Gentle Soft Furs

Gentle Soft Furs African soft-furs, bred for docility. These guys are docile enough to be both friend and food. I'm

04/13/2016

After our apartment flooded, most of my animals were scattered to the winds -- soft furs included. This weekend I got back a trio of them... and I realized how much I've missed them.

10/15/2015

Geez Louise!
I introduced my guys to veggie pasta, today. Very popular! I woke up at 3am and couldn't sleep, so I decided to clean them... they were so wound up, they kept running to my hands and then bouncing away..!

At first I thought they were stressed or upset, but their ears and tails weren't pointing upward... so... just excited. A few tried to scramble up the bin sides (which is how I sometimes end up with a shoulder buddy). Calm down, children! I know it's exciting to see the Food Giver at off hours, but c'mon!

They also all got new boxes and tubes, so... even more excitement. I can hear them ripping, chewing, and hauling the boxes around, from all the way down the hall.

Very wound up. O.o

09/08/2015

I noticed that quite a few of my asfs had begun to go bald from the back of their necks all the way to their tails. Bellies and flanks were unaffected. Super weird.

I switched them to 100% Oxbow Regal Rat and completely cleaned out their tubs, giving them only So Phresh (unscented!) paper crumbles and Kaytee Clean & Cozy.

Two weeks later, their backs are plush and smooth once more. Whew!

That was weird.
They were clearly uncomfortable, and many of them refused to use their water bottles (maybe because it meant moving their heads back which may have been painful because of their irritated skin?)

If these changes didn't help, I was gonna take them to my vet. Glad it didn't come to that.

I'll get some pics of their regrowth soon; glossy stripes of fresh fur.

08/24/2015

Found a toddler on top of the food grate... not sure how they got there, but they were very happy to see me and came running to my hands.
It's as if they were saying
"Oh my stars; Food-giver! Thank goodness you're here! I went on an adventure, but now I'm thirsty and lonely!"

They feasted on lettuce ribs with their parents.

I also gave the colony a bowl of freshly gutloaded superworms. Very exciting stuff!

08/22/2015

How gentle are our soft furs?
This baby has been handled minimally (health checks every week or so) since birth. Not heavy socializing, really.

This wee one climbed up my arm to prance about my shoulders, during routine cage cleaning. They rode around and ate treats (and drank a syringe of water; the whole colony got a little dehydrated, which I'm troubleshooting) for about 20 min. Very sweet.

This one is a future breeder, for sure!

mid tub cleaning, my fiance decided to record how chill they are with me.pardon the mess... this is my Solid Gold projec...
08/22/2015

mid tub cleaning, my fiance decided to record how chill they are with me.
pardon the mess...

this is my Solid Gold project.
after this they got parsley, lettuce, and a yogurt-frosted dog biscuit, along with their usual Mazuri lab blocks...along with more clean bedding, toys, and hides.

08/10/2015

My fiance came into the rodent room while I was cleaning the main asf bin. Juvies were climbing on the carrier I placed them in while cleaning, and I was petting and tickling them.

He stared for a moment and said "are those the soft furs?"
"Uh huh!"
"...you should take video, next time. Holy crap..!"

07/26/2015

My Solid Gold ASF project has officially passed an impromptu temperament test.

They're sitting on a new litter of babies (like, hours old), and my friend's son (who adored rodents, and tamed down one of my less docile bubs, a while ago) stuck his hand in the tub and not only touched hoppers, but tussled Mama's fur, and attempted to pick up Papa.

No bites.
After attempting to pick up Papa, they gave a warning chatter. I'm shocked by their tolerance, and really pleased.

Checking on my Solid Gold babies
07/13/2015

Checking on my Solid Gold babies

One of Goldie's babies!
07/07/2015

One of Goldie's babies!

Goldie says "did you say cookies?!"
06/14/2015

Goldie says "did you say cookies?!"

06/04/2015

What's another advantage of using ASFs as feeders? Reduced stool odor.

Just like when you feed your dog or cat high quality food, low in fat and high in protein, these lean rodents give all our reptiles nice, firm poops that I sometimes don't even notice til I'm right next to the tank or bin.

I'd totally forgotten about this perk until I gave one of our foster ball pythons a mouse (I like to rotate their foods sometimes, so they are less likely to be super picky)... he just passed that mouse, this evening. Oh. My. Word.
That fat content, man!

So! Low stool odor; yet another perk of these lean and nutritious little critters! What's not to love?

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Sammamish, WA
98075

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