Convertible Ferrets
So how does one go about converting a kibble cruncher into a carnivore?
Well in reality it is more of an awakening than a conversion. We aren't
changing the ferret's nature - we are allowing it to revert to what it
was before it was forced to eat kibble or starve as a weanling.
Younger ferrets usually switch easier than older ferrets. They tend to
be more adventurous in all things including food. But older ferrets
WILL switch! I've had ferrets switch slowly and some cold turkey. I'm
sure a couple would happily eat some kibble if I offered it to them
because they have been addicted and you can't expect an addict to leave
its nemesis be if allowed free access. Pet food manufacturers KNOW that
pets become addicted and they encourage this, especially with the use
of sugars and glucose in foods and treats. Marshalls IMO is the worst
of these offenders. Every last one of their treats and foods has added
sugars and sweeteners that cause these addictions - addictions to food
forms that literally are foreign to the ferret's systems!
I've had the best results with introducing bits of raw meat into and
on top of the kibble so that in order to eat the kibble the ferret has
to nose through the meat. Sometimes putting chopped meat into a ziploc
baggie of kibble and refridgerated over night helps to impart a meaty
flavor to the kibble.
Some ferrets started eating dried meats before venturing into raw, I've
used both air dried and freeze dried meats. I make my own freeze dried
in my frost free feezer. When purchasing dried meats make sure they
aren't processed with sugars or salted, smoked or flavored! Yes, you
may have to shop around a bit either to several pet shops or online.
And in the end you might end up making your own as I did.
I've started some on raw hamburger and quite enjoyed raw salmon as
their first natural meal. Cornish game hen is more readily received
than chicken. When purchasing ANY meaty item for the ferrets make
certain it has NOT been "enhanced" with broth or solution! Rabbit is
always devoured greedily. And chunks of chicken necks are usually
stashed quickly to be gnawed on in seclusion later.
When starting on whole prey I'll offer pinkie mice. These are wiggly
enough to intrigue the ferret, but not so wiggly they can get away. Yes
often the first few times the pinkie will get chomped but not eaten.
You have the option of tossing it in the blender with your "duck soup"
mix; burying the tiny bodies in your house plant soil or just offering
again the next couple of meals. You have to remember that they aren't
used to eating food that moves or makes noise. Sometimes offering the
ferret a superworm as its first live meal works well too.
Offering the ferrets whole prey seems to be easier and more well
received than offering them raw meat. When beginning this transition
you cannot just expect the pinkies to be their sole nutrient source,
you'll have to keep the kibble handy until they are eating 3 to 6
pinkies at a meal.
From pinkies graduate to fuzzies, with more raw meaty items than
kibble. Stop leaving the kibble out all day long and only offer meals
twice a day. this will encourage actual meal times and get the ferret
more interested in actually eating something. You can't expect to offer
them whole prey or a raw meal once or twice and *poof* they switch. Yes
some will - my Roman (who was 6 months old) did just that- he devoured
one mouse the very night he arrived and never looked back at kibble!
But the more usual is that it takes severl offerings, several killed
but uneaten morsels and anywhere from a couple weeks to a few months
of time to completely switch.
Put a blob of unsalted lard in a small heavy crock and leave that for
the ferret to lick. this offers them more fat which is excellent for
them. Fat is high energy and their systems are designed to utilize it
well.
After the ferret is eating2 to 4 fuzzies per meal you can graduate to
hoppers. I suggest putting the ferret and hopper in a deep Rubbermaid
bin, or the bathroom tub. This keeps the hopper contained and helps the
ferret teach itself to follow the movements of the mouse. Close the
bathroom door as the ferret will often try to hop out and stash its
prize after the kill. The first few kills of the hoppers will be a bit
clumsy and somewhat slow, but still much faster than the average house
cat. By now your ferret should be practically off of all kibble and
happily devouring chicken necks, hearts, gizzards, pieces of rabbit,
liver, chicken feet, turkey neck, Cornish game hen and chicken wing
tips - bones and all!
Once the ferret is quickly dispatching the hoppers you can progress to
adult mice; start with these in the bin or tub then mouse proof your
bathroom and let the ferret go on a proper hunt. I am a HUGE proponent
of offering natural live prey as much and as often as I can. Just
seeing the ferrets delight in the hunt and so pleased with themselves
as they relish their meal makes it worth it.
Call me strange but for each live prey fed I say a thank you prayer
for the nourishment they will be offering to my ferret. If you want to
do the whole prey but not live prey you can always dispatch the mice
yourself. Either by cervical separation, or by building a CO2 chamber.
Then too there is always the option of purchasing packaged, frozen mice
and feeding those. But I had a bad experience with that scene and the
frozen mice made my ferrets sick. Which is why I raise my own mice now.
I also do NOT recommend feeding natural WITH feeding kibble except
during the short transition phase. Mainly because the indigestible
plant items and who knows what else in the kibble will push the natural
nutrient rich foods through at an improper rate. There is NO reason
to continue to feed your ferret a foreign substance once they are
acclimated to natural diets. Vacations, alternative caretakers, even
natural disasters can be planned for and circumvented with judicious
use of frozen, dried and freeze dried natural items.
For those intent on offering a full range of whole natural prey you can
offer practically any rodent or small bird (young poultry) as long as
the ferret shows proper ability to capture and kill without difficulty.
A good kill should happen within mere seconds of the ferret spotting
the prey, capturing it and applying the killing bite to the neck. Any
ferret that consistently loses its grip or doesn¢t kill the prey
outright should NEVER be progressed to larger live prey until they CAN
properly dispatch the current prey. IOW if your ferret has a hard time
dispatching adult mice, do NOT move on to medium rats!
My best hunter was Josie and she progressed up to young chicks, guinea
pigs and adult rats as prey. Rats are NOT mice and will fight viciously
for their survival! NEVER EVER progress your hunter faster than they
are ready!
If you have several ferrets it can be very beneficial to encourage a
bit of competition for the prey. What really works well is if you have
an experienced hunter literally demonstrate how to properly kill.
Ferrets do learn by observation as well as trial and error.
Josie, my kit, was a year old when I adopted two 5 year old ferrets;
she helped teach Faylene and Fozzy. The next batch I adopted learned as
a group, with the deaf one, Crystal, proving to be the fastest learner
and the one to make the fastest kills in proper form. Fizzle is the
most timid of hunters, being put off by strong mice and more content to
steal from someone else after they've killed. Roman, another youngster
adopted last May, took immediately to hunting and is now as fast as
Crystal with the dispatch. I don't have access to rats or guinea pigs
at the moment, but Roman and Crystal would be the only ones I'd offer
them to. Windy is a good hunter too, but she tends to lose track of
them if they get away. Bugsy seems to still be a bit clumsy in his
approach, even though he's been hunting live prey for well over a year
now.
Awakening the carnivorous predator within your ferret will NOT turn
them into vicious bloodletting crazed animals! Quite the contrary, it
will ALLOW them a PROPER outlet for their need to pursue, pounce, and
shred and rend. Ferrets that tend towards biting human hands will
become LESS inclined to do so. The natural diet has worked wonders
for Fizzle a so called vicious biter and her cage mate Windy, another
biter; and is helping Roman to overcome his penchant for chomping my
appendages.
As supplements to their natural diet I'll also offer: super worms,
crickets, night crawlers, minnows, and creek chubs which they've all
eaten happily. Some will catch the occasional house spider. I've tried
offering them frogs and lizards, but they don't seem interested in the
cold blooded animals. If you offer "other critters" be certain they
haven't been affected by pesticides or are poisonous. Some skinks and
salamanders and toads are poisonous - so know your offerings. Don't
offer anything that is a protected species.
[Posted in FML 6224]
|
