|
|
Post by luci on Jan 17, 2010 1:03:09 GMT -5
You could look for Hispanic and halal markets too.
|
|
|
|
Post by shirleyverde on Jan 17, 2010 12:23:48 GMT -5
ok i cut up the cornish hen into four parts and gave them one this morning they kinda looked at it and left it so just now i took it out cut the pieces a little smaller and mixed in a little bit of the freeze dried stuff i got and they are happily sharing a bone right now. i will leave the chunks in for a while to see if they actually finish it.
their poops were getting alot better and now they are pooping normal in consistency but yellow is this ok?
|
|
|
|
Post by luci on Jan 17, 2010 14:01:37 GMT -5
That's awesome! I hope once I can start my new girl, Katrinka on raw that it goes that easily. She's only 11 months, so fingers crossed that she still has an open mind.
You'll find that on raw your ferrets will have a variety of colors and textures to their poop. Chicken makes it yellowish, beef makes it darker, liver can make it liquidy and black.
Can you type up a menu of what you plan to feed them each day this week?
|
|
|
|
Post by shirleyverde on Jan 17, 2010 15:15:47 GMT -5
well i have a list of what they ate this past week do you want to see that? i don't really have a set menu (which i do want to make) i just haven't done it yet.
i just don't always know what i'll have in the freezer and how much they eat. if i see that they finished their bowl of food i won't wait until the next meal to feed them i just give them more i feel bad lol
|
|
|
|
Post by luci on Jan 17, 2010 16:57:09 GMT -5
Yeah let's start there. It's nice to look at a week at once and see where we're at.
|
|
|
|
Post by shirleyverde on Jan 18, 2010 19:14:57 GMT -5
ok here's what they have eaten this week, some of them have lunch because they ate all the breakfast before i left to work so i refilled their plate:
1-11:
(Breakfast) 50% ground veal with egg shell 50% ground chicken liver (ate all of it)
(Dinner) Cubed chicken and a chicken wing (ate all the cubed chicken and just the tip of the wing)
1-12:
(Breakfast) ground pork with egg shells (ate all) and a chicken wing (ate the tip)
(Lunch) ground beef (ate all)
(Dinner) cubed chicken with ground chicken gizzard (left half)
1-13:
(Breakfast) Leftover from dinner with some extra cubed chicken (ate half)
(Dinner) cubed chicken (ate half)
1-14:
(Breakfast) ground pork with egg shells (ate all)
(Lunch) ground beef with egg shells (ate all)
(Dinner) Beef heart with egg shells (ate all)
1-15:
(Breakfast) frozen veal (ate half)
(Lunch) leftover veal (ate all)
(DInner) Chicken gizzard with half chicken patty (freeze dried) (ate all)
1-16:
Breakfast) ground pork (ate all)
(Dinner) i forgot to write it down...
1-17:
Breakfast) 1/4 cornish hen cubed (ate half)
(Dinner) ground pork with egg shells (ate all)
1-18:
breakfast) ground veal with egg shells (ate all)
dinner) cubed chicken with chicken liver
Please let me know if this looks balanced enough for them and if there is anything i could or should change on it... as soon as i run out of the ground stuff i will only make cubed things for them as they are already eating cubed chicken just fine... still not to much with bones though.
|
|
|
|
Post by luci on Jan 19, 2010 14:49:15 GMT -5
That really looks excellent. On 1/17, was the cornish hen with bone or was it just the meat? Another idea to try for bone is to smash the bony pieces into a pulp with the hammer. The marrow inside the bone is super nutrient rich and irresistible. Sometimes they need to see that there is something worth working for inside those bones. Chicken necks are also excellent choices and are usually cheap.
How are the poops looking? Have you noticed any changes in energy level or sleep patterns? Any behavior changes?
You're doing a wonderful job! I know it probably seems like they're eating you out of house and home right now, but once their bodies level out on all the nutrients they've been missing they'll likely cut back a bit. And during the warmer months they tend to eat less as well.
Keep up the good work! You're already nearing the end. The last hurdle will be bone, which can be challenging, but I think your guys are up for it.
|
|
|
|
Post by shirleyverde on Jan 20, 2010 23:07:00 GMT -5
their poop is still going back and forth from watery to normal but today was actually pretty good. as far as their sleeping and energy it seems about the same to me. they are doing great with things cubed and ground but still nothing with the bones. tomorrow i will defrost more quail and see how they do with it. the time i wrote quail on the feeding list it was with bone but cut up really small i need to find a better knife to do it with because that killed my hands.
i might be adopting another little boy around 4-5 months old so if i do were do i start? the same as where these guys are or have a separate bowl for him?
|
|
|
|
Post by luci on Jan 20, 2010 23:28:07 GMT -5
Girl, get yourself some scissors! Cutting through bones with a knife is going to drive you crazy. With a pair of shears it is so so so much easier.
We'll have to see how open minded your new guy is. Hopefully he'll just jump in wherever your guys are. You may have to entice him with whatever he's being fed now. What type of situation is he coming from?
|
|
|
|
Post by shirleyverde on Jan 21, 2010 22:11:13 GMT -5
well great news!.... i threw in a whole chicken wing today and when i digged it out of it's hidding spot it was actually partially eaten! there are three big parts to a whole wing they ate all the meat on the drum and the whole top part of the bone and the whole bottom part (the one with a toe on it) the bone and all!!! so tomorrow back to quail again.
The new guy (or guys) will be coming from the same adoption place i rescued my two from. i haven't asked about their story yet until i know for a fact that i will be getting him or them.
so now with the bones can they choke? i'm kind of worried about a bone getting stuck in their throat or insides...
|
|
|
|
Post by luci on Jan 21, 2010 23:33:12 GMT -5
There is always the possibility of choking, but honestly there's a greater chance on them choking on kibble than bone.
Keep an eye on the poops! If they start looking too dry or streaked with blood or you see them straining you're giving them too much bone and or egg shell powder. Make sure they have lots of meat, fat and skin too.
I'm so proud of your little carnivores! They're doing a great job thanks to you!
|
|
|
|
Post by shirleyverde on Jan 22, 2010 18:09:56 GMT -5
and thanks to you and Vicki who got me started!!!! i definatly go through all their poops its quite funny! so i gave them another 1/4 of the cornish hen (i got excitted that they ate that chicken wing yesturday) and they ate most of it (the ribs and chest and half of the drum bone and all) so now that they are eating some bone how does the feeding schedule work out? i'm kind of mixed up with the percentage view of it would you be able to explain (or give me an example schedule) maybe day by day?? kind of like monday meat only tuesday bone in meat wen gizzards and liver...
thanks a million i'm soooooo happy that this didn't turn into the nightmare i thought it was going to be! (only the first week or two) lol
|
|
|
|
Post by shirleyverde on Jan 22, 2010 22:25:29 GMT -5
ok i take it back they ate the entire piece of cornish hen that i gave them! haha
|
|
|
|
Post by luci on Jan 23, 2010 14:20:06 GMT -5
and thanks to you and Vicki who got me started!!!! i definatly go through all their poops its quite funny! so i gave them another 1/4 of the cornish hen (i got excitted that they ate that chicken wing yesturday) and they ate most of it (the ribs and chest and half of the drum bone and all) so now that they are eating some bone how does the feeding schedule work out? i'm kind of mixed up with the percentage view of it would you be able to explain (or give me an example schedule) maybe day by day?? kind of like monday meat only tuesday bone in meat wen gizzards and liver... thanks a million i'm soooooo happy that this didn't turn into the nightmare i thought it was going to be! (only the first week or two) lol Ratio-wise, bone is supposed to make up about 10% of their total diet. Every ferret is different and you can adjust to whatever works for you and your ferts. You should always feed bone with lots and lots of meat on it or give lots of muscle meat along with a bony piece. You could feed that once a day or every other day. I find that it works best to give small bony bits every day because it keeps the stools more formed, but that means I'm cutting up small pieces of bone which is not fun. For example I might give Fierra the equivalent of one side of quail ribs or a couple of chicken ribs each day along with lots of boneless meat. She's an older lady though and doesn't feel that she wants to tear into big bones like your guys might. If they enjoy tearing into big drumsticks maybe try giving them their bone meals every two to three days. Watch the poops, watch their behavior, adjust if need be. Don't be alarmed if you see some bits of bone in their poop. That's going to happen. Liver needs to be about 5% of their diet. Since liver tends to make for gross poops, I feed liver in two servings during the week and always with some bone. Don't stress about it now, but keep your eyes peeled for other organs to make up the other 5% of organ they need. Kidney, brain, spleen, thymus, etc. Remember that heart and gizzard count as muscle meat and not organ. Feed those freely. Heart is full of taurine which they need and gizzards are a great jaw workout and tooth cleaner. If you can tell me approximately how much your two are eating each day I can help you with the calculations. |
|
|
|
Post by shirleyverde on Jan 23, 2010 20:55:46 GMT -5
how can i explain how much they are eating? i didn't check to see how many pounds each of their meats were before i cut them up and bagged them... about 3/4 of a sandwich baggy... twice a day.... and like yesturday for lunch and dinner they had 1/4 of a cornish hen... does that make sence?
|
|
