From:
dannybeer00@yahoo.com
Date: 2001-09-10 08:34:00 UTC
Subject: HELP: Diet during illness
Hi!
I'm new to this list. Currently, I have three ferrets, and one of
them is sick. She is a 2.5 year old albino female. I took her to
the vet last Friday because she has lost a significant amount of
weight, and he ran several tests on her. Her sugar levels looks
normal, and she tested negative for HPV. She was dehydrated and the
blood tests showed that her kidneys weren't functioning properly. He
put her on antibiotics for a week and is hoping that it's just a
kidney infection (rather than failure) or something else that's minor
that's causing her to not eat.
I've been giving her:
-the antibiotic twice a day
-lots of water and Pedialyte
-a blend of softened food, Ferretvite, and Ensure
-baby food (Gerber chicken)
My question is:
Right now she only will eat the soft food if hand-fed to her. Is
this normal when ferrets are sick? If I put it in a bowl, she eats
very little, then walks away. But she'll eat a lot more if I feed
her by finger.
She's already showing signs of improvement, so I'm hoping that the
medicine is working. But I have a concern: What has been your
experience with returning your ferrets who have been on soft food
(only hand-fed) to a normal eating schedule (hard food)? How do you
wean them off special treatment? Will she ever return to hard food
or will I have to hand-feed her forever? I'm concerned about her
teeth (not to mention the fact that it takes a long time to get a
decent amount in her)!
I'd appreciate any thoughts on this matter!
Thanks so much!
Danielle