From:
sukieferret
Date: 2002-06-23 15:18:00 UTC
Subject: Re: Tigger was laid to rest
>He was first going to give her an anesthetic to put her to sleep. He then
>showed me the cardiac stick that they use, and it was no more than one inch
>in length. He gave her the anesthetic in the exam room, patted her on the
>head, and then said I can sit in the lobby and wait until she was asleep.
That is a pretty normal way to do it and they do pass gently that way. We've
had one who had a heart stick without many years ago but she was trapped in
a grande mal seizure so wasn't feeling anything or aware of anything.
We'd do the mercy shot routine for Warp now but she stresses very much, esp.
if males other than Steve or Joe are around due to a rough past early on, and
we're able to control her pain so she is fading slowly on her own at home. If
she becomes uncomfortable then we'll do what you had done.
I hope that this helps you have a better feel for the procedure.
I once asked a vet why the IV method is not usually used on ferrets and it turns out that it does a lot a damage but ferrets sometimes survive it so then they wake up in worse shape and need to be put into an unconscious state and given the heart stick, anyway, so they felt this is the most gentle approach for ferrets. Also, it is not usual to have to cut down for an IV and IVs do hurt, so it minimizes pain for the ferret -- just the original stick to be made unconscious then resting in loving arms and the rest happens while unconscious.