From:
Ella R
Date: 2009-09-20 05:27:07 UTC
Subject: [ferrethealth] Integration of rescue ferret and appetite changes
To: ferrethealth@yahoogroups.com
Hi,
Long story short, we took in a 1 yr old female ferret (Teagan) that was kept
in a small cage in a garage. Not sure how long she's been there, but the
people said they've had her a year. Her behavior seems fine, though she's
showing signs of just trying to get used to being around other ferrets
here. We had to take her in rather suddenly (trust me, she needed OUT of
there and fast), and we have no way to keep her apart from the others (way
too small an apartment for that). But I have a couple of questions about
the transition and her eating habits.
They weren't abusing her, and they had no idea they were neglecting her, but
they were very ignorant about ferrets.
They were feeding her 8 and 1 ferret food, no ferretone or other
supplements, but they were putting tons of peanut butter in her food. I
don't know her weight because we got her very very late Friday night and
have to wait until next week to get her to the vet for a physical, etc. My
guess, judging by her size and how she feels compared to my smallest
ferret.. she can't be more than 1.5 lbs at the most. Very petite. Her
energy level appears good, and she was up for 4 hours straight today
exploring and playing.
She seems to try and keep to herself for the most part, and she sleeps alone
unless she falls asleep somewhere and one of the others snuggles in with
her. She hisses a lot, but she's not been around any ferrets since she was
a tiny kit, so I'm guessing this is just an adjustment period for her.
She's not eating, so I syringe fed her a small amount of 'kibble soup,' but
I'm wondering if I should just let her decide when to eat, or if I should
continue syringe feeding her? She seems to be drinking water just fine, so
I'm not concerned about dehyrdration. Oh, and she's not wanting the food my
kids get (Sheppard and Green), nor her own food..which i don't put peanut
butter in, of course.
I was told on the phone before I got her that her poops were 'normal.' This
was before I realized how clueless they were about ferrets. Her poo appears
to have mucus, and I 'think' a pink tint, though i can't tell for sure. And
there's not much of it. The poo her her cage when we picked her up,
however, 'seemed' to be firmer.. and more of it.
Any ideas or suggestions? She seems otherwise healthy but for the couple
things I mentioned.
Thanks.
Ella
--
------------------------------------
Yahoo! Groups Links
<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ferrethealth/
<*> Your email settings:
Individual Email | Traditional
<*> To change settings online go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ferrethealth/join
(Yahoo! ID required)
<*> To change settings via email:
mailto:ferrethealth-digest@yahoogroups.com
mailto:ferrethealth-fullfeatured@yahoogroups.com
<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
ferrethealth-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/