changing kits food- need advice

[PhoenixMoon]

We recently brought home a lil jill so of course we had to go get her a pal. Both had been/are eating Marshalls softened with water but I want to change them over to Evo. Everything says to do it gradually, but what is gradual?

Should I moisten the Evo and mix it with the wet Marshalls and/or do I mix the dry kibble in with the dry Marshalls they have in their cage (and seem to use as a dig box but never eat)? That leads me to: how do I switch them to dry food? I keep both available 24/7 but the baby girl (still working on names) won't touch the dry & the lil guy only seems interested in it after he finishes off the wet. Should I gradually decrease the amount of wet, take it completely out at 12wks, or will they give it up on their own?

I am also interested in feeding them a partial *raw* diet. I have been giving them bits of lightly sauteed ground beef and pork as treats- mainly to "open" their tastes. At what age should I give them whole foods? What do I start off with?

Thanks in advance!!

[nakedrats]

Rockin!

That's just the way to start ferrets out right and save on piles of vet bills later on.  Raw is great for ferrets because it gets rid of all the grains and stuff they don't need and is great on really digestible protein.  For good info on rawfeeding ferrets, join the NaturalFerrets yahoo group.  Whole prey is the easiest and best, but can be pricey.  Ferrets do well on whole chicks and mice.  Just thaw and serve.  My cats are doing great on prey model based on bits and pieces of bone-in-meat and organs that approximately add up to the composition of a prey animal.  It's cheaper to feed a bigger animal this way, but I wish I could afford whole prey.
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/NaturalFerrets/

 Evo ferret is supposed to be good stuff.  I use Evo cat/kitten because it's easier to get around here and does the no grain thingy with more than enough protein and fat for a weasel.  Evo ferret and cat foods are pretty similar.  Protein's up in the 50% range, but make sure there's at least 20% fat too.  Kitten/cat's a bit better- a percent less carbs and a percent more fat.  Carbs are a big problem for ferrets.  Their system can't handle them and over producing insulin like that gives them pancreatic tumors (Insulinoma).  My ferret's got that already and she's only 3 years old- I guess some moron raised her on store-brand 50% corn cat food or something.  She'll be lucky to live to her next birthday- she's already had one major seizure episode.  Trust me, you don't want to be here.

For transitioning food, mixing is generally suggested.  Go 25% new 75% old for 2 weeks and make sure the new stuff's being eaten, then step it up gradually to give their stomachs time to adjust to the new food.  They may still get the runs.  If they like their food soaked, then go ahead and soak the new stuff.  It should help them adjust if you can mix the flavors together.  Evo's really crumbly, so it'll go right to mush.  Since your guys seem to be such soup-weezils, you may want to look for some powdered egg yolk and powdered goats milk and start them on Duk soup.  Easy recipe: Heaping spoonfull of egg powder, heaping spoonful of Goat milk powder, 1/2 cup warm water and a jar or 2 of all meat baby food (Chicken/Turkey/Beef/Lamb and Gravy.  No veg ingredients or noodles...).  Stir and serve warm.  It's great for a treat or to sneak in meds or to encourage a sickly one to eat.  It also can be stored frozen in an ice cube tray to be thawed out one by one.  If you google ferret duk soup, you will come up with a gazillion recipes with everything from blending whole chicken leg quarters to mixing in kibble....

[PhoenixMoon]

Great! Thanks so much!

The goats milk doesn't mess with their guts?

The babies kinda have the runs this morning- they sleep in bed with my husband & I and last night I put dry Evo & Marshalls kibble (25/75) mixed in a bowl for them and both ate both types completely!! I also moistened and mixed both together in their cage- same ratio- which they both ate no problem!!

I bought the cat Evo intead of the ferret. The store I go to doesn't have the ferret type and from everything I've read the cat type seemed fine.

I also read that ferrets like crickets. Is this true?

[nakedrats]

Apparently goats milk has low to no lactose, so lactose intolerance isn't a problem.  It's good for protein and fat.  If they have a bit of the runs, it's probably just the new food.  I'm glad they are eating it ok.  Kits are easier to switch food, sometimes older ferrets resist changing from a food they've been eating for a while.  My ferret is 3 and she just switched to Evo no problem as well.  Maybe it's extra tasty.  The Evo cat is what I use and it's good stuff.

It's great that they'll sleep with you.  Most would be tickled to death that you're there to play with them and tunnel around in the blankets or jump around on you dooking and not let you get a bit of sleep.  Crazy beasts.

[PhoenixMoon]

They probably sleep with us because they're so young still and sleep so much. Plus we put them in our bed the first nights they were home. They have resorted to sleeping on my feet or next to us rather than on our chests lately though. I think because they like to sleep entwined now. I miss their cute lil heads cuddled next to my chin & cheek.

Pixie is very good about using the box at the end of our bed everytime but the lil boy is not so good about it- I've had to change our sheets just about every morning since he came home!! He doesn't use the box in their cage all the time either. I've put one on both levels and put bowls in all empty corners but he'll go anywhere!

That's great to know about goats milk!! Pixie goes crazy over yogurt- I'll try to find goat's milk and try that instead of soy.

Their runs didn't last very long. Today it's gone and they're still eating the mix so that's great!!

What other kibble do you feed (if you feed more than one)? I would like to give them more than one brand just in case. The Innova I feed my rats was changed and that sucked so I know first hand that it happens. I also bought Evo dog biscuits & Iams wet kitten food to give the babies as treats. I figure those are much better than Yogies or other "sugar" treats. But lil boy won't eat either one. I don't think he knows he's supposed to! He just started licking cooked pork from my fingers if I mash it up first.

Funny enough though- he chomped a Reese's Pieces that my son dropped faster than I could reach to get it! Both of them made a mad dash for my children's Easter baskets this morning! I thought it was the sound of the fake grass but they both hopped out with a Hersey's Nugget and ran for cover. They were so mad at me when I took them away before they could open the wrappers!

[nakedrats]

There are a ton of obscure brand  "holistic/natural" low/no grain cat or kitten kibbles out there.  Chicken Soup Kitten is supposed to be good, I don't get Wellness, Blue Buffalo, or Solid Gold around here. I feed just the evo and soup.

For treats, they have dehydrated jerky type snacks that are good too.  Soup's her snack.  She loves it.

Sleeping in bed with you is too cute.  I would totally roll over and squish her if I tried....

[PhoenixMoon]

Sleeping in bed with you is too cute.  I would totally roll over and squish her if I tried....

Well, I nursed my children so they slept with us when they were infants. We got VERY good at not rolling over!!

Plus our new 'lil babes seem to crawl under our pillows, under my legs, and, Pixie esp., under my husband's neck to sleep so she can lick his ear. You'd think they'd be suffocating but...

They also like to sleep on our feet, strange little creatures- and I was being a wise guy and put my foot ontop of Pix while she was going to sleep- she gave me the dirtiest look & chomped my toe!! So I'm sure she'd let us know if one of us rolled on top of her!! LOL!

Max? rolling off our bed worries me more so. He likes to sleep with his head hanging off of things including the bed- on a few occasions I've heard a thump and looked down to see him yawning, going right back to sleep- on the floor- as if he had been down there all night!!

As far as kibble goes, I'm fairly lucky to have a pretty holistic/natural minded pet store with very reasonable prices somewhat nearby. It's 25mi. away, give or take, but it's in my home town where we recently moved from so we go there quite often. They even sell frozen raw dog food. I know there are other mom & pop pet stores nearer to us that sell at least Evo, but I haven't gone experimental shopping yet.