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Post by pastelsummer on Dec 28, 2010 2:02:59 GMT -5
ok i plan to start doing a steady menu for henry so dh knows what to feed hi m. Right now he will eat just meat we are working on bone but here it is he has had chicken (liver and legs planning to add hearts and gizzards ect.) beef (just steak) and pork (just the meat no bone) I am planning to add mice as soon as my female has some and i can grow them in different stages prolly just pinkies to start with. I also have some individual packages of tilapia my hubby got but doesnt like would that be ok to give? also trying to get my rabbits to give babies so i can feed that also. does this sound acceptable? if so how much of each do i give him and do i need to do multiple a DAY or just multiple a week? My understanding before was he just needed multiple a week but reading everyones menus and such it sounds like i was wrong and he needs multiple a day. If so let me know i found a place to get little 1-2 oz containers that i want to use to portion his meats and such so dh can feed if he is hungry again before i get moving.
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Post by sherrylynne on Dec 28, 2010 13:07:30 GMT -5
Ok, so if I'm reading this correctly, at the moment he's getting 3 proteins(chicken, beef, and pork). That's good, although more is always better And yes, averaging over the week is good. Some change it up daily so the ferrets don't get bored with the meals. His bone is coming from the chicken legs. How much of that bone is he actually consuming? They have a high need for calcium. And yes, he can have the tilapia, but no more than weekly. To give you and idea of a sample menu with the correct proportions, you should be feeding something along these lines: Monday: bone in Tuesday: muscle meat Wed.: bone in Thurs: heart Frid: bone in Saturday: liver/organ and one other meal(either bone in or muscle) Sunday bone in So, 4 days of consumable bone in meals(or 8 meals), 2 days muscle meats(or 4 meals, one of which NEEDS to be heart), one meal per week of liver/organ(other meal either bone or muscle, so you'd have either 9 bone ins, or 5 muscle). These can be split up however you choose. If you cannot get heart to feed minimum once a week, you HAVE to supplement with taurine capsules. If he'll eat the fish, that would count as a bone in meal. Starting with pinkies is good, but remember- they don't have much nutrition in them, and almost no calcium. I feed these and day old chicks monthly only.
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Post by bluemoose on Dec 28, 2010 15:44:48 GMT -5
Just to add, as you're working on getting him to eat enough bone (and even after he's eating enough) you can add eggshells to his diet. They're basically nothing but calcium. You buy them ground into a powder or grind them yourself with something like a coffee grinder. Then just sprinkle it over his food. Or if you're making soupie, just throw a whole egg or two in.
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Post by pastelsummer on Dec 28, 2010 17:32:11 GMT -5
ok as for the chicken legs he just eats the meat off. doesnt like the bone i can sometimes get him to eat it if i chop it up but not often
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Post by sherrylynne on Dec 28, 2010 18:48:08 GMT -5
In that case, start him on wings. Wing tips, to be precise, along with the middle bones, cut between to separate them. If you can, cut lengthwise down the drumette bone. It doesn't surprise me he doesn't eat much of the drumstick bone, since it's weight bearing, and a lot denser. Other good bone in meals are whole prey(adult), quail, rabbit, turkey necks, duck necks, cornish hen(same for the legs there, though)
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