From:
Troy Lynn Eckart
Date: 2002-03-06 14:32:00 UTC
Subject: Re: pain
Yes, ferrets do show pain. When they are in pain their eyes might be dull
or not open all the way, they might grind teeth or act like they are
chewing something when nothing is in their mouth, sleep very restlessly,
or lay around staring. There are more symptoms of pain but these are the
ones I see more commonly.
When they are eating well and show interest more times than not, I and our
vet continue with supportive care. When I can't relieve their pain and they
are miserable, then it is time for another vet exam and consultation on
what our options are.
I believe that ferrets don't dwell on pain, they deal with it and move on.
When Spike had hairballs in his tummy, he would grind his teeth and eyes
were dulled.
Sometime Monday, Lissy hurt her shoulder and that evening she was laying still
in a bed, eyes half open. When I picked her up she was limp as a wet
noodle and I knew something was wrong. I stood her on the bed and her
front end went down. She wouldn't put any weight on her front legs though
her back end was fine. She responded to toe pinching (gently) on the back
feet and one front foot. I checked for broken bones and didn't feel. I
fed her recipe and she ate with relish. I started her on pediapred. To
walk she would ooze her front end with neck and front legs on the ground,
pushing with her back legs. By last night she was walking but with a limp
and by this morning she had moved herself out of the living room (when
the ferrets aren't feeling well they normally move themselves into the
livingroom - my intuition also clues me in that something may be wrong).
Last night I shut the screen door and Calvin's foot was in the wedge. He
immediately squealed and ran into the plastic bag, holding his little paw
up in the air. When I felt his paw he'd pull it back. After checking for
broken bones I rubbed vigorously to ease the pain. Within minutes he was
walking fine and I checked it a bit later and he didn't wince.
In my opinion and experience, ferrets do show signs of pain. You just
need to know what the signs are and different ferrets may show different
signs. The key would be to watch for abnormal behavior for that
particular ferret.
hugs to all. tle
Troy Lynn Eckart
Ferret Family Services
http://www-personal.ksu.edu/~sprite/ffs.html
http://www.geocities.com/Petsburgh/Haven/5481/