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Post by AnimalFarm2006 on Mar 9, 2009 9:49:47 GMT -5
kk I'll go n head and let jack and lelloo have their own mouse tonight after my brother leaves with his kids.
I was thinking of taking the dead bodys and wrapping them up in Tin-foil. Writt do not open, not food, beware on the bag and burry them inside the freezer outside. I havn't had the nerve to do it because lelloo and jack seem to not be interested in dead mice, but i hate to waste so i may do that.
I like my chicken noodle smelling soup so no dead mice inside it untill after i make the soup. I also need to steal my own knife, and mark it saying that thats MY/Mouse knife.
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Post by AnimalFarm2006 on Mar 10, 2009 13:44:48 GMT -5
What to do know? I tried cutting them up, making jack eat one, etc. Jack has been trying to chew, or nibble on the body so i've gotten somewhere.
But what now? I'll keep trying everyday so i can kill down the size of the litter.
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Post by tss on Mar 10, 2009 21:57:56 GMT -5
Keep at it, he will get used to it.. It does take time but see, you've already progressed!! He's trying them now.
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Post by AnimalFarm2006 on Mar 11, 2009 10:31:58 GMT -5
Tried again last night. I had put the babys in the tub as i was figuring out who was what sex. I turned around and jack was already chomping on one. XD I had to put lelloo in the tub, and than she went after it. They didn't eat anything, but jack was realllyyy reallly into it. He chewed on the head, etc. Lelloo could care less.
They where trying to run off with dead mice on my bed. O.O i put them in the cage after that.
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Post by AnimalFarm2006 on Mar 12, 2009 10:24:53 GMT -5
Because of my new passion for ferrets, and the fact that three is better than two in a ferret group, I might be taking in a third ferret boy. He's albino like jack, and is like realy close to me. Hopefull i will get this little guy so that it isn't so rough on lelloo for being an only girl.
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Post by tss on Mar 12, 2009 14:05:16 GMT -5
This is called ferret math, trust me, you'll probably want more after this one.
Try getting him on raw ASAP and please be sure to quarentine for a couple weeks before you introduce them.
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Post by AnimalFarm2006 on Mar 13, 2009 19:22:14 GMT -5
I jynx myself.
So anyway, Jack and lelloo still aren't eating the mice even when I cut them up.
What to do now?
Thanks,
cara
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Post by AnimalFarm2006 on Mar 13, 2009 19:25:30 GMT -5
Sorry didn't mean to sound mean.  Just getting frustrated about the mice. I'll cut the mouse up again and put oil and soup on thema gain. |
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Post by tss on Mar 13, 2009 21:04:08 GMT -5
Honestly, I don't know what to try next. Even when you are a mentor you learn more things and one of those for me has been switching adrenal ferrets. The ferrets that I have helped switch to whole prey took it without complaint.. This is just another thing that I will have to learn, I'll try to get Giuli and maybe another mentor or two over here.
Thank you for being patient.
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Post by Heather on Mar 13, 2009 23:54:47 GMT -5
Frustrating....there's a reason the word Ferret and the word Frustrating start with the same letter  Ok, I've glanced through a couple of posts. You've got one little one who's chewing on the mice and one that won't even try...yes?? Have you tried playing tug games with the mice...this isn't for the squeemish, and it works but they have to actually pull these little creatures apart. So the game has to be rough (and for your sanity very dead) The idea is to actually get them to taste the meat. How old are the mice, do they have fur? or are they pinkies, naked? Do your furbabies eat a soupy at all? If so, toss the mice in the blender (sorry, they stink if you do this, or at least so I'm told, I've never had to resort to this one) add small amounts of ground mouse until they're eating more and more mouse and less soupy. I've got Captain Jack turned in just before Christmas, he switched to raw ground and then to whole but I wanted him to eat mice like the rest of the furbabies. I placed him in the tub to let him make his first kill, hoping that the activity might be used to activate hunting and eating skills. Unfortunately, Jack--Jack likes to snuggle stuffies, he figured the mouse was a stuffy so he snuggled it. There was the mouse snuggled in with the ferret. Hmmmm. Ok. Next I place him with some prohunters and see if by watching he can learn how to hunt. Serious panic mode the poor little guys was horrified to see his stuffies being murdered and torn apart. So that was a total failure, plus the poor little fellow is traumatized for life  . Another kill is done and one of the mice has been used for a tug of war, he's pretty messed up (very dead). I toss it in the cage with Jack and Calypso.....I look in and Jack is eating the mouse. It was gone in the morning. Sometimes it's just a matter of patience and time. Unfortunately, when you only have 2 or 3 ferrets then it becomes pricey to keep offering them mice to leave or ignore and I understand the frustration. Are they eating other whole meats with bone in it? I've got one of my switching people who actually have ground mice that they ordered from Hare Today (at least I think that's where she got it) Perhaps, that would be an alternative and work as a starting base. It would at least give you breathing space. I honestly think that your little boy is well on his way, he just needs that extra time to get used to actually eating his dinner rather that treating it like chewing gum \ I will pop in tomorrow and see how things are going. Talk at you guys later. ciao |
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Post by AnimalFarm2006 on Mar 16, 2009 9:51:29 GMT -5
Gooooood Neeews!
So...after I posted, I felt a little stupid for not realy using my brain and doing the mice how I think lelloo and jack would try them. Their my ferrets, and i was doing the basics of what you said without realy putting any of my thoughts into it.
I grabed a two week old baby, and a smaller baby a few days younger. Stuck them in the tub and watched the kids go to work. Jack and lellooo were trying to steal each others meal which made me kind of smile because they were realy into the mice.
After they left the mice alone and such, I ripped the larger mouse in three parts and than held jack by the scruff. I put the tail end of the mouse to his lips and waited untill he yarned before puting part of it in the side of his crunching teeth. He ate a leg and wasn't fighting it. I tried again and he ended up eating the back end of the mouse. He than ate the back bone and ribs, and than the haunchs. Next, he finished it off with eating most of the head, but after that big meal he was just holding onto the mouse, or not opening his mouth. I gave him a kiss, on the nose...XD and than let him down.
Lelloo was harder to convince. She moved around, scratched, and bascaly was like a child not wanting to eat her veggies. She got through haft of the small mouse...
last night i wanted to work on getting her to eat more than jack so i only brought out one mouse. The mouse was killed and than i let jack eat most of the head and a leg off while scruffing him. He wasn't refussing, and was eating it like yesterday. He didn't even spit any of it out like how they did with raw meat.
Lelloo realy was into the mouse. I scruffed her, but she would turn her head and eat/bite the legg, the tail, the hips, and than the rest of the front part of the mouses body. The only part that she did not eat was the belly area. ^.^ She even held the mouse, like a rodent but i'm pretty sure she was just trying to keep it there, and was gnawing on the body.
BIG step, and I hope i did that alright. I felt like a mama making her kids taste something and than not realy forcing it too much on them.
oh, and the mice are pregnant again. ^.^ The male did great before he got sent to the chamber of the deadly ferrets. Jack also scratchs at the tub everytime its in the ferret room and likes to sniff around inside.
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Post by AnimalFarm2006 on Mar 16, 2009 9:55:46 GMT -5
oh, and your method of tug a ware worked. I tuged on the mouse when lelloo had it after she ate a leg off, and she was gnawing on it in the cage. I need to get my own feed box in the cage now. XD
I didn't read your posts untill now and don't worry tss. ^.^ You are great. I just kind of need to use my brain as well for these little guys. I snuggled with them in my bed yesterday! They were sleepuing under the covers so i held them. Lelloo went and crawled into my pants leg and tried to sleep.
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Post by tss on Mar 16, 2009 19:39:32 GMT -5
That is awesome!! It is so weird how different ferrets need different methods, and that those methods are sooo different from each other. Some ferrets take mice without second thought and others need major bribing. I got to snuggle with Ravi the other day, I laid him on my chest under a blanket. He stuck his head out and licked my face all over (it tickled!!!) then he fell asleep.  |
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Post by AnimalFarm2006 on Mar 16, 2009 21:43:27 GMT -5
I soo wanna get a futon so i can sleep with them at night. I would only have to worry about simba moving around with them. but than he's usualy sleeps deeper than the ferrets. XD
Great news again. I decided to let them have the mouse to themselves tonight without me trying and too keep it in their cage. I came back to let them in their cage from the feeding bin and well...someone or both gnawed the head off of a larger mouseling. ^.^ I'm realy glad. They ate it without me making them today.
Thank you both for everything, and this site! ;D
Love the Iloveferrrets. I would totaly get a shirt that said that but than it would also list...and guinea pigs, and hamsters, and rabbits, and dogs and cats....etc XD
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Post by tss on Mar 18, 2009 9:23:33 GMT -5
Thats good! Now they just need to get into the flow of things. Once they are really eating well by themselves you can graduate!!
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