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 Do you have ferrets? Do you want to get ferrets? Do you want to convince your hippie roommate to take better care of his ferrets? THIS IS YOUR THREAD. (This used to be your thread until I made this new one.) Here are some pictures of ferrets:     Ferrets are adorable, hilarious, playful animals that are also super cute. They sleep a lot, but are pretty much always up for playtime whenever you are, even if that's at noon one day and at midnight the next. Most people who are allergic to dogs and cats are not allergic to them. Here are some questions you should ask yourself before getting a ferret:
You'll also need to decide how MANY ferrets you want. They are a very cuddly, social animal that benefits from having a buddy to sleep with, groom, and play with. They will play with you, too, of course, whether they're single or in pairs, but it's kind of sad when you're playing and they run under the couch, then come back out and look at you like "come ON why aren't you FOLLOWING ME?" Two ferrets have basically the same housing and bedding requirements as one, and you can buy bigger bags of food without worrying that it'll go stale. You'll want to have a bit more in your vet fund in case ferret #1 has a problem, then ferret #2 has one before you've fully replenished the fund. However, if you're really set on having just ONE, a rescue can probably match you with a ferret who doesn't like other ferrets much. (they do exist!) Once you've figured that out, you will need to
All of these things are addressed in the posts below this one. Aren't you lucky? So go ahead and read the first page of this thread. If your question isn't answered there, don't feel like you need to read the whole thread before you post - after all, if a question is asked so much we're sick of answering it, it really should be addressed at the beginning of the thread.
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| # ? Dec 2, 2009 16:56 |
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| # ? May 24, 2013 20:50 |
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So, you still want ferrets. Here is where people get ferrets from:
Ferret rescues are by far the best place to get ferrets for most people in North America, because they'll be very familiar with the health, temperament, and idiosyncracies of each individual ferret and will be able to match you with one who's really good for you. They're also a great resource for figuring out which local vets are good, where to buy supplies, how to ferret proof your particular home, and all sorts of other things the internet can't help you with. Some rescues also do fostering, where you take care of the ferret and (in some cases) pay for its food and supplies, and they pay for its medical bills. If you are broke and still want to have ferrets, this is a great way to do it. Rather than giving a list that'll quickly become out of date, I'll just say that if you're interested in rescuing, post and ASK. We will help you find something. Pet stores sell baby ferrets to any idiot who walks in off the street, you included. This is bad. But what's worse is where they get the ferrets from. They get them from large scale ferret mills (think puppy mills only more sad because ferrets are way better than puppies) that DON'T breed for the long-term health of your ferret. They breed ferrets that sell well as babies at pet stores. Period. At some mills, like Marshall Farms, they also breed for ferrets that will do well as lab animals for biomedical research. Whether or not you think that's good or right or necessary, what the biomedical industry wants in a ferret and what you want in a ferret are not really going to be the same things. While some do win the genetic lottery and come out robust and healthy, like one my local ferret rescue recently had to put down at 9 1/2, others drop dead at 3 1/2, like my Marshall's ferret Sassy. And YOU, an inexperienced person looking at a bunch of little baby ferrets, are not going to be able to tell which is which. If you get your ferret from a pet store and thus support ferret mills, we will still help you take good care of it. We're not going to make a ferret suffer in order to make you feel bad about where you got it. But YOU ARE THE REASON OUR FERRETS DIE SO YOUNG, YOU JERK. There. Got it out of my system now. Breeders are not really an option for most people in North America, because the market is so thoroughly dominated by milled ferrets, who are all sold spayed and neutered. But let's say you live in Europe, or you find one. You'll need to figure out whether the breeder is good or not. So ask some questions! A good breeder will talk to you about their ferrets and plans until you are thoroughly sick of it. If you post the answers to the questions here, we can tell you if they're good ones.
Craigslist, Kijiji, and whatever may, depending on your area, be full of people getting rid of their unwanted ferrets, often with supplies like a cage included. This doesn't directly support ferret mills like buying from pet stores does, but it does (assuming you pay significantly more than you would for just the supplies) encourage people to think of ferrets as just a commodity you can get most of your money back for if you don't want it anymore. You're also reliant on the word of someone who doesn't necessarily have the best interests of you OR the ferret in mind, and who may not be that experienced with ferrets, to give you accurate information about the ferret's age, health, and temperament. I got my first two ferrets this way, and while we loved them dearly and the girl who sold them and their stuff to us was not trying to take advantage of us, one of the ferrets developed an expensive chronic health problem soon after we got them, and it was only maybe two months before we'd paid more in medical bills than we paid for the ferrets in the first place. Knowing what I do now, I can say that the ferret in question was just starting to show signs of the problem when we got her, but it's not something you can generally identify without experience. If you don't have a ferret rescue near you, though, this CAN be a good way to get ferrets. Go with ones that are claimed to be young, 1-2 years old if you can find them, and for god's sake check their teeth to make sure. Ferrets that age should have relatively clean teeth, and the canine teeth (the long vampire fang ones) should be a nice bright white almost the whole way down the tooth, with maybe a little bit of yellowing/translucent area at the end of the tooth. Check out the medical section to make sure you don't see any of those signs of diseases. Ask the person if you can get vet records. They may not have them on hand, but they should be willing to tell you which vet or vets the ferret has been to and call to have the records sent to your new vet, if you're not using the same one. Your irresponsible friend who doesn't want a ferret anymore probably won't be trying to lie to you like someone you're giving money to might, but irresponsible people also don't tend to take great care of their ferrets or notice signs of health problems.
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| # ? Dec 2, 2009 16:56 |
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(housing/bedding/litter post goes here)
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| # ? Dec 2, 2009 16:56 |
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Ferrets LOVE to knock stuff over, climb things, and get into holes. Unless you want your stuff destroyed and/or your ferret injured, you'll need to ferretproof your house. Here's what to do: Supplies for ferretproofing:
The ping-pong ball represents the ferret's head. Any holes larger than a ping-pong ball that lead to places you don't want the ferret to go will need to be blocked off. The measuring tape will tell you how high the ferret can reach. In my experience, a large and motivated ferret can knock over things (like garbage cans) up to 18" high, and can climb up onto things about 12" high even without anything to dig his or her back claws into. Fabric or anything that allows the ferret to get a boost with its back legs extends that range pretty much indefinitely. So! Take your ping-pong ball, your ruler, your flashlight, and go around your house looking for stuff your ferret can get into. When you see it, block it off with the coroplast. Get down on your hands and knees, or even on your belly, so you can see things from a more ferret-like angle. Pay special attention to:
Most ferrets don't chew cords like rodents do. (Because they are NOT RODENTS) But some do. If yours has this problem and it's not fixed by spraying the cord with bitter apple or another taste deterrent, you'll need to move the cords. Some ferrets also have a fixation on chewing things with a foamy or rubbery texture. Remote control buttons and those little foam earplugs are reported favorites. This can give your ferret an intestinal blockage, and those are both deadly and expensive, so you'll want to practice keeping those things somewhere the ferret can't get to. maplecheese fucked around with this message at Dec 2, 2009 around 17:46 |
| # ? Dec 2, 2009 16:57 |
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What should ferrets eat? Short answer: Meat. Long answer: Ferrets' wild ancestors are European polecats, who are related to them in the same way that wolves are related to dogs. European polecats eat rodents, frogs, small birds, and some insects. Ferrets were domesticated and bred for centuries to hunt rabbits. These things should be kept in mind when planning a diet for a ferret. For most owners, the best way to feed ferrets will be with an appropriate, high-quality dry kibble, supplemented by canned wet food, raw meat, and/or whole prey. I suggest keeping at least some kibble in their diet for a few reasons:
North American ferrets should always be free-fed, with their bowl kept full of kibble - as long as they're getting enough time out of the cage, they won't get fat. They get underweight, not overweight. For European ferrets, talk to an experienced ferret vet about how much your ferret should be eating per day, and how to tell if it's getting too chubby. You may want to take your ferret's dry food away for an hour or two before offering wet food, raw, or whole prey, just so s/he isn't totally full when you offer it. Kibble The dietary requirements of ferrets are very similar to the dietary requirements of kittens. This is really lucky for ferret owners, because the trend toward grain-free cat foods in the past five years or so means that we now have many, many great foods to choose from. They're better than even good ferret foods used to be, they're easier to find, they're cheaper, and they're available in larger bags. Technically, ferrets can get by on most kitten foods of at least reasonable quality, or pretty much anything sold as ferret food, but this really isn't a good idea. Not only will they have to eat a lot more of the crappy food, thus negating a lot of your cost savings, they'll be less healthy and need more vet care. And, worst of all, they will smell a lot worse. Seriously. They will poop more, the poop will smell worse, their coats will be greasier, and that grease will smell BAD. Feeding a good food is really, really worth it. Here are some general principles to follow when choosing a ferret food:
Here are some good brands, in no particular order. Many of these sites have store locators.
If none of these things are available in your area, post and let us know where you live, and we'll try to help you figure out what to do. Wet Food Look for a canned cat food with no byproducts, "digest", or "animal" anything, and little or no fish. Your ferret might not recognize it as food at first, but if you take a big spoonful, mix it with just a little warm water to make it runnier and stronger smelling, and squirt or push a little bit into the ferret's mouth, it should get the idea after a few tries. Since ferrets don't eat as much as cats, you'll want to either buy the really tiny cans or freeze the leftovers. Ice cube trays work well for this. My favorite wet food is Nature's Variety Instinct Rabbit - the ferrets LOVE this poo poo. Secret tip: the dog version of this food is exactly the same as the cat version, only it's cheaper and comes in bigger cans. This is not generally true for most foods, though, so DON'T switch to the dog version of a food to save money unless you have it and the cat version side by side to compare nutrition information and ingredient lists. Raw Meat Just like with canned food, your ferret may not recognize this as food at first. They are picky little buggers, and once they're imprinted onto kibble = food as kits, it takes a lot of work to get them to expand their horizons. The best way to do it is to get them really, really loving canned food, then mix in a little bit of ground raw food. A lot of places sell premade frozen raw cat diets now, and those are good as long as they're not fish-based. Or you can put in some ground or minced raw chicken. Just wash your hands afterward. Once the ferret is happily eating the mostly-canned, partly-raw mix, increase the amount of raw, and put less-finely-ground bits in it. They can chew it, they have those pointy teeth for a reason. If a large proportion of your ferret's diet is going to be raw, it's important to get bones and organs and stuff in there instead of just muscle meats - prepared raw diets for cats are good for this. However, if the ferret is still mostly eating kibble with occasional raw treats, don't worry too much about it. Whole Prey Don't even try to get your ferret eating whole prey if it doesn't eat ground raw food, unless it's still very young - it really, truly, won't see it as food. But once you've got the ferret enjoying raw, whole prey can be really awesome. PI people seem to really like RodentPro for their small frozen animal needs, but they don't ship outside of the US. Start with the little pinky mice at first, until you know how much your ferret or ferrets are willing to eat in one sitting. Follow the site's instructions for thawing them and bringing them to body temperature. Especially at first, you may need to cut open the prey item so that your ferret realizes that there's tasty meat inside this skin. Maybe put a little Ferretone (see section on other ferret supplies) on it to get the ferret to lick it. The bathtub or shower is a good place to feed whole prey - you can hose it down afterward, and the ferret can't hide mouse parts under the couch. maplecheese fucked around with this message at Dec 2, 2009 around 17:21 |
| # ? Dec 2, 2009 16:57 |
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(supplies/daily ferret maintenance post goes here)
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| # ? Dec 2, 2009 16:57 |
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Help! My ferret is... [NOTE: NOT COMPLETE YET, BE PATIENT] ...stinky! Unless your ferret hasn't been descented (unlikely, unless it was also unneutered when you got it), this is something you can improve all on your own, and pretty cheaply.
If you've done all that and you're still having odor problems, or if you need a temporary fix while someone who just cannot possibly smell ferrets ever comes to your house, there are a couple things you can do.
...biting! Ferrets generally bite for one of three reasons:
(tips go here soon) ...pooping outside of the litterbox! ...itching! Ferrets are generally itchy animals to begin with - they'll often wake up just to scratch. But if your ferret is constantly stopping dead in the middle of eating, playing, or using the litterbox to scratch, or if he or she is scratching so much it's causing injury, there is probably something wrong. Itchiness in ferrets can be caused by a few things, and here they are:
...losing its fur! This is another one with a few possible causes, one of which definitely requires vet intervention, so read carefully. Ferret hair loss can be caused by:
... having weird poop! Ferrets are not animals with a very robust digestive system, so here's a guide to ferret poop and what it means:
The following are the causes of diarrhea in ferrets:
... coughing! Coughing in ferrets can be caused by:
...sneezing! Sneezing is, luckily enough, a symptom NOT generally associated with horrible, horrible problems. Ferrets sneeze when they get into dust or other things that irritate their noses. They also sneeze when they have colds. If your ferret is sneezing a lot, has watery eyes, licks his/her nose a lot, and isn't as active as normal, he or she probably has a cold or something similar. Just like humans, ferrets generally get over their colds without too much trouble. That being said...
Also, if you have a cage that can be split into two sections, or a separate cage, you may want to consider separating the sick ferret from any other ferrets you have to try to keep the others from catching the cold. Wash your hands in between touching the sick ferret and the healthy ones, too. ...losing weight! Weight loss can be caused by:
...grinding its teeth! This is an easy one. Teeth grinding is a sign of PAIN, usually gastrointestinal pain. This could be caused by a mouth, esophageal, or stomach ulcer, or some other problem within the digestive system. You'll need to take the ferret to the vet, but if it's just an ulcer, the ferret will just need some medicine to coat it until it heals and it shouldn't be too expensive. Whether it's an emergency or not is determined by whether or not the ferret is still eating and pooping ok. ...not as energetic as normal! A lack of energy CAN be a benign thing, or just a sign of aging, but it can also be an important early warning sign of a number of different major problems. Since their treatments are always cheaper and/or more successful earlier on in the course of the disease, if your ferret lacks energy, you should really keep a close eye out for other signs of illness. Here's what can cause ferrets to become less energetic:
...being a jerk to other ferrets! ...not waking up! Well, you have three basic options here.
maplecheese fucked around with this message at Dec 4, 2009 around 04:31 |
| # ? Dec 2, 2009 16:58 |
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(ferret health problems description goes here) Adrenal disease What is it? Symptoms Treatments Insulinoma What is it? Symptoms Treatments Cardiomyopathy What is it? Symptoms Treatments Lymphoma What is it? Symptoms Treatments Mast cell tumors maplecheese fucked around with this message at Dec 2, 2009 around 18:16 |
| # ? Dec 2, 2009 16:58 |
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Here are some ferret vets that people in Pet Island think are good: USA GEORGIA Marietta Riverview Veterinary Hospital Dr. Linda Bostick Dr. B is amazing with ferrets. She really tries to explain everything to you in laymen's terms, and although some people feel like she's a little condescending, she is very thorough and helpful. All of my visits run over. She also gives the rescue an enormous (50%!!) discount, so I guess we're a little biased. Also, one thing I really like about her, is that she is totally up front and open about if you're being a dumbass. I overheard her talking to a bird owner once whose bird was playing with some dangerous toy and hurt itself, and she basically called the owner an imbecile for giving it to the bird in the first place. Go, Dr. B! It's nice and central if you live in/around Atlanta. Right at Cumberland Mall. recommended by: CompactFanny MASSACHUSETTS Grafton Tufts: Foster Hospital for Small Animals Dr. Joerg Mayer This is the person who performed Dizzy's adrenalectomy 2 months ago  We're new to Tufts, so I don't have much to write, just that Dr. Mayer is a HUGE improvement over our former vet & he totally kicks rear end in general.recommended by: Little_Dead_Pets Canada ONTARIO Ottawa Crown Pointe Animal Hospital Dr. Daren Auger Dr. Auger is awesome. He's very good at figuring out what is wrong with a ferret QUICKLY (and thus cheaply), he's always up on the latest treatments, and he won't treat you like a horrible person if you're broke and that has to influence what vet care you can afford. And when our ferret had to be put to sleep at the emergency vet, they faxed a thing to him afterward, and he called me to express sympathy. And sent a card. recommended by: maplecheese QUEBEC Montreal Montreal Bird and Exotic Animal Hospital Dr. German-guy-whose-name-I-forget-right-now I don't know this guy anywhere near as well as I know Dr. Auger, but he goes to conferences and stuff about ferrets, seems quite knowledgeable, and likes to talk to informed ferret owners. Also, when a guy with a German accent says "I am going to palpate your abdomen!" in a cutesy talking-to-a-ferret voice, it's pretty funny. recommended by: maplecheese maplecheese fucked around with this message at Dec 5, 2009 around 18:22 |
| # ? Dec 2, 2009 16:58 |
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Hey, I was just thinking the other day about making a thread about working ferrets in the UK but maybe I'll just post it here instead. Consider this a placeholder  .(I'm planning to go rabbiting with my ferret enthusiast buddies next year/see about borrowing a hob for a year maybe, so I'm getting all nerdy about it  )
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| # ? Dec 2, 2009 17:09 |
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notsoape posted:Hey, I was just thinking the other day about making a thread about working ferrets in the UK but maybe I'll just post it here instead. Consider this a placeholder Oh my god, I am so jealous. Please send me one million healthy working baby ferrets so I can love them and cuddle them forever and feed them whole prey and AWWWWWW.
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| # ? Dec 2, 2009 17:19 |
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 do it, notsoape!
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| # ? Dec 2, 2009 17:55 |
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I wanted to know if we could at least address any specific problems for ferret owners in those places that they are illegal, like california or hawaii or whatever? I am not saying anyone condones that behavior or would recommend that to anyone, but there are people who live in places they are illegal that refuse to give up their pets. If it is something we shouldn't talk about for legal reasons or what not I can completely understand, but I thought I would ask. also, another interesting topic might be deaf ferrets. I have one and I LOVE them like crazy but maybe talking about why certain ferrets are deaf, how to tell if a ferret is deaf, and do deaf ferrets act any different than other ferrets? Just some information for those that might not know about them. I know I had to do a lot of reasearch when I realized I had a deafie. a picture of said deafie trying to defy the cage  and bonus pics of cutie little ferrets I own  
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| # ? Dec 2, 2009 19:49 |
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Sweet CupnCakes posted:I wanted to know if we could at least address any specific problems for ferret owners in those places that they are illegal, like california or hawaii or whatever? I am not saying anyone condones that behavior or would recommend that to anyone, but there are people who live in places they are illegal that refuse to give up their pets. If it is something we shouldn't talk about for legal reasons or what not I can completely understand, but I thought I would ask. Probably a good idea. Depending on where my boyfriend decides to get his PhD, we might have to move to California or NYC, and we won't be giving up the fuzzballs if that happens. But we WILL be doing careful research and planning to make sure they aren't in danger. Sweet CupnCakes posted:also, another interesting topic might be deaf ferrets. I have one and I LOVE them like crazy but maybe talking about why certain ferrets are deaf, how to tell if a ferret is deaf, and do deaf ferrets act any different than other ferrets? Just some information for those that might not know about them. I know I had to do a lot of reasearch when I realized I had a deafie. Also probably a good idea, though I'm not sure where to fit it in. But if you write it up, it'll go in faster!
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| # ? Dec 2, 2009 19:58 |
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notsoape posted:Hey, I was just thinking the other day about making a thread about working ferrets in the UK but maybe I'll just post it here instead. Consider this a placeholder Well, now you've got all us ferret nerds excited.
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| # ? Dec 2, 2009 20:02 |
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Here are some of the things I know about deaf ferrets. Please feel free to chime in if something doesn't sound right. A syndrome known as Waardenburg syndrome is most often the cause of deafness in ferrets. It is linked with a lot of the same genetics that cause white markings like bibs, all white ferrets, or a stripe of white on the head. I don't know all the ins and outs of the syndrome but this is what I remember reading when I suspected a problem with my ferret Lucy. Ways to tell if your ferret is deaf... Ferrets have the attention span of a two year old on meth. It can sometimes be hard to diagnose that a ferret is deaf. I know when I talk near my ferret's cage they will start to look around and hope I am going to let them out. I could go to the cage and talk and make kissy noises and Lucy wouldn't even stir. You can try sneaking up on them and banging something loud or yelling or squeeling at them to see if they turn around. Lucy also does what I like to call Death Sleep. She is so deep in sleep that I can pick her up and move her around or wiggle her and she doesn't move or open her eyes. I believe all ferrets are capable of this sort of sleep (and it will scare you to DEATH the first time it happens. I thought Lucy was dead), but I have heard that deaf ferrets more commonly get into this strange sleep. Another fun characteristic of deaf ferrets is that they are commonly much more vocal than other ferrets. Lucy will scream at everyone. She can't hear herself so she has no idea how loud she is being. It is very funny but when I first had her I thought she was being mutilated under the couch by one of my other ferrets she was screaming so much. Nope, she was just being her deaf little self. Deaf ferrets sometimes have behavior problems. I know they can be more prone to biting. I got Lucy from a woman who bought her at a pet store for her three year old son. Lucy bit him all the time and so they gave her up. I think it has to do with the fact she is easily startled and her first instinct was to bite. I was able to train her out of it but it is not an uncommon story with deaf ferrets so far as I have heard. I don't know if it is the case with every deaf ferret but I know with Lucy she is just the most interesting ferret I have ever owned. She is highly energetic, spazzy, and play bitey. She is alpha over anyone and everyone. I am sure there is a lot of information I am leaving out. I am not the most articulate person ever so feel free to change things or reword things if they don't make sense.
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| # ? Dec 2, 2009 22:01 |
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Back before I saw my Cat-Only vet, I saw a general practitioner vet out here in California. I asked about ferrets, and he said they see ferrets all the time, know how to treat them, and that it wasn't the job of a veterinarian to police the laws of the state. Just throwing that out there.
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| # ? Dec 2, 2009 22:16 |
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Sweet CupnCakes posted:Lucy also does what I like to call Death Sleep. She is so deep in sleep that I can pick her up and move her around or wiggle her and she doesn't move or open her eyes. I believe all ferrets are capable of this sort of sleep (and it will scare you to DEATH the first time it happens. I thought Lucy was dead), but I have heard that deaf ferrets more commonly get into this strange sleep. I'm new to ferrets and one of my ferrets did this recently and I thought she was dead and I was about to get really upset until she woke up after a little jostling.
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| # ? Dec 3, 2009 01:44 |
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Alterian posted:I'm new to ferrets and one of my ferrets did this recently and I thought she was dead and I was about to get really upset until she woke up after a little jostling. After a while, you get used to it and then it's just fun to see what you can do with them before they wake up. Also, a good way to get non-blurry pictures, if you don't mind your ferret looking a bit dead in the pictures.
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| # ? Dec 3, 2009 03:35 |
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If you had to pick one, are ferrets more like dogs or cats?
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| # ? Dec 3, 2009 03:41 |
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Hazzardus posted:If you had to pick one, are ferrets more like dogs or cats? A forever kitten.
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| # ? Dec 3, 2009 04:55 |
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bamzilla posted:A forever kitten. This is exactly it. Small, gets into everything, poo poo that comes from the bowels of hell, and super playful and energetic.
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| # ? Dec 3, 2009 05:02 |
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maplecheese posted:Probably a good idea. Depending on where my boyfriend decides to get his PhD, we might have to move to California or NYC, and we won't be giving up the fuzzballs if that happens. But we WILL be doing careful research and planning to make sure they aren't in danger. With NYC you'd at least have the option of commuting, which would render the whole matter moot. Get a folding bike and a place near a train station, and you may even come out ahead with living expenses.
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| # ? Dec 3, 2009 14:46 |
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An update so far: They seem to have really taken to the litter boxes. There hasn't been any accidents in the cage. I need to find another sacrificial shirt and I can put their last shelf in. I got a bird ladder and hooked it on the bottom of the cage so they can get in and out of it themselves when I open the bottom door. There was only one accident so far out of the cage, but it was on our tile floor so it wasn't that big of a deal. They love the wellness CORE and are completely switched over now. They're a lot better about not kicking it all over the place. I'm thinking about getting a second hammock and finding another set of sacrificial shirts and switching them out mid week and doing a larger load of ferret laundry on the weekends instead of washing what I have now twice a week since its a bit of a waste. I might make a ferret video sometime soon.
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| # ? Dec 3, 2009 15:23 |
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just an idea alterian, or anyone for that matter, do you know how to sew at all? i make all my ferret bedding and hammocks. wal-mart sells super duper cheap fabric and you can make quite a few things out of a couple yards of fabric for cheaper then buying one hammock at petco. it didnt take long to figure out a sewing machine for me either. i have made hanging circular tubes for them to sleep in, blankets, hammocks, and even a triangle hanging house or two.
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| # ? Dec 3, 2009 17:48 |
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Serella posted:After a while, you get used to it and then it's just fun to see what you can do with them before they wake up. Also, a good way to get non-blurry pictures, if you don't mind your ferret looking a bit dead in the pictures. i totally know what you are saying. now i love finding Lucy in her death sleep because i can put little clothes on her and when she wakes up she freaks out. its my little passive aggressive way of getting her back for stealing all my shoes and shoving them under furniture
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| # ? Dec 3, 2009 17:50 |
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Sweet CupnCakes posted:just an idea alterian, or anyone for that matter, do you know how to sew at all? i make all my ferret bedding and hammocks. wal-mart sells super duper cheap fabric and you can make quite a few things out of a couple yards of fabric for cheaper then buying one hammock at petco. it didnt take long to figure out a sewing machine for me either. i have made hanging circular tubes for them to sleep in, blankets, hammocks, and even a triangle hanging house or two. That's actually a good idea. I ~^*finally*^~ have a place to put my sewing machine after getting it almost 4 years ago. I'm going to go to the thrift store this weekend for unrelated things and I might see if I can get some cheap fabric/clothes there and if not hit up a fabric store.
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| # ? Dec 3, 2009 18:14 |
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Alterian posted:I'm new to ferrets and one of my ferrets did this recently and I thought she was dead and I was about to get really upset until she woke up after a little jostling. I recently had to make the "asleep or dead" determination. The answer was "dead".  My advice is to touch your ferrets a lot while they're asleep - get used to feeling for their heartbeats and breathing. That makes it easier to figure out what's going on.In other news, Laurel has caught my boyfriend's cold. Poor guy is all sniffly and sneezy. I feel so bad for him! I'm going to take him into the bathroom and run the shower on hot for a while to try to decongest him.
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| # ? Dec 3, 2009 19:03 |
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Sweet CupnCakes posted:i totally know what you are saying. now i love finding Lucy in her death sleep because i can put little clothes on her and when she wakes up she freaks out. its my little passive aggressive way of getting her back for stealing all my shoes and shoving them under furniture Ha, I am so doing this next time! maplecheese posted:I recently had to make the "asleep or dead" determination. The answer was "dead". Sorry to hear that. Been there, done that, unfortunately. Reached into the cage to get her to "wake up, miss lady!" Cold as a stone.  Then there's determining if it's just a dead sleep, or something very serious. Twice I found my girl in a nearly-comatose state, and the first time it took me a while to figure out she needed to go to the e-vet because I had no idea what was going on. Oh, I bet we're scaring off potential ferret owners. After all, this is only the first page!
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| # ? Dec 3, 2009 22:22 |
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maplecheese posted:I recently had to make the "asleep or dead" determination. The answer was "dead". Our ferret is almost ten months old now and there's not a chance in hell I could even poke her (or breathe on her, it seems) without her waking up. Maybe she's just more sensitive to that kind of thing because she's deaf. She's also bored as hell because my wife and I are both sick and we don't want to pass it along to her so her playtime's been minimal - I feel pretty guilty. Then I remember we spoil the poo poo out of her and don't feel as bad. This is also a good time to figure out how to keep her out of the Christmas tree water. We live in a small place and the only other area she can run around in is our bedroom, which is smaller than the living room she's used to. Any ideas/suggestions/past tips for ferret-proofing a tree? I was thinking of cutting out an appropriate circular length of screen and duct-taping it to the tree stand so that I could pour water through and she couldn't drink it.
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| # ? Dec 4, 2009 00:15 |
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Serella posted:Sorry to hear that. We have had 3 ferrets die. One was put down at the e-vet's, one we found in full rigor mortis (ugh, that sucked) and one I found literally about 30 seconds after he had probably died. The rigor mortis one was really easy to tell, of course, but it took a while to realize the other one was really dead. If I'd been rationally evaluating it, it wouldn't have, but I was kind of freaking out. Serella posted:Then there's determining if it's just a dead sleep, or something very serious. Twice I found my girl in a nearly-comatose state, and the first time it took me a while to figure out she needed to go to the e-vet because I had no idea what was going on. Yeah... do you have any tips on determining whether a ferret is comatose or just really asleep? I should put that in one of the posts. When I'm waking mine up, I sometimes blow on their faces. It bugs them a lot, more than moving their bodies around, and they twitch and wiggle a bunch. I'm assuming they wouldn't do that if they were in a coma. Serella posted:Oh, I bet we're scaring off potential ferret owners. After all, this is only the first page! Oh god, I know. Come back you guys! They usually aren't dead!
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| # ? Dec 4, 2009 00:27 |
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ElectricSheep posted:This is also a good time to figure out how to keep her out of the Christmas tree water. We live in a small place and the only other area she can run around in is our bedroom, which is smaller than the living room she's used to. Any ideas/suggestions/past tips for ferret-proofing a tree? I was thinking of cutting out an appropriate circular length of screen and duct-taping it to the tree stand so that I could pour water through and she couldn't drink it. Yeah, the screen thing sounds like a good idea. You can also try to make the water taste bad, maybe by mixing some hot sauce into it. I don't think trees are bothered by hot sauce, right?
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| # ? Dec 4, 2009 00:30 |
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maplecheese posted:Yeah, the screen thing sounds like a good idea. You can also try to make the water taste bad, maybe by mixing some hot sauce into it. I don't think trees are bothered by hot sauce, right? Dunno, but she made a beeline for it as soon as I got it home and put water in it. While I was extricating myself from the bottom of the tree, she dunked her whole head in several times and drank a bit. I pulled her away, figuring it wasn't good for her and did some researching - apparently some of the preservatives used on Christmas trees can circulate into the water and be harmful, if not potentially fatal. So I sweated bullets for a bit but apparently little miss metabolism is just fine 48 hours later, probably because it was brand-new water and the stuff hadn't circulated yet. I think that's why I'll go for the physical blockage rather than the "taste bad" approach (I actually was thinking about putting Bitter Apple in the tree water before I read up about it).
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| # ? Dec 4, 2009 00:39 |
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So, here is Mugi, the new addition. The rescue thought she was 8 or so months but she's really just a kit still. I am having a lot of fun feeding her as many different types of meat and prey as I can find (she stole a piece of bratwurst off my dinner plate while I was distracted by the phone), but I'm not having so much fun litter training a ferret who has no idea whatsoever what it is. I haven't experienced that part of kit ownership in a while so I sort of forgot about it. Sadly a lot of my ferrets have passed away over the past few months (one lymphoma, two adrenal) and so right now it's just her and Raku...who I guess I promised a post about, so I'll do that later.
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| # ? Dec 4, 2009 03:49 |
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Ok, I want to put in stuff about choosing a vet. If you really like your vet, please post his or her info in the following format: Country State/province/region/Swiss canton/whatever City Clinic name Vet Comments
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| # ? Dec 4, 2009 21:19 |
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maplecheese posted:Yeah... do you have any tips on determining whether a ferret is comatose or just really asleep? I should put that in one of the posts. When I'm waking mine up, I sometimes blow on their faces. It bugs them a lot, more than moving their bodies around, and they twitch and wiggle a bunch. I'm assuming they wouldn't do that if they were in a coma. Well, what I dealt with wasn't exactly comatose. It was that super sluggishness that I have come to associate with "I am really, really sick and probably going to die if you don't do something about it." Probably not far from losing consciousness or dying. Very scary realize she was so badly off that she couldn't or didn't want to move.However, what I did notice was that even if she was too weak to hold up her head and it lolled when I picked her up, she still responded to Ferretone and would lap it up if I put the bottle in front of her nose. I don't think this work in every case, especially if the ferret had lost consciousness, but I know that if she had been just very sleepy, she would have tried to follow the bottle when I took it away.As for dead sleep, I've only had one that's done it, and she always wakes up within a minute after me messing with her a bit. I guess the key is just really knowing your ferret. Shermy, is Raku the polecat hybrid you mentioned before? Because if so, I can't wait for that post.
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| # ? Dec 4, 2009 22:48 |
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Serella posted:Well, what I dealt with wasn't exactly comatose. It was that super sluggishness that I have come to associate with "I am really, really sick and probably going to die if you don't do something about it." Probably not far from losing consciousness or dying. Poor little thing. What was wrong with her?
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| # ? Dec 4, 2009 23:02 |
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maplecheese posted:Poor little thing. What was wrong with her? She was in shock, twice. The first time I never figured out what she managed to do to herself, and the second time was my fault for trying to close a door while holding her back with my foot. She managed to squirm away and caught her neck in the closing door. She walked away from it just fine, but I found her in rough shape a couple of hours later. I thought she was going to die that time, even after the first night at the vet's, it was really rough. No problems since then, especially as I am much better at ferret-proofing and have rules for when the ferrets are out of the cage. The first rule is "no closing doors unless they are both firmly contained." It'll be my two year ferretversary in a few months, and I can hardly remember how things used to be before I got them.
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| # ? Dec 5, 2009 00:11 |
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My ferret vet Country: USA State: Georgia City: Marietta Clinic name: Riverview Veterinary Hospital Vet: Dr. Linda Bostick Comments: Dr. B is amazing with ferrets. She really tries to explain everything to you in laymen's terms, and although some people feel like she's a little condescending, she is very thorough and helpful. All of my visits run over. She also gives the rescue an enormous (50%!!) discount, so I guess we're a little biased. Also, one thing I really like about her, is that she is totally up front and open about if you're being a dumbass. I overheard her talking to a bird owner once whose bird was playing with some dangerous toy and hurt itself, and she basically called the owner an imbecile for giving it to the bird in the first place. Go, Dr. B! It's nice and central if you live in/around Atlanta. Right at Cumberland Mall.
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| # ? Dec 5, 2009 05:46 |
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| # ? May 24, 2013 20:50 |
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Country: USA State: Massachusetts City: Grafton Clinic: Tufts: Foster Hospital for Small Animals Vet: Dr. Joerg Mayer Comments: This is the person who performed Dizzy's adrenalectomy 2 months ago We're new to Tufts, so I don't have much to write, just that Dr. Mayer is a HUGE improvement over our former vet & he totally kicks rear end in general.
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| # ? Dec 5, 2009 12:46 |
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