work great for that. Are those instructions understandable??
-~Ketlin
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Post by amymelissa on Dec 22, 2008 16:43:26 GMT -5
Yeap I understand.
I don't think I'll give the boys the dehydrated meats again. They kept sniffing the meat so I think they'll do fine with lamb and duck. They got some pretty bad poo from it.
Taz wouldn't touch the dehydrated meat at all. She does love N-bones though. She came with some so I think she's used to them.
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Post by tsslilsis on Dec 23, 2008 9:59:31 GMT -5
Thats a bummer! What kind do you use?? The ferrets have had Stella and Chewy's and they love them.. They have 100% meat treats.
Ferrets are picky little monsters sometimes! Since the stuff didn't agree with the guys though maybe its better that she didn't take to it.
-~Ketlin
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Post by amymelissa on Dec 23, 2008 20:00:07 GMT -5
Vitalife. I triple checked the package and the ingredients only list duck and lamb. We gave the boys a chicken breast and they ate all the skin off of it and the bones they could get to BUT refused to eat the meat  Taz still wont touch meat on a bone but slurps up her soup |
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Post by tsslilsis on Dec 23, 2008 21:51:07 GMT -5
Since that is the only time they have done that, I think they were probably just in the mood for bone and skin. If they continue to do that, then we will do something about it.
I'll get Giuli to step in and give some ideas for Taz. But please be patient because she may take a bit to get to it.
-~Ketlin
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