>From:    Mark Reaux <[log in to unmask]>
>
>Last week I went to the pet store and purchased a cage, litter box, and a
>few toys and treats.  The owner of the store threw in some litter.  I'm
> not sure exactly what brand she gave me.  Earlier tonight my sister was
>playing with her and noticed some litter flakes stuck to her anus.  She
>got a piece of soft toilet paper and very gently tried to wipe them off.
>As the flakes came off, Sera started bleeding.  I pretty much flipped out.
>Is this flaking normal?  Should I switch to a different brand of litter?
>Are there any that y'all would recommend?
 
Mark, with an 8 week old ferret it's hard to find any good litter.  I'd
just fold a piece of newspaper and put it in the litter box or a couple
layers of paper towel.  Use that until the little guy is big enough to
stand up and away from the litter.
 
For larger ferrets, I prefer the compressed wood pellets they sell for
heating stoves.  $4 gets you 40 pounds and it works very well, smells
decent and is highly absorbent.  There are other things, most of which
are pelleted, that work fine.  Yesterdays News is pelletized recycled
newspaper and works good.  You can get 40 pound bags of rabbit pellets
fairly cheaply at farm stores.  You definitely don't want to be pulling
stuck pieces of litter off his butt.  As you already know, that can cause
bleading and a general rawness.  Instead, flow warm water over his butt
until the litter gets wet and washes off.
 
--
Russ, Booger, Bonnie & Clyde
[log in to unmask]
 
URA Redneck if on your honeymoon you leave the driving to Greyhound.
[Posted in FML issue 3543]