From:
motorcityferrets@hotmail.com
Date: 2003-03-03 01:37:01 UTC
Subject: Re: [ferrethealth] update on critters who died from unknown poision
To: ferrethealth@smartgroups.com
Message-ID: <24332277.1046655421228.JavaMail.root@scandium>
> While I'm not a vet, something similar happened to 2 of my ferrets 8 years
> ago. They died, and the autopsy showed anti-coagulants in the blood stream.
> Mind you, before this, these were 2 very healthy ferrets. I had 9 ferrets
> at the time of this. All the others were okay. Just these two died. The
> rest of my ferrets were also taken in and had blood tests done. Nothing
> showed. Just those 2 showed the anti-coagulants.
> Search of the home uncovered nothing. Until, little green pellets were
> found in a corner of the room by a box that did not completely block the
> corner. These 2 ferrets were Also my Smallest. They could get in there.
> It was almost a year later, that I found out that my mother had put down
> some rat poison; to as she put it, help me out (she thought she heard noises
> in the wall, and assumed I had a rodent problem); to prevent rats and mice
> from being in the house. She then took the box with her. Rodent problems
> in a ferret house. Most unlikely. She didn't know better and we are still
> not speaking to this day.
oh harold, how terrible. these three critters resided in one of my foster homes. the home has been virtually ransacked looking for anything small in the crevices. they haven't found a thing to date. further, the tox looked for some 10 rat toxins...??? i still think perhaps someone long ago (they've been in the house 3 years) put something down that the critters just happened to discover one day, but we'll never know.
a friend went through something similiar to what you did a few years ago. her already no account home nurse for her ailing father took it upon herself to spray a can of poision to rid the basement (finished) of some bug or other. some 30 birds died (inside for the winter, she had a huge enclosure outside and took in many wayward birds), the rabbit and the ferret within a couple of days. the nurse then admitted what she had done. i can't imagine dealing with something done knowingly by a person...at least in this case foul play, at least intended, isn't a possibility.
thanks for sharing your story. i'm so glad it wasn't a total disaster for everyone in your large group!