Teh Dawgs Eatin'

[GoingPostal]

From what Ive heard, switching them later on in life *ferrets I mean* is very difficult..

Ehh harder than dogs, easier than cats usually. Just have to be persistent and convince them meat is food, I've swapped 5 ferrets, all adults to seniors from kibble to raw. Got a new boy in Dec 2012 and had him on raw within a month. He was underweight and his coat felt super coarse and gross, now he's a fattie but so soft. Mine eat mice, quail, rabbit, chicken, turkey, goat, duck, grouse and a few other proteins less often.

Hannibal my newbie eating turkey ribs


mazuri ferrets looks like junk btw
http://moredooks.herobo.com/search.php?chart=ferret

[satomi325]

That sounds extremely difficult to do lol do you start the ferrets out very young on it?

It's not that hard. It just takes time.
Since they're predators, you have to teach them what is prey and that it is food. Usually in the wild, their wild ancestors are taught by mom. No mama weasel here, so we have to teach them ourselves.
Usually mothers bring back a small (or injured) prey so the babies can play with them and practice their skills. It's basically the same thing when teaching domestic ferrets.
You introduce prey to them. They won't understand right away, but they'll start picking up on it eventually. (Between 3-10 introductions in my experience)
They have a natural prey/chase drive, so anything that moves, they will chase. If your ferret likes teaser toys, it will be a good hunter.
Ferrets older than 6 months can only taste protein, so when they taste the meat, something internally triggers in them to know it is food.
Ferrets imprint in the first 6 months of their lives, so it's best to introduce everything within this time period. It becomes more difficult as they are older, but it is do-able. Just a little longer process. Some ferrets are just hooked onto kibble from imprinting on it and will never eat anything else. But I haven't had that issue yet.

When I first started feeding whole prey, I had 2 adults and 1 baby. The adults were taught first and they took about 3 sessions each to understand what a mouse was and that it was food. I let the baby in with them later on when they were experienced hunters and they taught the baby by visual observation. The baby got it on his first try and is the most obsessed with prey.

I've taught a few older foster ferrets the same way. They've picked up much quicker because they were able to observe from the others.
My boyfriend taught his ferrets who to eat whole prey the same way I taught my original 2. (Just consecutive introduction)
His new baby got it right away after watching the rest of the group eat too.

The babies are the most aggressive when it comes to feeding time now. I think it's because they were young when they were introduced.

And type of prey matters in some individuals. They have preferences. My boyfriend's baby ferret goes nuts for chicks. It's the only type of prey where he actually eats the whole thing right away and won't share. My baby prefers rodents and will stash kills and guard them from the other ferrets.

From what Ive heard, switching them later on in life *ferrets I mean* is very difficult..

Yes. Like I mentioned, they imprint onto foods within the first 6 months of their life. But they can still switch over later in life. It will just be a longer process compared to a baby. And then there are some ferrets who are just stubborn and will never eat anything but their kibble.

I MUST ask....what exactly to do you feed your ferret? We have one. He eats the Mazuri ferret diet right now. I wouldn't mind trying raw for him if it'd be healthy for him....

Mazuri is a good company, but I am not a fan of their ferret diet.
Too much garbage in it.
Their second main ingredient is rice, which ferrets cannot digest. A lot of their protein comes from their soybean meal, which ferrets cannot digest either.
The grain and carbohydrates are horrible for a ferret and will promote Insulinoma (hypoglycemia). In my opinion, it's the most dangerous disease a ferret can get next to Adrenal Cancer. All kibbles will have grain, carbs, plant material, etc, as a binder to hold the kibble together, but some brands are better than others. A quality kibble with high meat protein would be Wysong, Zupreem Premium, Evo Ferret/Cat (it's the exact same thing except Cat is cheaper for a larger size), and 8-1 Ultimate. Zupreem has a grain free version, but it has corn instead, which is probably worse.

I personally feed a variety of whole prey: rats, mice, chicks, turkey, ducklings, quail, and rabbit. I feed rats the most since I breed them for my snakes and that's what I have readily available. They all go crazy for rabbit, but it's a lot harder for me to find for a reasonable feeder price. Rabbit is what their wild counterparts(European Polecats) mainly feed on.
You can feed chicken+eggs and store bought meats, but it won't be a complete whole diet without organs and such.
Cooking will also destroy important nutrients unless you add supplements.

Starting off with hopper/adult mice is best. They're a good safe size to teach your ferret. Once they're experienced, you can try other types of prey. I suggest trying live to get them interested. They're more interested in fast moving things. So the live mice are perfect. Once they understand that prey is food, you can switch over frozen if you're not comfortable with live. They take the frozen or prekilled much more readily once they understand that it is food, which is why I always start them off on live.

Most of the feeders are given live. The feeders die instantly or very quickly so they aren't suffering. The ferrets know what to do once they're experienced. They don't play with food like cats. They're straight to business. The only prey I prekill are larger rats. The large males are about the same size as the female ferrets. The ferrets can take care of themselves and kill the rats fine, but I'd rather not risk an injury.
(Fun fact: In Europe, ferrets are used for Rabbit hunting. The females are used more often and can be seen pulling out rabbits 5x their size just fine. )

I do provide kibble 24/7 just in case they are hungry since ferrets need to eat constantly. And one of my boyfriend's ferrets refuses to eat any meat. He's a strict kibble eater.
We provide 8-1 Ultimate, Zupreem, and Drs Foster and Smith Ferret Diet. (Having a mix is good and prevents them from imprinting on only one type of food. A few years ago, one company went out of business and a lot of ferrets refused to switch over to other foods, so they were in trouble. So try to provide a verity for that reason)

Raw/Whole prey really does improve their body condition.
Better fur. It's softer, less odor.
More body muscle. Less poop since they're absorbing everything. The only stuff that really comes out is just fur. More energy.

[pookie!]

Ehh harder than dogs, easier than cats usually. Just have to be persistent and convince them meat is food, I've swapped 5 ferrets, all adults to seniors from kibble to raw. Got a new boy in Dec 2012 and had him on raw within a month. He was underweight and his coat felt super coarse and gross, now he's a fattie but so soft. Mine eat mice, quail, rabbit, chicken, turkey, goat, duck, grouse and a few other proteins less often.

Hannibal my newbie eating turkey ribs


mazuri ferrets looks like junk btw
http://moredooks.herobo.com/search.php?chart=ferret

Everyone said cats were hard to switch, but my cat throws a damn fit every night because she wants raw like the dogs

Her a while back eating her whole rats




Until we get a bigger freezer she is on Earthborn with the occasional extra feeder, chicken, eggs, liver etc

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Satomi I didnt want to quote your whole post but that is really cool. I love when animals get to eat diets appropriate for their species. Only good things can come from it. I just wish people would get over their old wives tales about raw foods and dogs lol especially since we own APBTs, someone on a page today said
" Feeding a dog raw meat is no better than giving them steroids or gun powder. Just plain wrong. It's a damn DOG, not a jungle cat!"
and
"RAW MEAT??? That is not sanitary" cuz kibble is so sanitary..
and
"Feed your dog raw meat and it will get the taste of blood, then you cut yourself and taste of blood and you're a dead fool!"

[DNACurtusK]

Nikki~

Thanks for the great detailed write up!

Our guy is 9mths old as of this month. Thanks to your write up, I may reconsider his kibble. He was eating the Marshall's diet before the Mazuri. I feed my breeder rats Mazuri so that's why I started ordering the same brand for "Bandit."

@pookie~ Sorry for the thread going off track a bit!

[Coleslaw007]

Nikki, you're so awesome!

Sent from microwave via Tapatalk ll

[pookie!]

Nikki~

Thanks for the great detailed write up!

Our guy is 9mths old as of this month. Thanks to your write up, I may reconsider his kibble. He was eating the Marshall's diet before the Mazuri. I feed my breeder rats Mazuri so that's why I started ordering the same brand for "Bandit."

@pookie~ Sorry for the thread going off track a bit!

No worries! I dont mind because its really cool seeing what everyone does for their animals and maybe other people can learn from it too

Nikki, you're so awesome!

Sent from microwave via Tapatalk ll

^Has a she-boner for you Nikki

[satomi325]

Satomi I didnt want to quote your whole post but that is really cool. I love when animals get to eat diets appropriate for their species. Only good things can come from it. I just wish people would get over their old wives tales about raw foods and dogs lol especially since we own APBTs, someone on a page today said
" Feeding a dog raw meat is no better than giving them steroids or gun powder. Just plain wrong. It's a damn DOG, not a jungle cat!"
and
"RAW MEAT??? That is not sanitary" cuz kibble is so sanitary..
and
"Feed your dog raw meat and it will get the taste of blood, then you cut yourself and taste of blood and you're a dead fool!"

I agree. I believe raw/whole prey is way healthier than kibble. Kibble has crap in it. Plus a lot of cancers are associated with kibble diets, especially in ferrets.

And a lot of 'bad' stuff associated with raw isn't harmful to animals like it is to humans. Heck, animals eat carcasses that have been rotting for days and still be fine.

Just find a reliable source and everything is safe imo.

And that person on your APBT group is crazy. Oh YES! DOGS HAVE BEEN EATING KIBBLE SINCE THE BEGINNING OF TIME!
Wth does she think dogs were eating before domestication? Heck, some dogs still eat only raw in other countries and have never seen kibble in their entire life....

[satomi325]

I'm really glad that I'm not the only person who feeds raw.


I also have the urge to share pictures now.
*graphic warning to whoever (Especially you Brandi)*





What usually happens if there aren't enough feeders for everyone:












Couldn't find my rabbit/rat photos.

[pookie!]

I agree. I believe raw/whole prey is way healthier than kibble. Kibble has crap in it. Plus a lot of cancers are associated with kibble diets, especially in ferrets.

And a lot of 'bad' stuff associated with raw isn't harmful to animals like it is to humans. Heck, animals eat carcasses that have been rotting for days and still be fine.

Just find a reliable source and everything is safe imo.

And that person on your APBT group is crazy. Oh YES! DOGS HAVE BEEN EATING KIBBLE SINCE THE BEGINNING OF TIME!
Wth does she think dogs were eating before domestication? Heck, some dogs still eat only raw in other countries and have never seen kibble in their entire life....

Even if its an expensive high quality brand with limited crap, the act of processing it imo "ruins" it and cooking anything changes it beyond repair. I love when people as "well should I cook so and so meat before I offer it to the dog..?" Um, no.. that basically removes everything good that was once in it.

Oh yes lol I have fed my dog very rotten meat before, meat that would have had us puking for days. He was fine. Lol their guts are meant to do that, dogs by nature are scavengers and that doesnt mean they get the freshest of the fresh all the time.

Only thing I stress when people start feeding raw, look at the package and see how much salt is in the meat, some are so crammed full of "broth" its amazing, and all that salt is unneeded in their diet and just checking the back for and see how high or low the sodium is.

LOL oh you have no idea.. some of the crap people say about our dogs, and then when they find out we feed raw *shudders* its like the furmommy convention rains down on us. Nothing makes a Pit Bull more vicious and blood thirsty than you feeding it raw meat WITH ALL THAT BLOOD!!

- - - Updated - - -

Those feeding pictures are awesome!!!! Do lots of ferret owners feed raw, or is it as taboo as dog owners feeding raw?

[satomi325]

Those feeding pictures are awesome!!!! Do lots of ferret owners feed raw, or is it as taboo as dog owners feeding raw?

Thanks! I really liked the cat photos.


Some owners feed raw. Not all though. I want to say less than half at the very most. That's just in North America though. In Europe, they're all fed a raw diet. There is no kibble there. Plus the majority of European Ferrets are working animals. The need to be healthy and robust. Ferrets in the US are primarily kibble eaters and are companions. They are generally really unhealthy and so much more frail than their European relatives.

It is taboo, but more accepted in recent years.
The number one ferret expert in the world advocates for a natural whole prey/raw diet, and he's slowly changing everyone's mind through proven science. He's literally like a celebrity in the ferret world, so what he says goes basically.

And a reason people don't like feeding raw is because they don't have the stomach for it.
They are too grossed out or think it's cruel/nasty to feed prey even though they know it's healthier.
I'm in two different ferret clubs and they all know whole prey is the healthiest, but only 3 other people other than myself and my boyfriend feed raw whole prey. The rest still feed kibble.
It really shocks me. Ferret people are some of the most passionate folks I know when it comes to their animals, yet they won't feed a good diet due to their own personal preferences.
I'm always asking them if they realize their ferrets are obligate carnivores and that it's their responsibility as an owner to feed an appropriate diet.