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Post by mortmortmorty on Mar 4, 2009 7:46:32 GMT -5
in the very near future (within the next week, i believe), i'm going to be purchasing 2 ferrets. last night i was reading about diets, and i read all about whole-prey diets and am very intrigued and determined to have my ferrets eat it.
my question is: would a diet consisting of chicks, turkey heart/neck, beef heart, (different ages of) mice (maybe rats), and maybe raw chicken be okay? can they even manage adult mice?? and are raw eggs really safe..?
also, what's a reasonable amount for daily feeding? for example, x pinkies, x fuzzies..
thanks! ;D
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Post by sherrylynne on Mar 4, 2009 9:22:24 GMT -5
From what others have said, I believe 4-6 pinkies(mouse) will make a meal for one ferret, or 2-3 adult mice. Not sure about rats. As far as meat goes, they can eat virtually any kind you can think of  . For bone, any thing the size of, or smaller than a chicken. Mine eat about 2 ounces of meat/bone per meal, two meals a day. For whole prey, mice, rats, chicks, quail, small fish like smelt, herring, etc(once a week), raw eggs(white and yolk combined) once a week. Yolks can be fed more often. Good luck with your new fuzzes, and remember to post pics! |
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Post by fuzzymom on Mar 4, 2009 9:24:03 GMT -5
It is recommended to provide meaty bones 4x a week, boneless meat 3x a week, and organ meat 1x per week. If you feed whole prey you really don't have to worry about providing the organ meat since they get the organs from the prey items.
A young ferret can handle an adult mouse, but it may be a whole meal to them. My full grown ferrets will eat 2-3 per meal.
Raw eggs are safe. I heard somewhere if you are feeding it to them raw, you can only feed either the yolk or the white. You can't feed them both. Something about nutrients not getting absorbed. I have no idea, but I'll check on this.
If you are getting a young ferret, a reasonable meal would be somewhere around 1-2oz per meal, so 2-4oz per day. All my ferrets get 2oz per meal (Damian gets 3oz per meal). You will want to feed them twice a day, once in the morning, and once in the evening.
Pinkies and fuzzies make good treats, but can't really be used as meals. They just don't have the nutritional content. Hoppers and Weans make good snakes or part of a meal. Adult mice make good meals, but how many you will need to make a meal depends on the size and appetite of your ferret. Also, chicks are good as snacks but really can't make much of a meal.
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Post by mortmortmorty on Mar 5, 2009 1:38:39 GMT -5
wow, thank you both so much for all this information.. i feel a lot better about it now, haha, though i think i do need to look into the eggs more. and i will be sure to post pictures! so excited!  |
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Post by spiritualtramp on Mar 7, 2009 9:54:33 GMT -5
The reason we say not to feed whites and yolks together is because avidin in the whites binds to biotin (found in yolks and other foods too) and can cause a biotin deficiency. So, feel free to feed yolks more often than whites! My girl Pilot loves whites though, so she gets a little every couple weeks or so. I think she likes the weird mucousy viscosity --- little creep!
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Post by novemberkris on Mar 7, 2009 10:06:40 GMT -5
That is interesting about the egg whites/yolks and I did not know that. Haha! Now I know what to do with my egg yolks when I'm baking something that only requires whites! Typically, I throw the yolks in anyway not to waste, which messes with the baking of course. Now I'll just mix them in Paulie's food or freeze them for a treat for him later. |
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Post by sherrylynne on Mar 7, 2009 10:41:23 GMT -5
Mine also love the yolks mixed in with their meat. Gives them a change!
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Post by Heather on Mar 8, 2009 0:37:57 GMT -5
Hey guys...those eggs have to be fed in their altogether...you can feed just the yolk.....you can feed yolk and white but please don't feed just white. You will cause a biotin deficiency if you only feed whites. When mixed you basically nullify the problem (not entirely which is why you never feed eggs more than a couple of times a week) Eggs when fed with their shell are a totally balanced food that being said it's not often you will see them eat the whole egg, except with pidgeon or other tiny eggs.
ciao
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Post by selzdaze on Mar 10, 2009 14:51:42 GMT -5
...it's not often you will see them eat the whole egg, except with pidgeon or other tiny eggs. ciao My guys used to adore the eggs I brought home whne I worked in a petshop - fresh quail and canary eggs every now and then  They always wolfed them down, shell and all! |
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Post by nwheather on Apr 19, 2009 6:02:39 GMT -5
Hey guys...those eggs have to be fed in their altogether...you can feed just the yolk.....you can feed yolk and white but please don't feed just white. You will cause a biotin deficiency if you only feed whites. When mixed you basically nullify the problem (not entirely which is why you never feed eggs more than a couple of times a week) Eggs when fed with their shell are a totally balanced food that being said it's not often you will see them eat the whole egg, except with pidgeon or other tiny eggs. ciao On that note (tiny eggs) how about finch eggs? I have a coworker with 6 pairs of finches & they have lots of eggs. to prevent his population from exploding, he offered to give the eggs to me to feed my ferrets...what do you think about this? |
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Post by sherrylynne on Apr 19, 2009 10:54:35 GMT -5
I think it sounds like a great idea . It would make a nice treat for them! |
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Post by bluedove on Apr 20, 2009 10:54:10 GMT -5
See the thing is that avidin binds to biotin no matter what. This means it will actually REMOVE biotin from the body unless a sufficient amount of biotin is consumed along with the avidin... thus you want to feed whole egg, or just the yolk... but never just the white.
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