Fussy stinker?

[spazzy paddy 127]

Most ferts prefer fur to feathers IMHO

yeah may be, but you cant force them to eat it . my hob was starved for 2 days and he still would'nt touche it, he has been offered rabbit. squirrel ,pigeon, starlins, mince meat ect .

[joe14 98]

Its a case of it seems much easier for them to crunch biscuits than rip flesh from the bone. All mine have meat everyday nearly but i take away the dry. When that been eaten i put in their buscuits as i have one that doesnt know whats good for her. Only reason why i dont just feed dry is it can cake their teeth easily. But by feeding chicken wings they help scrub up their teeth.

[spazzy paddy 127]

Its a case of it seems much easier for them to crunch biscuits than rip flesh from the bone. All mine have meat everyday nearly but i take away the dry. When that been eaten i put in their buscuits as i have one that doesnt know whats good for her. Only reason why i dont just feed dry is it can cake their teeth easily. But by feeding chicken wings they help scrub up their teeth.

i would'nt have thought dry would stick to there teeth now if you softem it up with water then yeah,i check their teeth and they are ok. atb sp

[ferret100 47]

They really can be contary creatures. They tend to imprint on what's edible as a kit. As adult ferts, some readily expand to what's on offer but some just don't regard 'new' meat/dried food as edible.

 

Personally disagree with starving an animal until it eats what you give it. Wouldn't be the first case of an animal dying from refusing to eat what the owner provides.

no healthy animal would make the decision to starve to death rather than eat whats available, only humans are daft enough to make that sort of decision

 

Funny enough, it happens. Not saying it's an everyday occurance. Just as odd as animals with Pica, but healthy animals can do very strange things.

[Malt 379]

Had a hob who wouldn't touch a rabbit unless I partially skinned it or a bird unless I ripped a bit of skin off so he could see the meat. Daft git used to sniff all round it like he he didn't know what it was, even cuddled up next to it and went to sleep! not sure what he'd been fed on before I got him. All changed when I got my albino Jill, she dives into whatever I put in and if its whole goes straight for the throat. He used to wait for her to tunnel a way in and expose a bit of meat, then drag the whole lot off to bed and not let her near it until he'd eaten his fill!

[chook1 184]

Have been told before that as kits ferrets imprint on their food to identify it as food, so could be why if you introduce a new food

ie feather insted of fur they wont touch it, have noticed with my two they do have certain foods they prefare to others,

ie they love chicken necks and whole chicks, but offer them a chicken wing and it can take them hours to eat it

they do eventualy but it takes some time.

mine have been brought up on a mix of fur, feather and dried.

[U.L.D.A 289]

Flip non of my ferrets turn up any food they eat rat rabbit pigion chicken carcass butchers scrap dog food mine even eat fox just tried once as was wanting to no if they would eat it and they did but one thing they love the best has to be rats by god they go daft for them

[rob190364 2,594]

when I was switching mine from dried to meat they wouldn't touch meat at first, and then after a bit they'd eat it but only if I cut it into small pieces, and then after a bit they'd eat full chicken wings/legs etc. My jill still won't touch anything with its fur still on though unless it's cut open first. I think they're fussy because they can be, if they didn't have a choice they'd eat it.

 

I don't believe the stories about them starving themselves to death tbh....sounds like a load of silliness that vets/commercial pet food manufacturers would make up (like that business about not feeding dogs on bones!).....strangely it's not the first time I've though that about your posts, ferret100!

[ferret100 47]

when I was switching mine from dried to meat they wouldn't touch meat at first, and then after a bit they'd eat it but only if I cut it into small pieces, and then after a bit they'd eat full chicken wings/legs etc. My jill still won't touch anything with its fur still on though unless it's cut open first. I think they're fussy because they can be, if they didn't have a choice they'd eat it.

 

I don't believe the stories about them starving themselves to death tbh....sounds like a load of silliness that vets/commercial pet food manufacturers would make up (like that business about not feeding dogs on bones!).....strangely it's not the first time I've though that about your posts, ferret100!

 

Not sure I've ever said not to feed bones to dogs.... With regards to animals having bizzare attitudes to food, eg eating metal, rocks etc or just not accepting any food whatsoever, believe what you wish. Seems easier for you that way.