To Robert Galvin and Miranda:
 
    Robert - it sound an awful lot like she is having recurrent bouts of
gastric ulceration and may have a persistent case of Helicobacter.  This
behavior is fairly common with ferrets with Helicobacter.  You just keep
feeding her by hand.  I would suggest a 2-4 week bout of amoxicillin and
Pepto-Bismol tablets (1/15 every six hours.) Tarry stools are a sign of
bleeding in the GI tract, and it usually is due to gastric ulcers.  Check
the Ferret FAQ and this month's issue of Modern Ferret for more
information, and make sure to tlk this over with your vet.
 
Bruce Williams, DVM
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[Posted in FML issue 1206]