Got a couple of wonderful gifts from my family this weekend.
 
Saturday, Steve went down to the local Restaurant Supply Store and bought
me a gen-yoo-wine, old-fashioned, cast-iron, hand-cranked,
clamp-to-the-table MEAT GRINDER.  It was a "display model" - most customers
want the electric grinders (but we didn't want the price tag <g>) and the
clerk grinned when she said, "It should have no problem handling chicken
bones."  They also carry replacement blades.  (I'd told Steve about someone
on the FML who had tried a meat grinder instead of the blender, and he
thought that it was an excellent idea.  I don't remember who mentioned it
first, but many Dooks and Thanks to you!)
 
The second gift was from our sometimes frustrating but always wonderful
teenage son, J.T. (how is it that "wonderful" and "frustrating" go together
so well with teenagers?).  He very cheerfully turned the crank on not one,
but TWO chickens, so that I could make a batch of Gravy for the ferrets.
Actually, I think it was just a chance for him to show off ("Mom, it's
heavy and the bones are tough.  You might have a hard time cranking this by
yourself.")
 
We wound up with a big pot full of thick, hamburger-like chicken/bone/beef
fat.  I added about a cup and a half of water to help it steam better
(instead of the half-gallon or so I would have needed to process it raw
through the blender.) I ran it through the blender briefly after cooking,
anyway, just to make the consistancy more... well, consistant :-)  After it
cooled, I added the other ingredients and mixed well.
 
The end result was a double batch of slightly crunchy, extra thick chicken
Gravy that was done and in the freezer in less than half the time it would
have taken me to process a single chicken, had I used the blender alone!
 
I've already warned J.T. that I'm going to get a couple more chickens and
let him show off again next weekend.  <g> I want to keep plenty in the
freezer so that I can give it to all the shelter ferrets on a regular
basis, as well as to my own personal critters.  (I also share with Club
members who need a couple days' worth to nurse a sick ferret after surgery
or illness.) I've found that penny-wise, a day's worth of the Gravy doesn't
cost any more than a day's worth of kibble!  It just costs time.
 
Offered a dish of the fresh Gravy to my own ferrets as soon as it was cool
enough... had 7 ferrets in it up to their ears almost faster than J.T.
could put the dish down.  Little Gaoth and Big Pugs "Da Brock" both tend
to pull their whiskers back and close their eyes whenever they're eating
something they really like... the thicker Gravy had their complete
approval.  Their whiskers were plastered to their ears, and their eyes were
squinted so tightly their whole faces were wrinkled.  Rhodri the Chocolate
Moose, OTOH, still isn't sure yet that he likes his chicken to taste quite
so "real" - he'll lick a bit then go nibble his kibble.  But, he's getting
there.
 
Gave a dollop to all the shelter ferrets this morning.  Most were
appreciative, a couple were apprehensive but willing, and only one was
absolutely convinced that I was trying to poison them all.  Give her
time.... LOL
 
With the excellent, repeatable and maintainable improvements I've seen in
the sick ferrets I give the Gravy to on a regular basis, I wish I could
feed it exclusively to everyone.... but it wouldn't be fair.  There's no
way I could make feeding it a prerequisite for adoption - I'd never place
anyone!  But there has to be a reason why countries where natural diets are
more common tend to have a lower reported incidence of endocrine diseases
in their ferrets.  Could it be something as simple as diet?  (You know how
we all shudder when we hear about a ferret fed only on dog food... or how
we recommend a higher meat/fat content in the diet than what a dog or adult
cat needs.  Could it be that we just haven't gone far enough?)
 
Now, I still believe that Totally Ferret is just about the best kibble
available, and I recommend it *highly* to anyone who asks.  I use it here,
and will keep on using it.  But even TF is close to half grain... has to
be, both for shelf-life, and for the "crunchy" quality.  Omnivores like
dogs handle the mix of grain/meat well.  But ferrets are not omnivores...
they're true carnivores.  Have we traded the convenience of kibbles for a
higher potential for health problems in our ferrets?
 
Just a thought to chew on, anyway.
 
Carla Smith  <><
WhyNot? Ferrets
http://www.whynotferrets.com
ICQ:  29478475
member, Rio Grande Domestic Ferret Club, El Paso, TX
"Every pet deserves to be loved, and to have someone cry over them when
they're gone."
[Posted in FML issue 2644]