> pieces in a box of popcorn have been chewed on? Good luck! Then I cleaned up
> the popcorn and gave each ferret a bit of milk to act as a laxative. Was this
> a good idea? Buddy and Cassidy sure thought so! (like most/all ferrets, they
 
No, milk gives them diarrhea, it's not really the same thing.  Buy them
a good cat laxative (Laxatone, Laxastat, Lax-aire.  Or, if you can't
find them, maybe Petromalt or Catlax, but I don't know much about them.).
Give about a 1 1/2 to 2 inch ribbon if you suspect blockage.  As a
preventative give about an inch once or twice a week.
 
I can't stress the threat of intestinal blockage enough.  I had a ferret
die of an intestinal blockage.  Her name was Cinnamon, and she was
a wonderful, loving, intelligent ferret.  I had to watch her die a
terrible painful death when a laxative could have saved her life.  But,
my (terrible) vet must have thought it was some sort of "bizarre ferret
thing".  He obviously didn't even like ferrets.  It took me a long time
to forgive myself for her death.  I blamed myself for not taking her
somewhere else.  But this was before I knew anything about ferrets (other
than a book that told me to wear leather gloves and bring home road
kill), and the first time I had ever had a sick animal of my own, so
I just blindly trusted my vet.  The autopsy revealed that her blockage
was entirely hair.  I'm still getting misty eyed thinking about her.
She was very special to me, and with all the ferrets I've met since, I
think she had just about the best personality.
 
After Cinnamon died, I went out and bought Bree and Winnie to be Percy's
new friends.  Winnie died of camphylobacter when she was about 5 months
old.  That death wasn't nearly as painful for me.  Although she was
terribly ill, and in the hospital for three days before I had to make
THE decision, I knew that I had done everything humanly possible to try
to save her life.  So I mourned for her, but I didn't feel the incredible
guilt.
 
So I was left with Percy and Bree, and I *SWORE* that after they died I
would never get another ferret because they died too easily.  Then I came
to graduate school, got on the networks, and started learning about ferrets.
Next thing I know I'm going down to MD to the Ferret Expo.  Having been
through the two experiences (and a few close calls, such as an intestinal
blockage with Percy), I knew that us ferret owners, more than most,
have to really know about our animals, so I was trying to absorb everything
I possibly could about ferrets.  Since I knew that most other ferret
owners were in the same predicament I actually said yes (after quite a
bit of persuasion) to starting a club ("It will be easy" he said, "Just
put up a few fliers" he said...  Aigh!).
 
Wow, how on earth did I go off on that tangent???  Well, now everyone
knows my ferret-owner-history.
 
Now about Cassidy's nose:  It will probably stay pink.
 
- Nancy
 
Nancy Hartman                     CIS graduate student
[log in to unmask]                  U. of Delaware
        President and founder, Delaware Valley Ferret Club
                      Owner of Percy & Bree
 
[Posted in FML issue 0355]