My poor sick ferret, Ike.(What to do?)

[husky_lover]

Well I took Queen of Poop's advice and took Ike to another vet about 2 hours away from where I live and he is now getting Lupron shots every month. I think it's too late though. I feel like such a bad person for letting this happen to my sweet fuzzy. Ike hasn't eaten a thing in about 2 weeks now and he has only drank what I've made him drink. He hasn't gotten out of bed at all!!! I called the vet and I have a app. in 3 weeks. I couldn't get one sooner. I don't know what to do!!!! He seems to be suffering, I can see it in his cute little face. I need help!!!!!!!! I don't want him to suffer any longer! :(

[Blue_Frog]

I'm sorry to hear about your ferret -- i'm guessing Adrenal Disease (from the lupron shots) -- monster (my ferret) has it too. She lost all her hair, and lost weight, wouldn't eat etc. The Lupron shots have made a world of difference - her hair grew back entirely, she has energy and is eating again.

However, if he hasn't been eating, you may need supportive care until he starts feeling himself again -- heres some information about adrenal and supportive care

http://www.ferretaid.org/resources/resources.html
http://www.ferretcentral.org/
adrenal - http://www.ferretcentral.org/faq/med/adrenal.html

Also, heres a couple of ferret knowledgeable vets in kansas that i found on
http://www.quincyweb.net/quincy/vet.html -- maybe try calling a couple to get some advice from them (even if you can't bring him in).

Kansas
Junction City - Smokey Hill Veterinary Clinic. Dr. Ed Meyer. 913-762-3664
Lawrence - Clinton Parkway Animal Hospital. Dr. Tom Liebl. 785-841-3131 (multiple people have submitted positive comments about this vet)
Olathe - Olathe Animal Clinic. Dr. Mark Romain. 913-764-1415
Topeka - University Animal Clinic. Dr. Larry Snyder. 785-233-3185

Also, if you have an appt. in 3 weeks already with a vet, try calling and explaining the situation (that hes not eating, etc.) - maybe they can move you up?

Good luck - i hope the little guy pulls around!

[Queen of Poop]

Make him what my vet calls chicken soup. It is about all my Sebastian will eat.

1 jar of chicken broth baby food
1 can of ensure (I use vanilla, high protein)
whipping cream
ferretone

Empty jar of baby food into container. Fill jar with whip cream, shake, empty into container. Mix. Add can of ensure. Add a good squirt of ferretone. Mix well. Keep refridgerated.

Put about 4 tablespoons into a small ferret sized bowl. Warm in microwave for 8-10 seconds. Give bowl to ferret. You might have to stick his nose into the bowl at first, he will likely shrinkle up his nose at first, but if you can get him to eat this it is very, very good for him and will help him put weight on. Sebastian gets his "soup" twice a day. In each bowl I have the soup and all the meds he needs each day.

Good luck, I hope he takes the soup.

[Queen of Poop]

Any success getting him to eat???

[husky_lover]

Any success getting him to eat???

Kinda,He has only ate o couple bites or should I say licks. He still isn't drinking anything either. I took him to the vet yesterday and the vet said that I have to give the shots time to work but I'm just not sure he has much more time left. I feel so bad for him. He is getting weaker by the day!!! He has now started to lose all his hair on his head. Like you said in another thread Ferrets are not supposed to be bald! I've stopped giving him baths, Do I need to continue bathing him or was stopping the right thing to do?

[Queen of Poop]

Right now, I'd stop bathing him. His skin needs a rest and recover period. Can you get a syringe and force feed him?? I had to do that once after surgery to get him going on eating again. It is imperative that he is hydrated. Their bodies are so tiny that dehydration can set in very quickly. If he's not taking any fluids he may need to have SUB-Q fluids and your vet will need to do that.

[lv4dogs]

Did the vet even administer any fluids? He's got to be dehydrated by now. Did the vet show you how to force feed?

I don't know the whole story at what went on at the vets but if that's all that happened, "they told you to give it more time" than I would get a second opinion.

Try force feeding the soup (watered down a bit) that Gail posted with an oral syringe. If he's not eating or drinking much & is getting weak he'll probably need that done every2-4 hours.

[Queen of Poop]

I don't want to panic you, but this is an extremely urgent situation. Your ferret will quite likely die unless you get some fluids into him - RIGHT NOW.

If you have a syringe handy, or an eye dropper, take up some of the soup in the syringe/dropper, scruff your ferret (by the back of the neck, the skin is loose here). Very gently open his mouth with the syringe/dropper and ever so gently squirt the soup into his mouth. He may shake his head and cover you in the soup, be persistent, his condition sounds desperate. You need to get fluid into him!!

[lv4dogs]

I don't want to panic you, but this is an extremely urgent situation. Your ferret will quite likely die unless you get some fluids into him - RIGHT NOW.

I agree. Ferrets can downhill VERY quickly. They are great pets but can require a lot of maintence.

[Queen of Poop]

Any luck with force feeding him?

I'm praying and asking my RB ferrets to help you with Ike and that he will take the soup and regain his strength. The lupron alone will not make him better, he needs nutrition and fluids.

Ferrets are such lovely, but delicate creatures. They can take a turn for the worse very quickly.

I had one die from a stomach hemmhorage (sp?) that came out of the blue and even an autopsy couldn't figure out why. I had another die from an enlarged prostate, a complication of adrenal gland disease - he was receiving monthly lupron injections. My third one died in January of this year from cancer, his little body blew up like a balloon. We did surgery, they removed 3 cups of blood from his body and did a bunch of biopsies. Turned out his cancer made his blood vessels leak. He died 10 days after surgery. Sebastian, my last remaining ferret had adrenal surgery in Nov 2004, the tissue has grown back and he is suffering all the effects of the disease again.

Please let us know how you are making out.

[husky_lover]

I've been force feeding him all day today but I'm not sure how much he has actually eaten. I just got done trying to feed him about 5 min. ago and he didn't even fight me this time but he still didn't swallow much of the soup. He just let it run out of his mouth. While I was trying to feed him, I noticed that his neck feels really swollen. I'm taking him to a different vet in Manhatten kansas(the k-state collage) tomarrow. I almost feel like I'm making him suffer. :( I've been trying to feed him ever 30 min to an hour. Thank you all for your help!

[Queen of Poop]

Good luck with the vet today and thank you for trying to force feed him. If he even got a bit into him that's better than nothing. Hopefully this vet will give him some sub-q fluids and that will get him on the road to recovery. I wish you all the very best with this visit. I'm praying to my 3 RB ferrets to keep a close eye on you and Ike today and to encourage him to fight on and get better. Hugs to you.

[husky_lover]

Well We just got home from the vet. He did get some fluids today but he is still really weak. The good news is that Ike will now eat some of the soup. Thank you all for your help and prayers!!

[Queen of Poop]

YA HOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!! Tears of joy!! I'm so glad he got fluids and will now take soup. You should notice him getting stronger in the next few days. Please keep a close eye on him as he's not out of the woods yet, but this is WONDERFUL news. Thank you for your persistence. Give us an update tomorrow if you can, he's still in my prayers.

[husky_lover]

Ike is eating more and is now drinking on his own!!!!! I'm so happy! Thank you for your help. One question, I have my ferrets down in the basement(that's where we spend most of our time) It's getting pretty cold at night and I'm not sure how to make sure they are all warm. I have lots of beds and sleep sacks in their cage. Their cage is four stories high. But poor Ike shivers alot. Is it ok to put a electric heater by their cage on low?

[Queen of Poop]

Firstly, I am so excited that he's eating soup and drinking on his own. You've done so well with him!!! Big hugs to you and your wee boy.

The heater might take the chill off but won't really warm him up. What I have for Sebastian, since he's a lone ferret now, is a pad I bought at the petstore that is for cats recovering from surgery. It gets warm from his body and keeps that warm in the core of the pad. He loves it. It's rather large so I fold it in half and put a fleece blanket in the middle for him to snuggle into. This is where he spends all night now that it's colder here.

Ferrets also like to cuddle up in the sleeves of old sweatshirts. If you threw a couple of those in the cage in their beds, etc. that might help too. Nothing quite so cute as a ferret sound asleep in the sleeve of a sweatshirt with only his little nose poking out.

Once Ike gets some weight back on and hopefully grows some hair he won't shiver quite so much either.

[GenDebra]

I wrote the response "Lupron to the Rescue," though it seemed to be appended to "Queen of Poop's" posting somehow. I am new on here, and still figuring out how this works....

I am so sorry he's not recovering more quickly. But thrilled at the progress you are making. That is so exciting! Our little furries have such wonderful personalities, it is so hard to lose them .... I lost my little Bandit 3 years ago, and I still miss her. My remaining 4 were depressed quite awhile after that.

I know some ferrets will not eat anything new, especially if they don't feel well. Another thing you might try, which may not have quite the punch as "chicken soup" but he may be more likely to eat, is a simple broth. You know the crumbs and powder found in the bottom of the bag of ferret food? Dissolve that in warm water. It's a familiar flavor. You can start him with an eyedropper full, to perk up his appetite. Then move on to some in a bowl with ferretone added. Bit by bit, add more ferretone, then solids. My bunch also like stew. At the end of our dinner, we take tiny scraps of meat and mix that into the broth. You can be pretty inventive, as long as the base flavor is familiar. For a more novel treat, a tiny bit of vanilla yoghurt is good. My 4 love it. It's super easy to digest, and the enzymes are good for tummy problems.

I am glad the Lupron injections are helping. They do take a few days to a week to start working. But then there is steady improvement. The eyedropper routine can be a hassle, but doing it repeatedly through the day is worth saving his life. And it wouldn't be the first "fur-person" who lived due to this routine. I know, it doesn't seem right to force him, but you should do what's best, just like with kids - whether they like it or not. Fuzzies are really smart. They'll realize later it was your efforts that saved their lives. My Butterscotch can attest to that.

The suggestion for the "after surgery" pad is excellent. And it works. They can be found at places like petsmart or petco. Do they have those shops there? Also, ferrets like to burrow. You can take a shoebox (lid fixed on), basket, or anything similar, poke a small hole in it with a knife, then use the hole to tie it to the side of the cage so it won't get knocked over. Then fill it full of scraps of towels, blankets, or similar materials. Using the shoe box cut a round hole in one side just big enough for a ferret to go through. Initially, you may have to place your baby in it, but once discovered, they'll love it. Both Butterscotch and Latte use this kind of arrangement, and don't get cold anymore. Butterscotch burrows to the bottom, and Latte rolls up right in the middle of his "blankets."

Ferrets are very sensitive creatures. They can get depressed. And like people, feeling an emotional attachment can speed their recovery. I have lot of hammocks, sleepsacks, and other store-bought ferret toys and sleeping arrangements. But an old shirt you have worn and not washed added to their bedroom can quickly become a favorite blanket. I even confiscated a pair of my husband's socks for my little ones. They seem to find our personal items comforting.

Also. Does your little one shiver all the time? Or just when they are waking up? Many ferrets experience what is known as "death sleep." They sleep so deeply, that their body temperature literally drops, so they wake up cold. Even when it's not cold outside. Butterscotch is like this. I can pick her up, carry her all over the house, pose her, do whatever I want, and she doesn't wake up sometimes for ten minutes. Then when she come to, she'll shiver for several minutes before warming up, then is ready to take off.

A space heater may or may not help enough. One close to the cage is probably not a good idea. It causes a too localized temperature change. With a weakened system, your baby could catch cold. And the heat can dry the skin and make him itchy. On rare occasions when it gets too chilly in my little ones' room, I'll put a space heater in a far corner on high, then an oscillating fan in front of it to move the air around evenly. It seems to help, though admittedly, I am unsure how much.

Anyway, I hope these ideas help. And I applaud your efforts! I know my little guys are worth it! Let us know how you are progressing!

Debbie - "GenDebra". Mom to Latte, Butterscotch, Tony, And Thunder.

[husky_lover]

Well My baby Ike is doing alot better he will now go and play with the others during "free time". But a couple of days ago his life long buddy Eli died in his sleep. :( :( I don't know why he was actually my more healthy fuzzy. Now Ike is very depressed but is still eating and playing with his other furry friends Lila and Grimlin. All my fuzzies are on the upper side of 9 years old. I've read that ferrets only live to about 6 years. I'm not complaining by any means but is my babies living this long normal?
Oh, Ike has now lost every single strand of hair on his body!!!!! Yes he shivers all the time. But I do know that he does go into the "death sleep" The first time it happened I was so freaked out! I thought my boy died! It happened about 2 weeks after I brought him home. :eek:

[Queen of Poop]

I'm glad Ike is doing better. I'm so very sorry you lost Eli. I believe a ferrets normal life span is 8-10 years. My Sebastian is only 5. Hopefully after a few more lupron shots Ike will start to grow his hair back. Make sure he's got lots of warm things to snuggle into. I've seen ferret tshirts at the pet store, maybe he needs a shirt? I'm contemplating that for Sebastian as his hair loss progresses, now his bum is completely naked.

[GenDebra]

I am soooo sorry you lost Eli! :( I know how heart breaking that can be! But if Ike is still eating and playing with the others, I am sure the worst is over for him.

As far as the Lupron shots go, you should start to see positive changes a week or so after the first shot. But it takes typically 2-4 weeks for new hair growth to begin. :rolleyes: Oh, well! My Butterscotch got her first shot about 10 days ago. Still no new fur on her backside. Tony and Thunder got their shots at the same time. They've had shots before, and were only missing hair on their tails. Both of them have begun their regrowth.

From what I have studied and learned, if your ferrets are gotten from reputable dealers and have good breeding (genetics do make a difference), 8-10 years is a pretty typical lifespan. With outstanding breeding and the best care, 12 years is not uncommon. I think the maximum I've heard of is 15 years. So you have lots more love and fun to look forward to!

Ferret clothes are a great idea. My babies love them, but only for a bit before they take them off. :( Oh, well. Have you tried www.theferretstore.com ? They have tons of great stuff. Shipping fees are minimal, and of course there is no tax unless you live in their warehouse's state. They have clothes, food, cages, toys, everything you could want for ferrets. I have shopped there almost exclusively for the last 6 years. They have expanded to include cats, dogs, and other small animals in their store. So it's a pretty cool place. No, I don't work for them. :) But I guess I do sound like an advertisement!

Again, I'm glad Ike is doing better. Please keep us all posted. We're praying for you!

"GenDebra" - Debbie, mom to Latte, Butterscotch, Tony and Thunder

[husky_lover]

I thought I'd give an update on how poor Ike is doing. I've made in a coat out of a old flannel shirt which he keeps on to my suprise. He is now compleatly bald! not one strand of hair on him anywhere. But good news is that Ike is now eating regular food and is as playful as ever. He even gets mad at his brother and sister when they try to crawl into is coat! It's so cute!!! I think he knows that if he takes it off he will get cold. He did give me a scare the other day though. He went into the "Death sleep" I was so freaked out!!! I thought I lost him. Thank you all for your prayers!!!

[Queen of Poop]

Thanks for the update. He may be completely bald as this is the season for them to shed. You may find that he will regrow hair soon. Maybe. At least this is the reasoning my vet had last night for Sebastian, who is losing all of his hair too. I'm glad to hear Ike will keep his coat on. I will soon need to do the same for Sebastian. Prayers and crossed fingers for continued good health and some hair growth!!

[husky_lover]

well, I've got good news! Ike is doing 100 times better than he was before.
The shots are working great for him although he hasn't grown any hair back yet. On his whole body I think he has maybe 4 hairs..... Anyhow he is doing wonderful. :D

[GenDebra]

I am soooo glad Ike is doing better!!! The shots begin to take effect in about 2 weeks. But like a human baby, the hair sometimes takes a long time to regrow. You'll see "peach fuzz" first. after awhile, it becomes downy. Then finally, they get their regular fur back. It may take several months the first time. But the process is faster with subsequent shots.

Hang in there! every furry life is very much worth saving. I just lost my "Lover-Latte" a week ago today. He had a heart attack. Latte clenched his front paws over his chest, threw his head back and screamed. Poor little boy! My other three ran to his rescue. They hugged him, and licked him, but when their comforting didn't work, they all ran and hid behind me. It was horrible. I had to take him to be put to sleep. It was apparent there was no coming out of this one.

Like humans, our furry friends need extra TLC to get through their grief. So I've been giving my babies lots of extra hugs. They take turns sleeping in Latte's bed. Ther are still somewhat subdued, and not eating quite as much as normal, but they are beginning to get past it.

But it sounds like you have done an outstanding job with Ike. And you are much to be commended. We'll continue to pray for Ike's complete recovery, as well as warm winter fur!

[husky_lover]

I'm sooo sorry about your baby! I hope the others will get past this with flying colors! Thanks for the prayers on Ike! I'll pray for you little ones also! Thanks for the info about his fur growing back. I can't wait to see my boy how he SHOULD be.