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Post by sherrylynne on Nov 9, 2009 11:05:11 GMT -5
Out of curiosity- did they eat the entire wing tip, or any of the middle bone besides the knobby end? I know they'll have trouble with the drumette end yet, but I'd be surprised if they didn't eat the other bones! And a butcher you can buy in bulk from for that price would be phenomenal!! Especially since you're little ones appetites should start going through the roof any time now That'll last for 2-4 months, while they're bodies adjust to raw. They'll slow down to a more reasonable level after that.
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Jakk
Going Natural
Raw Feeder[/color]
Posts: 160
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Post by Jakk on Nov 9, 2009 17:36:25 GMT -5
So today they ate 2 big wings, a whole chicken neck, and a heart. Cooper and Kasrah both got really possessive over the cracked bones, between them only the very ends were left of the two wings. I cut the neck into chunks and Cooper and Kasrah went nuts over it. Polly isn't feeling well today, I held her in my lap and she would only ate a small portion of meat bits and I got her to eat 1/2 of a heart. The other half was fought over between the others, I think Cooper ended up with in out of brute force.
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Post by sherrylynne on Nov 9, 2009 23:47:56 GMT -5
Poor Polly. Give her some hugs for me! As for the other two- That is wonderful! So, I guess next step is to start introducing new meats. Pork, lamb, beef, turkey, cornish hen, whatever you like. Oh, and it's probably a good idea to start setting up a casual menu soon. Sort of like Monday- muscle meat, Tues- bone in, Wed- organ, and so on. The idea is to get YOU accustomed to feeding on a schedule That way you know they are getting the nutritional requirements met.
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Jakk
Going Natural
Raw Feeder[/color]
Posts: 160
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Post by Jakk on Nov 10, 2009 16:40:02 GMT -5
Today was a leftover day. About 1/2 of a wing, 1/2 of a neck, 1 gizzard, 1/2 a liver, and 1/4 of a thigh (meat only) constituted dinner for Cooper and Kasrah. Polly got soup only as Heather suggested that it might hurt her to chew if her ears are hurting her. She ate a bit but got fussy and just wanted to leave my lap and go curl up her den to sleep. I am going to see if she will eat when my SO feeds her since I wash out her ears maybe she associates me that that no-so-fun experience. is this a good menu for all three? monday -- 1 chicken wing and 3 hearts (1 each) tuesday -- 1 pork portion (exact cut unknown) thursday -- 1/3 veal breast (~ about 1 cup meat and fat) **this is a ferret favorite** friday -- 1 large chicken wing and 1 liver saturday -- 1 chicken thigh and neck sunday -- leftovers everyday -- soup -*-*-*-*- They know veal and chicken so far so I don't want to overload them by introducing more than just one new meat for now. I am totally open for changing the above menu to balance things out more if need be. I did see a whole rabbit for sale at a local korean market, I didn't catch the price but i am going to look next time I stop in as I can see getting a lot of good meals out of it for both me and the ferrets
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Post by sherrylynne on Nov 11, 2009 17:45:11 GMT -5
That doesn't look to bad over all. Please understand, you'll be adjusting it a few times, to find the right "fit" for both you and the ferrets . You may find you have to adjust the amounts, depending on how much they'll eat. Example- my 8 will easily demolish a pound of chicken hearts in the winter. Or, sometimes, a wing each. The bone content is a bit light, but some ferrets do better with less bone. Some do better with more. Their stools will tell you if the amount your feeding is good. Can you tell ferret owners are poop watchers As for the new meats, by all means take it slow! What I'd meant was to START introducing new meats Not inundate the poor little beggars That's also the only way to know for sure if any of them have a sensitivity to a particular meat.
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Jakk
Going Natural
Raw Feeder[/color]
Posts: 160
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Post by Jakk on Nov 11, 2009 23:31:29 GMT -5
As of tomorrow we'll only have two ferrets to switch. My SO and I decided to find a new home for Kasrah, her tantrums and general human hating was just to much for us to handle and was limiting the amount of time we loved on the little ones. She is going to a new home that already feeds raw (yay) and has a mischief of 4 ferrets for her to be with.
Today everyone ate a thigh. I cracked the bones and Cooper went nuts and spent the whole evening gnawing on them and protecting them from Kasrah. Polly ate enough meat on her own to stop me from hovering over her like a mother hen today.
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Post by sherrylynne on Nov 12, 2009 18:52:05 GMT -5
As hard as it can be, sometimes rehoming is the only way to go. Especially if the stress is too much on the rest of you, as well as Kasrah. I gather the new home is accustomed to dealing with behaviours like hers ? And that's great that they already feed raw! Looks like Cooper loves his marrow And Polly is coming along really well. How's she doing with the ear?
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Jakk
Going Natural
Raw Feeder[/color]
Posts: 160
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Post by Jakk on Nov 12, 2009 22:10:05 GMT -5
Today the trio finished off another neck and the rest of the thigh. Polly grawed away at chunks of neck just fine and is now officially back to eating normally. She is a lot more stable, the tipping over has pretty much stopped but she still stumbles and shakes often enough to have me worried. I got a call from the vet suggesting that I supplement Polly with chromium (not brewers yeast but straight chromium), vitamin A, and vitamin C. She said that it might help out her glucose management if she is having issues that she (the vet) was unable to find during the exam. Any thoughts on supplementing her? I already own all of the vitamins for myself, so would it hurt to at least try it out?
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Post by sherrylynne on Nov 13, 2009 19:18:34 GMT -5
Heather is more able to answer that than I am. I'll send her a pm asking her, and let you know! Here's hoping it helps
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Post by sherrylynne on Nov 14, 2009 18:08:32 GMT -5
ok, got the answers . General concensus is "NO". Here are the replies I got: mustelidmusk: *Unless I know more about the situation, I would say NO. My reasoning is as follows: 1. Is the vet a ferret vet? Also well-trained in supplements/holistic stuff? Most traditional vets are not that knowledgeable on nutrition/supplements, which is why I go to a holistic vet as well. 2. Does the Vet KNOW everything the ferret is fed? Is the newbie already feeding vitamin A (fish oil, ferretone, liver, etc.) A LOT of raw feeders do not tell their vets what they're feeding. 3. Has the vet used these products on ferts before? If so, for what? 4. I have a bit of a concern about synthetic vitamins - I much prefer a natural source for nutrition ESPECIALLY for small little guys like ferts. I can recommend some natural source alternatives if your newbie is interested. Just let me know. Those are just my fully biased opinions from hell -jennifer * Heather: *I don't believe in supplementing. Like Jennifer, why put artificial in when natural will do. If she feeds a good diet there should be no need to supplement. Carnivores produce their own vit c, to supplement will actually overide their ability to do so. The problem is trying to correct a problem that has taken years to develop It's just not going to happen overnight, if ever. Chromium difficiency is rare in humans, so I can't understand the reason to feed it to a ferret (it's even less likely to happen). It does claim to balance blood sugar but the same benefits can be derived from eating proteins too. The article that I read states that the possible reason for the body to deplete it's store of chromium could be related to a diet high in sugars and repairing is as simple as to start eating a proper diet. Vit a is simple, red meat and organs....specifically liver. I would go for that rather than supplementing. Just my opinion of course ciao * Since I know very little about supplementation, I turned to the resident "experts"
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Jakk
Going Natural
Raw Feeder[/color]
Posts: 160
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Post by Jakk on Nov 14, 2009 21:38:04 GMT -5
Thanks for asking around for me. The vet said it was a vet that treats a lot of ferrets that suggested the supplements. I did tell her I fed raw and don't supplement, i think she was a little taken aback but seemed to let it slide without issues.
I got some beef today that is thawing so I can feed it tomorrow. Today I fed another thigh with cracked bones and leftovers from the day before. I can't wait to see how they react to new meat.
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Post by sherrylynne on Nov 15, 2009 12:16:20 GMT -5
It should be interesting! Boris used to adore beef heart- at least until he ate so fast on several occasions that he chucked it all back up Now he won't touch it.
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Jakk
Going Natural
Raw Feeder[/color]
Posts: 160
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Post by Jakk on Nov 15, 2009 16:48:45 GMT -5
Beef was a total hit!! I fed it twice today instead of giving chicken for dinner. I didn't feed them in their cage today since I wanted to track just how much they ate and their reaction. Just for breakfast Cooper and Polly ate the following then repeated everything for dinner: Cooper freaked when he saw the beef, puffed up, and launched himself across the kitchen head first into his bowl all accompanied by a medley of odd noises that don't sound like anything I have ever heard a hearing ferret make. I cut his meat a little large 2 1/2 inches wide and 1/2 inch thick since he has tasted beef before and likes to shake his meat around, grab it with his paws, and tear at it...who am I to deny his fun He devoured 1/2 cup of his big slices and then stole 1/4 cup of Polly's shreds before starting to stash. Polly dove in on little 1/2 inch shreds that I cut up specially for her since she is still a little on edge with her eating. She ended up eating about 1/2 cup of the shreds and 1 of Cooper's peices that she had to sneak since Cooper is incredibly territorial with his meat. Also, I have stopped giving kibble except a very small amount in the weekly soup. I am such a proud ferret dad!!
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Post by sherrylynne on Nov 16, 2009 0:39:16 GMT -5
These guys are amazing me! Seriously! You should be very proud of them. Besides working on introducing new meats over time, all you've got to do is try to get them eating bigger pieces. doesn't always work, though. With mine, if the pieces are what they consider too big, they'll just leave them and not eat Can you tell they have me well trained
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Jakk
Going Natural
Raw Feeder[/color]
Posts: 160
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Post by Jakk on Nov 16, 2009 23:59:18 GMT -5
Today was a whole thigh day. They went for the cracked bones, then the spinal area with the organ bits, then the meat. Cooper is a territorial boy and I am thinking that maybe he needs to eat on his own because he just gets to puffed up and chattery. Is that normal?
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