>So here's my question....How do I break Dook of this junk-food habit and
>get him back on the right foods?
 
I think you already are off to a good start by syringe feeding, but you
might want to increase the frequency.  Ferrets generally consume about 100
cc of food a day.  Of course this varies with the size of the ferret and
the types of food.  Take the good ferret food that you want to get him
eating and make it into a powder.  Add water to make it a thick soup.
Warming it seems to make it more palatable to them.  Carefully syringe feed
by placing the syringe in the corner of his mouth between the lips and
teeth and dribble it in just fast enough that he laps it down.  You don't
want him to inhale it.  Every so often put some of the food on your finger
and see if he'll eat it that way.  Once he decides to lick it off your
finger, try leaving your finger closer toward the surface of the food bowl
each time you dip your finger in it.  You should be able to get him to lap
it directly from the bowl after a while.
 
Then start making the soup thicker (less water) each time until you can
simply moisten the ferret kibbles; then finally leave it dry.
 
No guarantees.  Usually works, though.
 
 
>I take him with me to say go to the pet store or pick up my son from
>school and so on "short trips" but is an hour to stressful for a ferret?
 
My experience is that most ferrets travel quite well.  There are always
exceptions, but most of ours love going places with us.  We took a small
pet carrier, the plastic kind that split in half, and put a pillow case
between the two halves with a 4 - 6 inch gap in the front so that they can
get up and down.  They ride on the pillow case which cushions them from
the bumps and swaying of the car.  The litter box is on the lower level
(Tupperware container just wide enough to fit across the back of the
carrier).  We put a small bowl of food in and hook a water bottle on the
wire door of the carrier; place a small bowl under the spout of the bottle
to catch the drips from the bottle.  The bottle will leak from all of the
bumping.  On really long trips we don't attach the bottle to the carrier,
but offer it to the ferrets every few hours.
 
Be careful of the heat.  Moving air, like from an open window, will simply
help keep the inside of the car at the outside temperature.  Although it
may feel cooler to you, that's because the moving air is evaporating the
perspiration from your skin.  Ferrets don't have that cooling mechanism,
so hot moving air is simply hot.  If you're taking a long trip and your car
doesn't have AC, try freezing some plastic bottles of water and wrap them
in a thin towel; place those in the carrier.  Cars heat up quickly inside.
You don't want to leave your ferrets inside a closed car even for a few
minutes.
 
>is there any way to tell how old a ferret might be?  This little gal has
>had two owners from the sound of it - and I am not so willing to buy the
>Brooklyn Bridge that I won't at least consider that she might be older
>than 8 months.  Any telling characteristics?  She seems quite active,
>bouncy, etc., but the tendency to cuddle really amazes me in that young
>of a ferret.
 
It is difficult to pinpoint an age as specifically as that.  Activity or
the willingness to cuddle are more a matter of personality than age.  You
can get a rough guess by looking at her canines.  Typically (diet and
health affect this) a ferret a year old or younger will have canines that
are solid white from tip to gumline.  The tips will be sharp.  As the
ferret ages, the canine will grow translucent (appearing grayer) starting
at the tip and going toward the gums.  The tip will wear to be more
rounded.  At about 3 years of age, the canine may be half translucent; by
six the tooth will be nearly all translucent except right near the gumline
and be well rounded.
 
>Do I buy the Advantage for dogs or cats?  How many cc's do I put on my
>ferrets?
 
Since you probably will get the Advantage or Frontline from your vet, I'd
ask him/her to recommend the kind and dosage for your ferret.  Dose will be
dependent on size.  S/he will also show you how to apply it and other tips
on it's use.
 
Dick B.
4 Li'l Paws Ferret Shelter
Merrimack, NH
[Posted in FML issue 2722]