From:
leese10ferts
Date: 2002-02-01 18:12:00 UTC
Subject: Re: Suggestions needed for Post Surgery Adrenal
Hi Diane! In addition to what Sukie mentioned, I thought I'd add
some for you too. First, don't count on your vet's office to give
you all the specifics on aftercare. Typically, they give you the
same kind of sheet as for dogs and cats and just say no steps and no
rough activity until suture removal. But with ferrets, there are
other things to consider since they are predominately housed in their
cages.
--- In Ferret-Health-list@y..., "sukieferret" <sukiecrandall@t...>
wrote:
> No climbing.
It's recommended that they stay in a single level cage with no ramps,
shelves, or multifloors. Also no hammocks. These are all things
that can irritate and disturb their incisions.
>
> No cagemates/roomates unless you know for sure that they
> won't disturb stitches.
For the first 2-5 days following surgery, your little guy will
probably be very weak and tired. You'll want to limit his stressors
by keeping him isolated. This is to protect his incision and also
allow him to rest. Additionally, you'll be better able to monitor
his poop and eating and drinking habits.
> Paper or Yesterday's News for litter to keep wound cleaner.
First, make sure you're using a litterpan that is easy for him to get
in and out of - not one that he'll have to climb into. The blue
Marshall Hi-back pans work well for this.
For the first 1-2 days following surgery, I usually attach a puppy
pad to the litter pan. You'll have to change this a couple times a
day, but it works great for them if they are still weak from surgery
so they don't have to worry about balancing on top of the pellets.
Plus, you'll be able to see what color is pee is and you'll be better
able to distinguish his stoles and make sure there's no blood in them
or diarreha. For some of my post-ops, the ferrets dug out the puppy
pads and ripped them apart the moment they were in the cage. For
them, I would just use litter because I didn't want them sleeping in
the litter pans.
> Singing food and water into him.
LOL! singing? What's that mean Sukie? La la la...eat eat eat...?
;-) Are you familiar with making duck soup? I usually just slightly
warm up a jar of chicken or turkey baby food and a can of hills a/d
stirred and mixed together. Offer it to him in addition to his
kibble. I usually start by trying to see if he'll take some off my
finger and go from there.
> If he turns out to be a stitich remover (rare) get him in to vet's
to be glued.
Also, you'll want to make the bottom of his cage nice and soft and
cushy for him. I usually fold a towel up and put that underneath a
fuzzy floor or something and give them a couple baby blankets to
snuggle in. If your vet is worried about him regulating his body
temperature, you can use a rice bag or something else to heat up -
but be careful when putting that in his cage that he has somewhere
else to go lay down if he gets too hot.
Is your vet sending him home that same day from surgery or the
following day? How old is your little guy? Best if luck to you and
him on Tuesday! I'll be thinking of you!
Lisa