Jumping in as many places as possible!

[tako]

Hello, I'm Tako.

I live in California, and have all my life. However, coming this July, I'll be moving to Georgia to attend UGA and be with my boyfriend of over 2 years! Hopefully once I get school and my life settled out there, as well as finances, I'll finally be able to fulfill a nearly life long dream to own ferrets.

My parents have never really liked them and, in addition, the fact that they aren't legal here always made them not a possibility. Even if my parents really did like them, we've always had really nosy hateful neighbors so it wouldn't have been a good idea to begin with. They were always trying to get our escape artist Staffordshire terrier in trouble with animal control, because of course she was a "vicious pit bull" , so I can only imagine the field day they would have had with "stinky, rabid, illegal rodents" had they found me out!

I currently lurk at several other ferret forums and have for several months (I'll probably be registering there and posting pretty much the same intro within a few hours/days ), I’m just jumping in where ever I can! The impending move has increased my want to expand and reinforce my ferret knowledge. I'm having a ton of fun making a ferret shopping list using thethingsiwant.com and searching out deals on the things I'll want to pamper my new fuzzies even if ownership is still a quite a ways off.

As much as I'd like to have them as soon as I move, I know it will be at least Christmas time before I am settled enough to have enough time for them, and -at least- then until I have my finances in order enough to afford starting expenses and be able to have a medical backup fund. However, it will probably take longer and I can wait if I have to in order to give them a great home and the care that they deserve!

[meli]

Welcome! You'll have access to loads of information about natural feedings as well as being part of the friendliest group of ppl around!

[Forum Administrator]

Welcome to the forum! This forum will definitly be different from the other forums you visit because the ferret owners on this forum all feed some form of a natural diet. Be it raw foods, or whole prey (like frozen-thawed mice) or even just supplementing their ferret's kibble with these foods, you'll find a unique, natural community on these pages.

I don't know what diet you plan to feed your ferret(s), but if you are looking for feed natural foods (and not kibble) in order to promote better health and longevity, we can sure help you out there!

And if a natural diet makes you a bit uncomfortable, you are still welcome here. We have sections that focus on enriching your ferrets life, and providing natural care.

I hope you like it here! Feel free to post any questions you may have!

[ferretmaster]

Hello and welcome to the group *waves* you will like it here, lots of friendly people and great info

[tako]

An entirely raw diet probably won't be the menu when I first get ferrets, just because of time and money constraints, but I definitely definitely plan on supplementing their diets as much as possible! I want the happiest healthiest little ferrets I can, and to me a substantially raw diet seems to be the best I can do for them.

I've never been a squeamish gal to begin with, and even if I had been, 4 years of being in charge of my high school art teacher's red tailed boa cured me of that!

for the warm welcome everybody!

I love the smilies here, they're so cute!!

[Forum Administrator]

We have members here that supplement kibble with raw foods. Whole prey (such as frozen mice, rats, etc) is another viable option. I am more biased towards whole prey. Its easier to feed and I dont worry as much about if my ferret is getting the proper ratio of nutrients (they come pre-balanced in the prey animals and then all I have to do is provide a variety of prey animals to provide a variety of nutrients).

But like I said, we are also here if you need help with vaccines (to help you avoid over/under vaxing) or even natural flea/tick preventatives.

Hope you like it here, feel free to ask any basic ferret-related questions (such as: what cage do I buy? what litter do I use? etc) in the "General Ferret Chat" section. Good luck with your fuzzy!

[Forum Administrator]

May 26, 2008 17:33:47 GMT -5 tako said:

I love the smilies here, they're so cute!!

Thank you! Our forum artist did an excellent job on them. New ones are added periodically, so keep a look out!

[tako]

May 26, 2008 21:48:45 GMT -5 Forum Administrator said:

We have members here that supplement kibble with raw foods. Whole prey (such as frozen mice, rats, etc) is another viable option. I am more biased towards whole prey. Its easier to feed and I dont worry as much about if my ferret is getting the proper ratio of nutrients (they come pre-balanced in the prey animals and then all I have to do is provide a variety of prey animals to provide a variety of nutrients).

Whole prey is definitely an option I'm leaning towards, however convincing my boyfriend to ignore the dead mice hanging around the freezer is another story entirely He's still trying to get over how exuberant I am about pet health in general, I think. Not that he doesn't care for his pets, far from it, he just never knew how bad most commercial foods could be!

I've been on a fanatic research binge for the past month or so upon finding that I definitely would be moving to Georgia. So I'm pretty well set on things like cages (most likely going with the FN 141, no room for the huge one yet, but it can be added to!) and that sort of thing. But final decisions for me on what kibbles I use for my mix, what litter I go with, that sort of thing, will depend a lot on what is available in the area to supplement what I might have to order online. So while I have a great idea of my favorites for everything, I don't want to get too dead set on anything that's hard for me to get in the area, or heaven forbid, a picky fuzzbutt boycotts

I'll definitely ask questions as I have them though, I still have plenty of time to learn! I just read the -entire- forum today, every last post, and had a lot fun doing it!

[Forum Administrator]

If having the mice in the freezer bothers your b/f, just put the bags of mice into brown paper bags. When you take them out to feed them, they certainly do not last long! All mice are going in less then 5 minutes in my house (the ferrets gobble them up) and there is suprisingly little mess, not even blood really.

I'm glad you are jumping and you and you enjoy the forum, its great to have you here!

[tako]

I don't think it's actually having them in there that bothers him so much as the concept of MICE in the FREEZER. Which is, honestly, perfectly understandable. It's a very strange concept to wrap your mind around if you don't really like it to begin with, even if you know logically there's no reason to object to it! However, thanks for the awesome idea

[buzzonesbirdie]

First off

and secondly it took me a long time to get used to oppening the freezer to find frozen little animals in it. But I got used to it.

[tako]

thanks for the another welcome

[jojodancer]

Welcome!
I'm one of those combination Commercial Raw / Kibble feeders. You shouldn't have any problem finding whatever type of kibble you want to feed in your area, since it is cheaper to order the food online. Stinkweasels has a great selection of healthy kibbles and freeze-dried foods, and ferret.com also has innova EVO which is an excellent kibble.

The commercial raw diets I use are all frozen ground foods - which come in tubs like ice cream, and you just take what you need. You don't get the good dental hygeine you get with feeding RMB or Whole Prey, but at least it is healthier than 100% kibble.

As for litters - you can pick that up at PetCo or PetSmart - we use a mix of Yesterday's News for Cat and Marshalls. I like the odor control of Marshall's and the absorbancy of the YN, so I just mx them together.

And I think your choice for the Ferret Nation 142 is SUPERB!

Dont forget to look for a ferret savvy and recommended vet near the university. The local rescue/shelter would be an excellent resource for finding that info out. I'd recommend joining the local shelter/club, too, since you'll make a lot of contacts and they are an incredible resource for people. You can also offer your services as a ferret sitter to it's members and make a little $$ on the side.

[kuuipo61606]

!!!

[nwheather]

Welcome to the forum!