Julia -
Please take Willow to the vet immediately - it sounds as though she has a
blockage, which if it is the case will be life threatening.  I don't want
to scare you but it is really a case of "time is of the essence".
 
Our Daisy has had two blockages.  Many ferrets get them from eating things
they shouldn't - especially rubbery or spongy things that tend to get to
a certain spot in their intestines and then just don't pass and get stuck.
The symptoms are exactly as you describe - vomiting, and then eventually
just gagging when there is nothing else to bring up.  The ferrets are in
pain, though it isn't obvious like in humans, and they do tend to get
quiet and "anti-social" if you want to use that word, eventually getting
lethargic.  If you have already given her a couple of good doses of
Kittymalt (hairball medicine) and it hasn't stopped the vomiting, I would
say there is a good chance that you are dealing with a blockage.
 
I do not know how "ferret knowledgeable" your vet is.  Standard procedure
is usually to do a regular x-ray (which will almost always show nothing,
as rubbery type items don't show up).  The best is a barium x-ray where
they give the ferret barium, wait a short period of time and then take
the x-ray, in fact to save time and money you might consider insisting on
going straight to the barium x-ray.  Often this will show some type of
blockage, though they are not 100% accurate.  Occasionally the vet can
feel the blockage by palpitation, depending on on where it is located.
The only cure is surgery, and the sooner the ferret is seen by the vet,
the better their chances of surviving.
 
They come through the surgery very well, though have to be confined and
fed a soft diet (like Ferretvite or Nutravite) for several days while they
heal before they can be put back on soft, then finally hard food.  Please
don't wait too long - 24 hours is really pushing it - before taking Willow
in.  Her life really may depend on it.  Feel free to e-mail me if you have
any questions about our experience.
 
Karla
Meep and Daisy
[Posted in FML issue 3582]