Step One – Gathering the Ingredients and Making “Raw Soup”
You will need the following items:
- a good blender
- raw boneless chicken (thigh preferred over breast)
- raw chicken liver (or other raw liver)
- raw chicken heart
- bone meal (preferred) or powdered egg shell
Note: We typically recommend starting with chicken as it is one of the easiest meats to find, and more bland in flavor than other raw meats, thus more easily accepted. However, it is perfectly acceptable to start with other proteins, but be aware that stronger flavored meats such as beef may be harder to introduce your ferret to as a first protein.
You may also need:
- Fish or Salmon Oil
- kibble (avoid using if possible)
Blend all of the Soup ingredients above using a blender or food processor. Blenders tend to get the best results for consistency. You can adjust the thickness by adding more or less water. For particularly stubborn ferrets you can add a little salmon or fish oil to improve the flavor in the beginning of the switching process.
For particularly stubborn ferrets start with kibble soup, and slowly replace it with raw chicken. To make kibble soup, soak some kibble in warm water first (or it will burn out your blender), then add more water and blend to the desired consistency. Start by finger feeding the kibble soup to your ferret to adjust them to the new texture. Once they accept the kibble soup, you can work on gradually adding raw soup while decreasing the kibble soup.
For additional tips and tricks, check here
WARNING: Combining kibble and raw can cause upset stomach in ferrets. I have found that most ferrets tolerate them mixed in SOUP form for a short period without any problems and it can be a useful approach for particularly resistant ferrets. The bigger problems seem to arise when giving dry kibble and raw meals to close together. That said, many individuals feel that it is best to not mix them even in soup. It is up to you to determine whether or not to try this approach, but it is a technique to keep in mind if your ferret is being particularly stubborn.
For a VISUAL Step-By-Step Guide to making Raw Soup, see our Raw Soup Recipe and scroll down the page!
Go To STEP 2