[Sukie note: If carbon monoxide is the culprit here then I have heard of
about a half dozen cases in which ferrets died before the people knew
something was wrong.  Their deaths saved the others in those cases but
a carbon monoxide detector would have gone a long way to prevent any
deaths.  I think that perhaps many people don't know that there are
incredibly affordable CO detectors.]
 
http://www.smartgroups.com/message/readmessage.cfm?gid=1423922&messageid=3056
 
>this situation happened overnight at one of our foster homes.  the home
>is older with a gas furnace (not sure which type of gas yet) and they've
>definitely had uneven heating; thus the window in the ferrets room is
>always cracked.
 
Carbon monoxide probably is the most likely possibility here - especially
if the gas heater is older - they can often vent combustion gases, of
which CO is one.
 
It can be a very difficult thing to prove if the necropsy is delayed.  At
necropsy, the blood and organs are a bright cherry red color, but this
dissipates fairly quickly.
 
With kindest regards,
Bruce Williams, DVM
[Posted in FML issue 4033]