Not eating enough...?

[Chelsea]

So, switching Emmett to a raw diet is proving much harder than switching Jake, or Jasper was.

Hes eating raw chicken OK (wings, legs, hearts, gizzards), but not much else. The only way I can get him to eat liver is in a soupie. He wont eat any bone. He wont eat chicken off the bone either. So, if i give them both a leg to share, Jake will eat but Emmett isnt too interested, so I have to cut off pieces for him.
Lately, it seems like Jakes been eating most of the food. I can see his big butt getting a little fatter, and Emmetts getting a little smaller. They both like soupies, but Jake LOVES chewing on bones, and Emmett LOVES soupies. So, ive been leaving a wing or leg in there, with some meat cut off so Emmett can have some too, and leavng a few ice cubes of soupie in there for later on if Emmett doesnt eat enough of the chicken. I rotate soupies, between chicken, beef, and organ. Thats they only way I can get Emmett to eat other meats and organ. Usually Jake gets a mouse every week or 2, Emmett hasnt showed any interest in those yet (live or dead)
My concern is that Emmett isnt eating enough meat and bone. How do you tell if a ferret is underweight? I mean he isnt super skinny or anything, he is still playfull and still eats nomrally, I just think Jake is getting the most of it because he loves eating it off the bone and Emmett doesnt. Should I start leaving a big bowl of soup in there all the time for Emmett? I have a ton of soupie frozen in ice cubes, and Ive just been putting a couple in a bowl to thaw in the cage, so that Emmett will have food later if he wont eat the chunks of meat.
Is it ok for him to be eating a mostly soupie diet? (of course as long as there is eggshell in it and different kinds of meats, which there are)

[vkoslin]

a ferret underweight will be bony in general, but especially by the scruff of the back of the neck, or a little lower on the back where his collar bone is.

If you're concerned about him not eating bones, there are other options. Eggshells can provide the calcium that bones do. Dry an egg shell completely, crush it, add it to soup. Try grinding bone with the meat if you have a grinder. You can buy pre-ground meat/organ/bone at Hare-today.com but if you buy a grinder, itll be much cheaper for you.

Eating bones is a big thing for his jaw movement, but you can get by if he's eating meats that aren't totally ground, and if you make a bone substitute or grind it in.

[sherrylynne]

First- mine would only get their liver in soup form for about a year before the spoiled brats would finally eat chicken livers on their own
To get them onto bone, I had to use just chicken wings, segmented, and chopped in half for a few days. Once they were finally eating the wings, I brought other meats back into the equation.
They found out they didn't like being hungry, so they ate it!
Mind- I did cut the middle between the two bones, and cut the drumette through the bone lengthwise, exposing the marrow!

[vkoslin]

I second that- their favorite bones are wings. I cut at every joint and then cut across the double bones, like cutting it in half the short way, then cut up the meat and across the joints. So essentially, bone segments are an inch long.

[Chelsea]

K so, its OK for him to eat soupies daily??? I just made a huge batch of it. I filled 3 ice cube trays with it then put them in bags (one with liver, the other are chicken and beef without organ) They have eggshell in them... Is it ok for Jake to be eating the soupies too?? Becuase he eats bone, and there is eggshell in the soupie, is there such thing as too much calcuim or will he just poop out the exta?

Also, Emmett is still kind of yellow. MUCH better than when I first got him (and he was on marshalls ferret food )but he is still yellow on his face and neck. Jasper(RIP) was yellow at first but it seemed like he cleared up faster, and he turned pure white after only a few months on raw. Should I be concerned about that or will it just take more time?

[sherrylynne]

Right now, while I'm switching Suki to raw, she's getting her soupies twice a day.
As for the extra calcium, generally they can handle a fair bit of it, so unless you really notice his stool getting dry, I wouldn't worry. The extra liquid in the soup will help with that as well.
The yellow is simply skin oil. All my white ferrets seem to develop it, especially after they hit a year.

[Chelsea]

Dec 28, 2009 14:07:19 GMT -5 sherrylynne said:

Right now, while I'm switching Suki to raw, she's getting her soupies twice a day.
As for the extra calcium, generally they can handle a fair bit of it, so unless you really notice his stool getting dry, I wouldn't worry. The extra liquid in the soup will help with that as well.
The yellow is simply skin oil. All my white ferrets seem to develop it, especially after they hit a year.

Really? I thought it was a diet related thing? Because, when I got Jasper and he was on cat food he was yellow tinted and smelled really nasty, and after a while of being on a raw diet he was pure white and didnt smell at all.
Emmett still smells.. ferrety lol And he is still pretty yellow. I just thought it was going to fade from being on raw....

[sherrylynne]

With the raw, they get a lot more moisture, which in turn helps keep their skin hydrated, so it doesn't need to produce quite so many oils as a kibble fed ferret. Which in turn will reduce the amount of yellowing!
The smell is definitely diet related!