vitamins/nutrients

[3kaw]

What are your thoughts on supplementing vitamins or nutrients with your raw diet?
Do you, and if so how, and what?

I've got questions on if it's needed. I'm only going to be doing raw not whole prey with mine. knowing whole prey would be closer to natural and less likely to need extra sups.

The vet we saw gave impression that they would need more sups, but then again she had no idea what duck soup was.

just looking for an idea on what others do.
thanks

[sherrylynne]

You can give some extra taurine if you like. I feed heart twice a week, and just give fish oil, more for the coat/skin/itchies than anything else. With a properly balanced diet, and a wee bit of pumpkin for fiber(to replace the non- digestibles like fur), they really don't need it.

[bluemoose]

My guys eat almost exclusively whole prey (mice, rats, rabbit, quail, guinea pig, and occasionally chicks). I supplement their diet with a mixture of 50% extra virgin olive oil, 25% fish oil, and 25% salmon oil and a little extra fat (usually chicken skin) sprinkled with taurine powder and crushed eggshell (for calcium) every day. The taurine and eggshell varies depending on what prey they've been eating. Rabbit is low in taurine, chicks are low in calcium, ect. The oil and fat I keep fairly consistent because the oils are good for the coat and skin and apparently whole prey is a little low in fat.

You're doing raw and not whole prey but the same general rules apply. Look at what else you're putting into the diet and what might be lacking. You can't overdose on taurine and it takes quite a bit of calcium over a long period of time to get too much of that.

[mustelidmusk]

I provide quite a few supplements. I feed commercial raw diet. I try to provide whole food/natural supplements. Everything I provide is for a reason. Most raw feeders think this is not necessary. It's probably not necessary, but since I cannot control the quality of the meat in commercial foods, I'm more comfortable adding supplements.

I'll be happy to share what I give and why. Just let me knowif you're interested.

-jennifer

[3kaw]

Yes Jennifer i would be interested in knowing. Thanks so much.

I do buy mostly free range but that does not always guarantee hormone free etc. Organic is not really an option due to cost. So I've had the same questions about quality control.

thanks ladies i had not thought of substituting taurine I'll have to look into that.

[sunnyberra]

So, one thing, you said they can't overdose on taurine, so does the amount you use not matter? Or should you still measure it out (and if so, how much?) My guys get commercial raw, and the girls sometimes gnaw on a few f/t baby quail, and I supplement with olive oil and a bit of pumpkin (I really need to get some fish oil, as well!), but if I can give them an extra boost in the taurine department, I'd be glad to (do you usually get it online or at a store?)

[mustelidmusk]

I will post something on all this stuff this weekend....work will be completely outta control through January, but I'll have a little time at work on Saturday to Post

-jennifer

[Heather]

I don't supplement, I use a large variety of proteins and for the most part do not add anything to my guys diet. They do get small marine fish oil, and I do occasionally supplement cod liver oil (especially if all the liver I'm feeding has been frozen). I do add pumpkin or squash to their ground mix but that's only because fur doesn't go through the grinder very well and it appears to aid their digestion.
Is it necessary? possibly. As Jennifer said if you're feeding commercial ground a lot, I might supplement more than I do. I've found the quality (possibly the number of times frozen and refrozen) sometimes comes into question. It also depends on what problems your fuzzs might have. I will supplement depending on what I"m treating. I used to give Mischief a multivit, taurine, fish oil (the list was long : as he decided when he was suffering with IBD that he would only eat rabbit for a time. Rabbit is low in taurine and when your fuzz is not eating the way they should you are going to have to look at the gaps in their diet. I don't blanket supplement...I guess that's a better way to state it. If my fuzzs are healthy....I don't supplement
ciao

[bluemoose]

Well all meat has taurine, some meat just has more than others so if the body gets more than it needs it just gets rid of the extra. Ferrets are obligate carnivores and so can't produce their own taurine. This is one of the reason that feeding ferrets and cats a low/no meat diet is so horribly detrimental to their health. Ferrets on raw diets are obviously getting meat so extra taurine probably isn't necessary but because getting too much isn't an issue, I figure it's better to have a little extra than not enough.

Darker meat, such as heart, is higher in taurine. Quite a few people on this forum feed extra heart to supplement taurine. I give mine heart once a week or so but one of my three usually ignores it so I also use a taurine powder. I bought that and my eggshell powder online. You can make your own eggshell powder in a coffee grinder but I found that to be a bit of a pain and I got plenty of powder for around $5. Convenience tax. They probably have at least taurine at health food stores too. I just sprinkle some taurine onto their daily chicken skin. It's concentrated taurine, they're already getting some in their regular diet, and ferrets are small animals so I don't use a whole lot, just a light sprinkling.

Here's the site I got mine:
www.knowwhatyoufeed.com/shop_online.html

[sherrylynne]

I picked my taurine up at the local health food store. I don't give it to my ferrets, since they get heart twice a week, but since my cats are on wet food, I supplement with extra for them.