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Post by acodlin on Dec 12, 2010 20:52:26 GMT -5
Well I didnt put the soupies out until later in the day so it has probably just now been 8 hours. Usually i'll stick it in the fridge after they stop eating it in the morning and bring it back out. I'll do that tomarrow.
The poops were super stinky but no color change and nothing foamy. The weather here is terrible! So hopefully I can get out of the house tomarrow to pick up some regular chicken breasts. About half are eating it pretty willingly, I dont have to do much other than show them the bowl and they dig in, so thats pretty good so far!
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Post by sherrylynne on Dec 12, 2010 23:16:04 GMT -5
To say the least !
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Post by acodlin on Dec 13, 2010 21:44:23 GMT -5
Everyone did good again today. Spoonfed Anks Leiloo and Gizmo, the rest ate it without question as long as I pointed their noses in the right direction (I swear sometimes I think they are completely blind!) tomarrow I might add a little more chicken in. I'm thinking about mincing up a tiny bit of chicken and seeing if Kodiak will eat it, he seems to eat just about anything I put in front of him.
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Post by sherrylynne on Dec 14, 2010 9:59:31 GMT -5
Wow! Sounds like even your "anti- soup" boy is doing well By all means, up the amount of raw a bit, and decrease the amount of cooked. Next time you make your soupies, also decrease the amount of kibbles you are putting in it. We want to get them to the point they are eating all raw soup. Some will progress more slowly than others, but that's alright. With Kodiak, definitely try him with plain minced chicken. If you have one that shoots out ahead, frequently that will trigger the others to follow
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Post by acodlin on Dec 14, 2010 18:18:31 GMT -5
So I reduced the kibble to 3/4 a cup, added half a jar of baby food and doubled the pureed raw chicken. About half of them were awake and they all ate it no problem, even Anks! she walked right up and had some. When she stopped I offered her more on a spoon and she ate another spoonful. Gizzy is still sleeping some where so I havent given him a taste yet. Kodiak and Church ate some raw chicken. I offered it plain first to Church and she turned her nose up at it, so I dabbed a little ferretone on it and she gulped it down. Kodiak ate his plain, he ate 4 pieces almost the size of a dime with no problem. It was pretty funny, I guess there were still some chunks and Sasha picked up one while she was eating and she had this string of chicken hanging out of her mouth, and she just stood there with this look on her face like What do I do mom what do I do! she finally ate it but it was pretty cute
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Post by sherrylynne on Dec 14, 2010 20:01:15 GMT -5
They really are so funny when they don't quite know what they are supposed to do with meat once they actually have it in their mouths. Frequently they like the taste, but don't have a clue how to chew it For the ones who are accepting this version of soup with no real problems, keep decreasing the kibble every couple of days til it's just baby food and raw mix. For the ones eating meat bits, try offering them more of it! See if you can get them eating about an ounce or two twice a day. The fewer you have to hand feed, or even mix soups for daily, means the more time you can spend with the more reluctant I should warn you- the more they get accustomed to the raw, the greater their appetites will be for 2-4 months! They seem to need to get as much nutrition into their bodies as they can when they start to really get into, and enjoy, the raw. In other words- they are going to eat you out of house and home in a short while But don't worry- they'll slow down again
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Post by acodlin on Dec 14, 2010 21:13:22 GMT -5
How many ounces do you think they will eat a day once they become accustom? We have a local butcher, I havent gone over there yet to see what he has.. I know organ meats are harder to get here (I live in a more rural area) I can get the standard chicken hearts/livers/gizzards the little cornish hens and whatever walmart carries. I worry a little bit about later on when they need a more balanced diet. I'll have to start stocking my freezer It'll be nice not having to worry about ordering kibble. Right now we go through somewhere between 25-30lbs a month.
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Post by sherrylynne on Dec 14, 2010 22:42:52 GMT -5
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Post by acodlin on Dec 15, 2010 1:06:12 GMT -5
Helpful link! I'll try and check out the freezer section next time I go. I dont think that kidneys are something I've ever seen before, I'll check krogers and see what kind of meats they have when I go to work. I was so excited tonight, I decided when I went to round up all the kids I decided to cut up some raw chicken and bring it in on a plate and see if anyone would dig in. Kodiak did ofcourse, and Church CHOWED DOWN oh my, I didnt put anything on it, just left it plain and she ate probably 12-15 little pieces herself. She stuffed her little face full! The rest werent too interested, Vaeda tried a piece and ate maybe half of it and ditched the rest. Another good note, they ate all but one teaspoon full of their soupies. Usually theres about 1/4 cup or more in their bowl, they almost never eat it all.. tonight it was almost completely gone, and Vaeda tried so hard to eat it all. Her little belly was so full and round! It was a good day! Btw I forgot to add in the intro post, my name is Amanda. My email is amanda@codlin.net if you ever have a need to email me something.
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Post by sherrylynne on Dec 15, 2010 23:40:52 GMT -5
Thanks, Amanda If I ever have to email you, it's likely because you've gone awol- which I get the feeling you won't do That's fantastic that they gobbled up the bits! Let them have however much they'll eat. As I'd said before, some will pull ahead of the others in what they choose to eat. Others, you'll have to "nurse" along til they get to that point. For now, just keep doing as you've been doing, and always try to "push" the more reluctant ones. If you have to step back, not a big deal. You just go back to what they last ate comfortably.
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Post by acodlin on Dec 16, 2010 19:21:58 GMT -5
Nothing too new to report. Gizmo was freaking out over being fed tonight. He would take a couple of real fast licks and try to get away. I think it was because the dogs were eating, and he has a real love for dog kibble >,< atleast I'm hoping thats what it was! Going to stick with the current recipe for another few days just incase I'm moving too fast for him. I'm now putting out a little plate of minced chicken breast in the morning and then at night when I round everyone up. Kodiak and Church are still the only ones interested so far. I'm trying to convince Vaeda to give it a go, I think she'll be the next to try it. She ate half a piece the other day so maybe if I cut it up into really tiny pieces she'll be more open to it since theres less chewing.
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Post by sherrylynne on Dec 16, 2010 22:40:48 GMT -5
That's a good idea for them. You can let the ones who'll eat it plain do so, and if needed, mix it with a bit of soupies to help convince another couple. Keep the bits tiny right now, so they don't have to chew, but can get used to the idea of having "lumps" in their soups
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Post by acodlin on Dec 18, 2010 3:09:12 GMT -5
So have you ever had any ferrets have pink poops when switching? not like bloody pink, but bubblegum pink. Looks almost like raw pureed chicken. I don't know who is doing it, its not everytime.. but someone is having them and If I can catch them before monday I'll take them to the vet with Sam and Auggie. I'm not sure if this means someone is sensitive to the chicken or what. Their kibble all has chicken in it and they've never had this problem before..argh! its frustrating because I can't catch who is doing it. Everytime I see someone poop its normal, then i'll find some random pile of bubblegum pink poo! Theres nothing that I can find that they could have gotten into...just not sure whats going on.
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Post by sherrylynne on Dec 18, 2010 19:58:57 GMT -5
That's odd. I've never had one do that, and I've got one with a chicken sensitivity. Those usually show up as yellow, bird-seed type stools. I know raw fed ferrets stool changes depending on what they've eaten, but not to that extent. Let me ask a couple of the other mentors, and I'll get back to you on this.
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Post by acodlin on Dec 19, 2010 2:10:34 GMT -5
I'm working tonight but whenever I see the next pink poo I'll take a picture. It's so weird looking!
Gizmo is still being a brat, he doesnt want to be spoon fed, I push it to a certain point but I don't want to make it a bad experience for him so if he struggles for a couple of minutes I let him go and try again later. He's not eating as much of the soupies as he did before, he takes a few licks and he's done. My boyfriend is suppose to be trying a few more times tonight to spoon feed him before bedtime to hopefully get him interested. I havent been putting any ferretone in it so I might have to add a little bit in again. Why is it he'll go so crazy over dog kibble but doesnt want anything that's good for him!
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