Ferrets congregating around a food dish and getting hefty tell me they
are big time B-O-R-E-D. You need to liven them up. Offer them more free
roam time. Don't simply put their kibble in a dish and leave them for
the day (and night). Put their kibble in a treat ball that has to be
pushed about to dribble out a piece at a time. Marshalls makes a ferret
specific ball for this. Cat treat balls may work, but most dog treat
balls let too much kibble fall out. Do NOT offer one ball per ferret!
instead figure that one filled ball will offer a meal for two to three
ferrets.
Hide the ball in different levels of their cage so they HAVE to hunt it
down. Remove the kibble dish altogether. Easter eggs can be filled with
kibble then snapped back together and hidden around the house.
Locate some plain paper dixie cups and then get unsalted lard, mix the
lard with the kibble and mash it into the cup, freeze the cup, then
offer this as a meal - the cup can act as a foraging cup that will make
the ferret earn its food. Toilet paper cores can be used also. Push the
"suet" well into the middle of the tube.
IF the ferrets are NOT insulinomic and IF you are feeding a supreme
kibble (no grain, actual meat proteins and high fat) then consider
that contrary to popular belief - ferrets do NOT have to have kibble
in front of them at all times!
Even if you work it is easy enough to offer them a serving in the
morning as you get ready for work. Then remove what they haven't eaten
right before you leave. Feed them directly upon returning home from
work, while you unwind. Remove the meal after about 30 to 45 minutes.
Then when you get ready for bed, offer them another serving. 45 minutes
or so later remove any uneaten food. This will gradually condition them
to eat when served and if you weigh their food before and after serving
you can get a handle on what they are actually consuming. They'll get 3
opportunities to eat every 12 hours which should be more than adequate.
Do NOT offer "treats" until your ferrets are acclimated to the new
regimen. Avoid feeding Bandits treats or foamy fries or Cheweezils.
Instead switch to freeze dried meaty items, and plain dried chicken
strips. Or take a big step and offer samples of raw items! If you offer
a treat - have the ferret earn it by doing a trick. If you feed three
treats in a day, eliminate a meal that day.
IF you have stairs available, make a trail of kibble up and down the
steps for a meal. If you have fun tunnels, trail the kibble through
the tunnels (only if the ferrets still fit of course) - eventually
they will.
If using water bottles - switch instead to heavy crock bowls - they'll
drink more from these and the extra fluids will help keep them feeling
full and satiated. Make a deep dig box, or use an underbed box filled
with rice, cut a hole in the lid and hide a frozen foraging tube in the
bin at night.
Interact more with the ferrets to get them riled up and bouncing.
Ferret bowling, spin the ferret, bag drags, hide and seek on sofa
mountain. Take them on an outdoor excursion. Let them swim in the tub.
In short - get them interested in being active again - don't enable
them to continue to become couch potatoes!
This should help - I've personally used several of these to slim an
obese waddling ferret (as well as converting him to his true carnivore
diet). When first coming to me he couldn't even fit into a tunnel or
climb up one step without assistance! Ferrets aren't obese by nature -
an obese ferret is a depressed ferret. brighten them up, change their
surroundings, their meals and their YOU time and they'll transform!
Hope this helps!
Cheers,
Kim
[Posted in FML 7191]
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