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Post by spiritualtramp on Dec 19, 2009 13:22:40 GMT -5
That's about normal for a female's appetite. I always am surprised at how little they seem to eat when I give things like cgh, too. My female will eat half an ounce of food per meal, maybe. Sometimes less!
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Post by Lynxie on Dec 19, 2009 14:03:36 GMT -5
Yea I was a little worried about how little she was eating, but I'm glad to know that that is fairly normal.
So I was letting Zoe out romping today, and since she hadn't eaten today, I put her food bowl down where she could reach it. I leave the room for a second, come back, and what do I see? My roommate's cat Elliott nomming on Zoe's liver soup like it was ambrosia from the heavens!
I had considered trying to switch Elliott to raw, or even partially raw, but I know that my roommate wouldn't keep up with it after I left, and she would just be put back on the crappy kibble she is eating now. I've tried telling my roommate that the kibble she is feeding her is crap, but she won't listen, and insists that "she has had four different cats that have been on this kibble, and done fine"! The cat has severe digestive problems (as made obvious by her incredibly disgusting litter box). My roommate is convinced that raw is only going to make her cat sicker, since she has fed her "human food" (aka: the processed junk they eat) and it made her sick, and now she won't let her cat near anything, raw or not.
What do you think I should do?
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Post by Lynxie on Dec 20, 2009 11:42:00 GMT -5
Zoe is doing well. She was out for almost five hours yesterday while I was scrubbing her cage bottom, doing her laundry, and waiting for everything to dry out. Yesterday was my mass cleaning day. Even the rats got their entire cage taken apart and scrubbed. I rearranged everything in Zoe's cage, putting her level down a bit and on the other side. She seems to like it better this way, cause now she can jump from her hammock (positioned hanging in front of the door so she is easy to get to) right up to the level, and then either jump to a tube opening and over to her other hammock, or climb across the cage bars and plop in! She is eating wonderfully. Yesterday was a chicken thigh attached to the cage bar, which didn't get touched much. I think she was too wore out from running around with the cat! This morning was a chicken wing, and I can hear her chewing on it now. Saturday morning was her lever/egg soup, as said by my previous post. Despite the cat getting into it for a moment, Zoe still got most of it. I think tonight will be pork pieces, and then tomorrow morning cornish game hen. I think I'm going to cut the piece in half and serve it to her over the day, rather than all at once, since she doesn't seem to be a very heavy eater, and I don't want the CGH to go to waste. I get paid this Friday, and she still has plenty of food. So I'm thinking I might just pick up a couple of little things. Prolly another CGH. Maybe I'll finally get down to Kingsley's. So, let's see. In total, she is now eating: Cornish Game Hen Pork Roast Pork Country Ribs Chicken Wings Chicken Thighs Split Chicken Breasts Chicken Liver Beef Pot Roast Beef Stew Meat Beef Kidney (reluctantly) She gets one raw egg a week in her soup. I'm also working towards getting her interested in mice as well. I think that's all I wanted to type right now. Sorry for the long post. The fiance is asleep and the roommate's are getting ready to go to work, so it's very loud in here with them moving around, and I'm trying to stay out of their way. XD
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Post by spiritualtramp on Dec 20, 2009 14:27:34 GMT -5
In regards to your roommate's cat, I'd offer raw foods to her when you have extra and if she will eat it, and continue to talk to your roommate about the benefits of raw. Ultimately it will be her decision but if she sees her cat enjoying it, and maybe with consistent feedings, she'll have better litterbox results and your roommate will be convinced. Even supplemental raw feeding can do wonders for an ill animal. Zoe is doing fantastically! I'm excited how far she has come along. The last and most important thing I'd like to see added to her diet is heart - chicken hearts or beef heart - both can be found in grocery stores usually but if not you may have to look harder for some. I know I've stressed the heart issue before but taurine is a necessity and hearts are the best source for it. So do keep your eyes out for some! Other than that things look great, and I'm thinking she'll be able to get graduated sooner rather than later
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Post by Lynxie on Dec 20, 2009 14:52:23 GMT -5
She was eating chicken hearts/gizzards during the holidays (Thanksgiving), but I can't find them anywhere anymore. I did see Beef Heart at Walmart though, so I will pick some up when I get paid. They came in huge packages, and they weren't too expensive. :3
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Post by spiritualtramp on Dec 21, 2009 10:43:28 GMT -5
Yeah, try to feed heart at least once a week. I knew you had offered them before, but wasn't sure if you remembered how vital a role they play. It's important enough to keep in the weekly rotation, and a beef heart will last quite a while!
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Post by Lynxie on Dec 21, 2009 12:35:34 GMT -5
Zoe is doing well today. She (and Elliott the cat for that matter, since my roommate decided to sleep in) had split chicken breast for breakfast. They both nommed on the boney bits quite happily.
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Post by Lynxie on Dec 22, 2009 11:19:09 GMT -5
This morning was beef. Zoe has grown to like it a lot more now that it is not just in her soup. I was sitting next to her cage watching her chew on the pieces. It's so cute.
Elliott had beef this morning too, and ate everything I gave her. I've never seen such an enthusiastic cat.
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Post by spiritualtramp on Dec 22, 2009 11:49:31 GMT -5
Hey that's great. I love those nom-nom faces too It's so exciting to watch them eat when it's something their bodies do so well! I'm happy that Elliott is also nomming along for the ride. Cats can be even harder to switch than ferrets but he sounds very willing to try whatever you give him!
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Post by Lynxie on Dec 22, 2009 19:11:12 GMT -5
I'm glad he is too. His litterbox looks so much better, and it's only been a few days.
Tonight was a split chicken breast/leftover CGH mix for the two. Zoe is more interested in lazing in her hammock currently, but I can hear Elliott cracking at the breast bones in the kitchen.
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Post by Lynxie on Dec 24, 2009 17:39:22 GMT -5
Today was pork in the morning and chicken wings in the evening for both. I got a bit of christmas money, so I'm going to go to walmart as soon as I can to pick up heart for Zoe.
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Post by spiritualtramp on Dec 25, 2009 20:21:35 GMT -5
Wonderful! How was your holiday??
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Post by Lynxie on Dec 25, 2009 21:51:50 GMT -5
It was pretty good. As a Christmas present to ourselves, my fiance and I are contemplating adopting a buddy for Zoe. I'm in the process of talking to a woman about a 1 year old male, who is already halfway through their switch to raw! Would make my job much easier. :3
Neither Zoe nor Elliott seem very fond of those beef kidneys. I can't blame them really. Those things smell rank. XD
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Post by spiritualtramp on Dec 26, 2009 12:45:29 GMT -5
Kidneys are a bit rank, I hear. Try blending them up and adding them to a soup. My kids eat them now but it took a bit of this trick to get them there. I'm excited that you might be getting Zoe a friend! And, a raw-fed friend at that! Congrats and let me know if you bring him home!!!
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Post by Lynxie on Dec 27, 2009 21:26:19 GMT -5
Turns out the lady wound up giving the boy to her mother, so no new fert quite yet. Soon though.
Picked up another cgh, as well as two packages of heart/gizzard mix. There wasn't much heart in the mix though, so I picked up a package of beef heart too. Zoe and Elliott got some for dinner, and they seemed to enjoy it.
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