Sorry if some of this is outdated. I've been a bit busy.
 
Black tarry poops;
Considered to be caused by an ulceration in the intestinal tract which is
bleeding.  I've recently been told NOT to treat this with Pepto.
Apparently Pepto contains aspirin (or some form of it) which thins the
blood and may contribute to more bleeding.  Better to treat with something
like Children's Kaopectate or Immodium, depending on your vet's preference.
 
Sad posts;
I've sat and cried over many, but I still read them.  In too many cases of
the loss of a pet, friends and family don't understand.  Heck, most people
don't understand why we love ferrets so much to begin with, let alone why
we would feel such a tremendous loss when they leave us.
 
The FML is one of the few outlets for people to share their grief with
other people who understand it and have experienced it themselves.
 
Giardia;
No personal experience with this.  My vet has said it's most commonly
contracted from stagnant / contaminated water.
 
Recent bug;
All 11 of mine came down with something that was never diagnosed.  The
symptoms ranged from mild greenies to severe and profuse bloody and tarry
poops, refusal to eat, and uncontrolled, spontaneous vomiting.  Most did
well with Albon.  Three needed Albon and Carafate.  The most severely
effected was put on Clavamox with the Carafate (I hate to think about how
close I came to losing him).  Of course, force feeding was needed for some.
All are doing pretty good now but I'm watching for any sign of a relapse.
 
"To A Fuzzy Gone";
I still haven't had any luck contacting the author.  My e-mails have been
returned because of some type of error in the address.  If someone has an
updated address, I'd greatly appreciate it if you could forward it to me?,
or if you weren't sure if you should send it to me, pass along to him that
I'd like to contact him?  Thanks!
 
SP
[Posted in FML issue 2654]