I hope that this message is taken with the intent that it is sent. I'm not
trying to hurt anyone just a gentle post about feeding our little ones and
explanation on how I try to avoid some problems. Honestly, I'm only trying
to offer a bit of help. Please don't take this message wrong and I am
truly sorry for any ferrets that have suffered through this situation.
I understand the concern over the TF bad batches. I've been fortunate and
have not received any of the bad food, but I have gotten bad food from
other pet food manufacturers so this is not just a TF issue and one that
I am personally familiar with.
When I buy food off a shelf, I look for the longest expiration date. I've
accidently bought expired or close to expired food that was spoiled and
had to make long trips back to the stores to exchange it. When I make
purchases on-line I check the dates when the food comes in.
When I open a new bag of food I smell it and look through it carefully for
bugs or webs (I've gotten both in food before). This process only takes a
few minutes and I empty all food into sealable containers anyway (to keep
it fresher longer) so it really isn't much more time to do. Think of the
sealing process like this - if you leave a bag of cereal or potato chips
open how long does it take for them to go stale? Sealing the foods help to
keep them fresher longer. I also wash out the emptied containers and let
them air dry. This washes out any residue.
I've seen mention of ferrets almost starving to death for various reasons
on this and other lists. Each time it seems that someone is blaming
someone else or something else on the condition.
Please, monitor your ferrets closely. Healthy ferrets do not normally
drop massive amounts of weights over night or even in a couple days. We
should monitor our ferrets closely enough to catch them before they are in
trouble. If ferrets are ailing, we should monitor them even more closely.
I've had a couple oldsters get nails stuck in blankets and not be able to
get to the food bowl. If I wasn't diligent in monitoring, this could lead
to a serious problem for these little ones. Keeping nails trimmed and
using bedding that is less likely to fray is helpful, but even so sometimes
one will get caught, and the old and ailing are weak, so monitoring is
still the key.
If someone is sleeping in a blanket or hammock and they don't get up when
I come in, I reach in to make sure no nails are caught and to check if
they aren't feeling well. Normally when I come home, within the hour the
group is up and about. Some mozey out later but if someone is off their
usual schedule I'll go find them to make sure they aren't sick or stuck
somewhere. I make a visual note of anyone that doesn't look quite right
and monitor them more closely.
I know how busy life can be. Sometimes, more often than not, I feel like
I'm running in circles trying to keep up with everything but I always put
the ferrets at the top of the list. Everything else comes after. My way
of organizing is - living beings at the top with those depending on me for
life support at the very top.
Let's say I have a dinner engagement (yeah, right, me, hah!) but I have
to go home first and feed and medicate the little ones. While doing that
the phone rings and it is a call I need to take right then. I'm already
running late (just ask anyone that makes plans with me) and I still have to
check food and water dishes. Now I know I'll be home in a couple hours but
that doesn't matter. The ferrets come first so I check the food and water
dishes, give hugs and kisses to all, give them a treat, and I'm ready to
go - oh wait, I haven't seen Friskie yet so I hunt him down, make sure
he's o.k. and then I walk out the door.... a good 30 minutes later than
originally planned, but the ferrets are taken care of and I can enjoy my
supper without worrying about the little ones.
I truly hope I have not offended anyone - that wasn't my intent.
Hugs to all. tle
Troy Lynn Eckart
Ferret Family Services
http://www-personal.ksu.edu/~sprite/ffs.html
http://www.geocities.com/Petsburgh/Haven/5481/
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[Posted in FML issue 3125]
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