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 Posted: Thu Nov 03, 2011 8:04 pm
My ferret has suddenly become extremely skinny, and refuses to eat.
I added water to her food to help make it easier to chew. She carried off a chunk but then stopped trying to eat it after 1 bite. Her coat is still full. She's been irritable/wants to be left alone, and doesn't really have the energy to do anything but sleep (understandable if she's not eating..). When I scruffed her neck to check her teeth, she didn't even yawn, and it took a while to get her to even open her mouth. It looks like there may be blood in her urine.
She's only 3 years old.
I took a look at her teeth and it looks like one of her front fang's tip is flattened.
She certainly seems hungry, she keeps looking at food, but then wont eat it.
It's too late to take her to the vet tonight, but we will asap tomorrow.
In the meantime I was hoping more experienced ferret owners could give me some advice..
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Posted: Thu Nov 03, 2011 8:29 pm
I tried feeding her with a syringe and now she keeps dry heaving and I hear all kind of rumbles coming from her tummy...
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Posted: Thu Nov 03, 2011 8:41 pm
Ok she just threw up and there was redness in it.
Then my mom announces "maybe it was that twizzler I fed her last night"
.__. possible connection?
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Posted: Thu Nov 03, 2011 9:57 pm
omg Dx ferrets should really not have ANYTHING that is not meat, the occasional raisin would be ok (1-2 a month) but candy is bad, I hope she will be ok, maybe she will perk up after throwing it up, I hope so, if not the vet is your best chance Dx
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Posted: Thu Nov 03, 2011 10:09 pm
Could very easily be a blockage, refusing to eat, vomiting, lethargy, stomach pain [very possible cause of irritability] are all classic symptoms. I would get her to a vet ASAP!
@ Cowgirl...raisins should not be given at all, they cause kidney damage. I don't know how much damage would accumulate from 1-2 raisins a month, but it is certainly more than I would find acceptable. They are also full of sugar.
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Posted: Thu Nov 03, 2011 11:45 pm
Skeksis Could very easily be a blockage, refusing to eat, vomiting, lethargy, stomach pain [very possible cause of irritability] are all classic symptoms. I would get her to a vet ASAP! @ Cowgirl...raisins should not be given at all, they cause kidney damage. I don't know how much damage would accumulate from 1-2 raisins a month, but it is certainly more than I would find acceptable. They are also full of sugar. oh really?? I was told one or two a month would be ok, because they can pass it even if they cant digest it.
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Posted: Fri Nov 04, 2011 12:11 am
I tell my mom all the time non-ferret foods can kill them. I guess she thought I was making it up?
I do have a strong feeling this is connected to the twizzler though. I had forgotten about it until her comment, but I did take it away from her when I saw it. But she must have either already swallowed a chunk, or my mom gave her more.
Those things are hard to even chew through, so I certainly cant imagine a ferret being able to digest it.
When I do get her to the vet in the morning what kind of treatment should I expect? Xrays and surgery, or a simple hairball remedy?
Also do you know if they can do anything to keep her hydrated/nurished until the blockage is out... Right now im concerned most about possible starvation.
God its 3am I wish I could take her now. Im scared of what Ill find in the morning...
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Posted: Fri Nov 04, 2011 12:16 am
Miles To Go I tell my mom all the time non-ferret foods can kill them. I guess she thought I was making it up? I do have a strong feeling this is connected to the twizzler though. I had forgotten about it until her comment, but I did take it away from her when I saw it. But she must have either already swallowed a chunk, or my mom gave her more. Those things are hard to even chew through, so I certainly cant imagine a ferret being able to digest it. When I do get her to the vet in the morning what kind of treatment should I expect? Xrays and surgery, or a simple hairball remedy? Also do you know if they can do anything to keep her hydrated/nurished until the blockage is out... Right now im concerned most about possible starvation. God its 3am I wish I could take her now. Im scared of what Ill find in the morning... well you could look around for emergency vets, they are usually open all hours I think, they will probably want to do an x-ray if a blockage is possible, to rule that out, I hope she will be ok, please keep us updated!
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Posted: Fri Nov 04, 2011 6:08 am
Skeksis Could very easily be a blockage, refusing to eat, vomiting, lethargy, stomach pain [very possible cause of irritability] are all classic symptoms. I would get her to a vet ASAP! My first thought. Going off food with a ferret like this along with lethargy and then vomiting would have me running to a vet. They can go so fast sometimes. I hope you are able to get her in.
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Posted: Fri Nov 04, 2011 6:38 am
Cowgirl-with-heart Skeksis Could very easily be a blockage, refusing to eat, vomiting, lethargy, stomach pain [very possible cause of irritability] are all classic symptoms. I would get her to a vet ASAP! @ Cowgirl...raisins should not be given at all, they cause kidney damage. I don't know how much damage would accumulate from 1-2 raisins a month, but it is certainly more than I would find acceptable. They are also full of sugar. oh really?? I was told one or two a month would be ok, because they can pass it even if they cant digest it. Aye, truth. Ferrets can break them down enough to suffer ill effects from the sugar [enough reason to avoid them altogether] and grape/raisin toxicity is a very real risk. They can cause acute renal failure and/or accumulative damage over time. I would feed 1-2 raisins a month to a ferret as readily as I would feed one or two grapes or raisins a month to a cat, snake or any other obligate carnivore.
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Posted: Fri Nov 04, 2011 6:54 am
Miles To Go I tell my mom all the time non-ferret foods can kill them. I guess she thought I was making it up? I do have a strong feeling this is connected to the twizzler though. I had forgotten about it until her comment, but I did take it away from her when I saw it. But she must have either already swallowed a chunk, or my mom gave her more. Those things are hard to even chew through, so I certainly cant imagine a ferret being able to digest it. When I do get her to the vet in the morning what kind of treatment should I expect? Xrays and surgery, or a simple hairball remedy? Also do you know if they can do anything to keep her hydrated/nurished until the blockage is out... Right now im concerned most about possible starvation. God its 3am I wish I could take her now. Im scared of what Ill find in the morning... Had to use Google Images to find out what a Twizzler is and damn! We call that stuff red licorice here and I would be worried if my guys got to one. Very possible that it is connected to her issues. Unless you are very lucky it is probably beyond a hairball remedy. I managed to avert a blockage a few years ago by dosing the jill thoroughly with Vaseline, but she had eaten pieces of towel, not a hard substance. Not sure I would try Vaseline on a vomiting ferret. They may want to do x-rays or they may just palpate and open her for exploratory surgery if they think it's a blockage. Don't worry so much about food, she isn't going to starve to death that quickly. However keeping her hydrated is very important- warm water that tastes like her usual food, or a very thin soup may do the trick. Don't give her too much at a time, little and often will be better as she won't be as likely to vomit. Good luck!
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Posted: Fri Nov 04, 2011 12:37 pm
kind of off-topic, but I heard that it was OK to give them little shreds of lettuce like once or twice a year. Is that wrong too?
I hope the little ferret gets better. heart
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Posted: Fri Nov 04, 2011 3:11 pm
Skeksis Cowgirl-with-heart Skeksis Could very easily be a blockage, refusing to eat, vomiting, lethargy, stomach pain [very possible cause of irritability] are all classic symptoms. I would get her to a vet ASAP! @ Cowgirl...raisins should not be given at all, they cause kidney damage. I don't know how much damage would accumulate from 1-2 raisins a month, but it is certainly more than I would find acceptable. They are also full of sugar. oh really?? I was told one or two a month would be ok, because they can pass it even if they cant digest it. Aye, truth. Ferrets can break them down enough to suffer ill effects from the sugar [enough reason to avoid them altogether] and grape/raisin toxicity is a very real risk. They can cause acute renal failure and/or accumulative damage over time. I would feed 1-2 raisins a month to a ferret as readily as I would feed one or two grapes or raisins a month to a cat, snake or any other obligate carnivore. ooohh I see
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Posted: Fri Nov 04, 2011 3:45 pm
Moonfang Blackfire kind of off-topic, but I heard that it was OK to give them little shreds of lettuce like once or twice a year. Is that wrong too?
I hope the little ferret gets better. heart Not going to be as hazardous as feeding raisins- diarrhea is probably your biggest worry unless you feed enough to cause a blockage- but honestly, why would you want to? In terms of nutrition lettuce is worthless to a ferret. smile I like to think of it this way...if you wouldn't feed bits of raw meat to a rabbit [even as a treat, occasionally] then don't feed bits of plant matter to a ferret. wink
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Posted: Fri Nov 04, 2011 5:51 pm
Ok update.
We took her to the vet. But I was more than disappointed with the experience.
They didn't do any diagnostics. Which is the main reason I wanted to go, and asap.
After a feel-over the vet said that it's probably pancreas cancer. But her reasoning was less than helpful:
1) the quick onset of the symptoms
2) the fact that she has diarrhea (she claimed that they usually don't have bowel movements AT ALL when there's a blockage)
3) cancer is common in ferrets
4) Shakiness (although given that she hasn't EATEN or drank in 2 days, aside from the minor forcefeedings last night and today, what would anyone expect)
And I was particularly irked that when she said if she doesn't get better within 3 days, we will prob have to come back and have her euthanized. =/
We were there for over 2 hours, and the vet only spent 5 minutes with us.
There were some bonuses though.
We got her a hydration shot. She's already a lot perkier.
The vet recommended us to make "Duck Soup" to help her nutrition bounce back. And the ferret is actually willing to eat it- it's the first thing she's eaten of her own will. She likes it so much she actually bit my finger while eating it.
My mom and I still think there was some sort of blockage, the Cancer theory is pretty ludicrous to us at this point. But then again it's also the last thing I want it to be so maybe my wishful hoping is making me bias.
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