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Post by Forum Administrator on Jul 31, 2008 17:51:08 GMT -5
Hooray! Once they actually start eating the meat they usually progress quickly. your next big "bump" that you might hit is trying to get them to eat bone, but we usually are able to help people if their ferrets have trouble with getting onto bone crunching, so no worries. Im so proud  |
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Post by weeksl08 on Jul 31, 2008 20:22:31 GMT -5
Heather, Guili, they are eating meat off of the plate WITHOUT kibble sprinkles  We've done it! I will keep working with the chicken breast and ground chicken until we can get them to wings Once we get there we will try new meats I am very proud as well! We also decided to do something nice for them. We took the play pen that we were using as a yard around their cage and wedges it between the couch (on one wall) and a table (on the other wall) so they can free roam about half of the house for now. When classes start back and we're gone a lot more we want them to be able to get their exercise while we are gone too So far we are ((poopies in the corner free)) and as long as we can stay that way they can free roam:) They're good kids and raw has given them a lot more energy! |
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Post by Heather on Jul 31, 2008 23:38:41 GMT -5
Whooo Hooo Special cyberhugs being sent to your raw eating furbabies. You did it girl. Ditch that kibble stuff Give yourself a big pat on the back. Oh, they're so going to enjoy their new freedom to play too. They're going to have so much fun. If you think they have extra energy just wait until those beautiful new winter coats come in. You are going to be so amazed.....little soft plushies that smell like little ferts, not like kibbles.  You go girl...I will check up on you tomorrow ;D   ciao |
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Post by Forum Administrator on Aug 1, 2008 8:10:26 GMT -5
*happy dance*! Oh I am so proud of them!!!!!  Great job! The next step is to slowly increase the size of the chunks until they are about the size of your thumb. Then you offer them a chicken wing that has been broken into 3 pieces (at the joints) you also cut gashes into the wing (so they can learn how to grip it). From there they *should* gradually get the hang of chewing on the wing tip (cartalidge) and bone. You might have a little trouble when you get to this point (with getting them to eat the meat on the bone) but with patience you should get them onto the bone just fine. Once they eat the wing segements with no trouble you can offer them whole wings, whole legs, and whole thighs (and then diversify onto organ meat and other meats). Best of luck and keep us posted! I couldnt be more proud of your little ones! Im happy that you are already seeing the benefits of the raw diet! Keep up the great work, things will only get better from here. |
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Post by weeksl08 on Aug 1, 2008 11:40:23 GMT -5
OO! I have an idea. I think I am going to wrap tiny chunks of breast inside of the ground chicken! Maybe this will trick them into eating it!
They have eaten lots of ground chicken clumped into balls placed on a plate. May ate some chunks but the other two ignored them.
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Post by Heather on Aug 1, 2008 11:57:51 GMT -5
That's an excellent idea It's still the whole issue of texture  The nice thing is that once they get that then they will be game for just about any whole food. My guys aren't fond of venison (stronger tasting meat). Not that they would bring down a whole deer anyway, but we won't tell them that I had a couple of fuzzies who actually skipped the whole chunk meat thing. They went straight to the meat and bone stuff. You might try offering 1 chicken wing. Don't go all out and give three wings to your guys. Mayhem might be ready to try it. My guys look at them as recreational bones. They would far rather have a whole chicken leg. I actually found quail quarters go over really well. Are you mixing any ground egg shell with your little meatballs? I will catch you later. Let me know what you're guys think of the new meatballs ciao |
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Post by weeksl08 on Aug 3, 2008 12:13:48 GMT -5
Sorry I have been a bit absent my best friend got married yesterday so Friday and Saturday I was busy with all of that!
All three of them are doing great! Thy looove the ground chicken a Constantine and Mayhem are eating the chunks of breast meat. Libby may, but I have not witnessed it. They've eaten almost all of a 1.5 pound package of ground chicken so we wil be going shopping soon:)
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Post by Heather on Aug 3, 2008 23:02:45 GMT -5
Don't sweat it...enjoy your time and your friends. Your little guys are doing really well and it's always good to celebrate and have fun. That is so fantastic, you and your guys have done really well. I"m really proud of you We will have to consider adding some ground egg shell to your ground mix, so that we can get some calcium into your little furbabies (1/2 tsp per 8 oz of ground raw meat). You grind the dried egg shells into a fine powder. Some use their coffee grinders, I just use a mortar and pestle. This is just a stopgap method, to get you through until they are eating bone, which is our ultimate goal. One of the things you will probably notice is that when they first switch over they will eat huge amounts, they will level out after their bodies stop demanding all this good food Can you get small pkgs of heart and giblets? Heart is very necessary part of their diet to add the necessary taurine (all meats have taurine, just some are better at it than others) Heart is an excellent way to cover your bases. I find that most ferts will eat liver if ground up and mixed with their ground meat. Some will eat it as a treat, I think 3 maybe 4 of my 13 will actually eat raw chunks of liver. They will all eat it if it's in the ground meat. So I serve it that way rather than fight with individuals who feel they don't need this part of their diet Another option is to look for some prefab ground. I have a butcher who grinds my raw chicken, with the bones. I can also purchase prefab, raw cat food which has only the meat and bone. Urban Carnivore (mfg) which we used to be able to get up here, comes in patties and is the whole animal ground up. If I remember correctly it is rather pricey though. Just some options as you progress into the world of raw and natural diets Anyway, you've now joined the ranks of raw feeders (Yay!!) now the rest is technicallities I will check in with you tomorrow to see how everyone is doing ciao |
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Post by weeksl08 on Aug 4, 2008 9:38:04 GMT -5
Well they are moving up on the size of the chunks of meat fast! I added a section of wing last night to see if anyone would eat it and it was still there this morning. I'm thinking May or Constantine may eventually try it. They are eating so much I have to feed them 2-3 times a day to make sure they always have food. I feed them when I get up (week days- 8:30-9) then either in the after noon (between 12:30-3:00) and before bed (11:00-12:30). I put a blanket over the superpet cage to make a den because they hid raw meat in the Bride's shoe during her bridal shower this weekend!!lol!! I have 2 food dishes, one in each back corner. One has chunks and one has ground balls. The chunks are going quicker than the ground. (That's also because big fatty Constantine is the main one pigging out on them and he eats 2-3x as much as te girls.) The chunks are about the size of a quater today. Yesterday they were about half that, so we will see how they do today |
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Post by Heather on Aug 4, 2008 10:54:54 GMT -5
Feed them and keep feeding them. Their little bodies are busy trying to take in all these good nutrients that they've been missing for so long. Keep increasing the size of the meat as they will eat it. One thing you might try regarding the wings...is it the very tips that your feeding or the rest of the wing? Either way, score it....it seems to make a difference. Some of my guys will not eat the wing tips even if I don't score them...it seems to make the meat more easily available to them. Another thing you might try is giving the wing tip a good smash with the hammer. Seems to make it easier for them to handle and despite the bone, more like what they're already eating. I still do this when they're eating chicken legs... I don't know if the skin makes it difficult and they can't be bothered or what but give that a try. Your guys are doing fantastic....like we said once they get the hang of this they go gangbusters. Did the bride find out about the meat in her shoe....or did she stick her foot in it ewww. Talk at you later. ciao |
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Post by weeksl08 on Aug 4, 2008 11:41:04 GMT -5
I had cut the wing into thirds at the joints and gave them the wing tip part. I just beat it with a hammer and scored it for them so we will see if that makes a difference. I will pick up some hearts and gizzards and a jar of livers next time i go to kroger and see if they will eat them.
The bride noticed Constantin running to her shoe, thought it was cute... then he ran to the cage ad she initially thought he puked,but then noticed it was raw meat and freaked out more! it was bad... so now we have a food cave.. and shoe checks!
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Post by Heather on Aug 4, 2008 14:00:56 GMT -5
Don't you just love people's reactions I think it's hilarious, I'm sure the bride didn't but...hey I'm a little weird....I've heard of ferrets pooping in shoes. She's lucky he felt he could trust her with his prize Let's hope the start to consider the wings food too. This might just make it more manageable for them. Unfortunately, bone seems to be a big stumbling block and if you hear a common thread through conversations about people who switch ferrets regularly...that's one....my ferret won't eat bone. I find that buy ground meat and bone from a reliable source is the best way to make sure they're getting what they need. I'm too lazy to grind my own I used to...I just don't have time anymore. I will talk at you a little later. Good luck ciao |
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Post by weeksl08 on Aug 4, 2008 21:36:55 GMT -5
I just bought a balk and decker 3 cup chopper. I tried chopping the cut up chicken wing that I hit a few times with a hammer. The chopper pureed the meat and did little to the skin and bones. I put it in a dish for them. So far no takers, but we will see in the morning, maybe someone will smell the blood and marrow from the bone and decide to taste it!
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Post by Heather on Aug 4, 2008 23:33:21 GMT -5
They may yet.... No, the chopper won't do anything much to the bones. Do you have any places that sell frozen ground pet foods? Avoid the ones that have veggies in the mix but maybe try and find one that has some bone ground into it. Let's see if your little monsters will try your new additions...it's something new so they may not go for it right away, but you may be surprised. I can access a list of various grinders that others have used to grind up their furkids food if you're interested. They are quite costly. I just found an old hand crank type and it served the purpose. That was when the business was really small and I only had 3 cats to feed. Now with the business being 13 fuzzbutts, I really can't consider hand grinding anymore Good luck Ciao |
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Post by weeksl08 on Aug 5, 2008 9:44:10 GMT -5
lol! I am considering an old crank style grinder... I know my dad had one when I was a kid but I haven't seen them in stores in a while (I haven't looked either!) I was considering ordering some ground from hare-today.com with organs and bones ground in but I'm just afraid shipping will kill me and I want them to evenually eat whole. I know whole food is important for their teeth heath and to build neck muscle.
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