From:
sukiec@optonline.net
Date: 2005-12-11 17:44:23 UTC
Subject: [ferrethealth] RE: alternate for hairball remedy
To: ferrethealth@smartgroups.com
Look for the plain PETROLEUM JELLY in the tub rather than anything with add-ins. Then add which flavoring works best with your little one. Oil normally slows digestion, but petroleum jelly is so indigestible that the added oil should be no problem at all.
The trick with a homemade laxative is that it needs to not be digestible but to also be safe, so that it will carry along those fur strands as it passes through. Petroleum jelly serves that purpose extremely well and very safely. Mineral oil can also work but is best avoided because it has a nasty tendency to cause painful cramping, which is something the petroleum jelly does not do, and that is why petroleum jelly is the base of OTC pet laxatives.
We actually don't give much laxative here except during shedding season and even then we don't give a lot. In 25 years we have had only two ferrets with furballs that required surgery. One had a stomach deformity that prevented things from passing through properly. He was someone who could be fasted for about 10 hours and still have food in his stomach, and fur was even harder for him to deal with. He had a lot of corrective surgeries for multiple deformations; his stomach was not his only problem.
The other had one but it was not really a furball. When it was checked it had a little fur but the bulk of it was fiber from the fake sheep's fleece (not Polar Fleece) used in some bedding. He was someone who loved to eat food in bed. The solution was the sew sheet material over the fake fleece. It worked great and he never had a blockage again, plus the bonuses are that the bedding is lasting about 3 times as long as it used to (because they also used to dig the fake sheep's fleece), and it is easier to clean.
Author wrote:
> How much of each do you mix? I thought about it but was afraid there might be something in OTC vaseline he shouldn't ingest. Is there anything in particular to look for or buy?
> Author wrote:
> > I mix ferretone with Vaseline to use as a hairball remedy for my insulinomic ferret. They lap it right up and there is no sugar. Hope it helps, Mary Jo
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