I've just found out the perfect reason why to watch your ferret around
cabinets....even ones that a cat can't get into.
 
Today, I let Nosey out of his cage for his exercise.  Dook Dook Dook romping
around the house he went.  I've had him for about 4 months now and he's
never had any problem in the kitchen except trying to eat the dog's food
(which he can't so he slings it all over the floor).
 
Since he's never had problems, I figured that he'd be fine.  I thought wrong.
 
Allow me to explain as I put 2 and 2 together.
 
Apparantly, Nosey got it into his head that today, he was going to get into
the food cabinet.  And he did....how I don't know.  He found the bottle of
vegetable oil, chewed a hole in it (thereby making an enormous mess) and
guzzled away on this cooking oil.
 
I found this mess and figured maybe it was mice (we get them once in a great
while--what house doesn't), I cleaned it up and went about my business.
 
I gave Nosey his bath and sent him on his way.  After a while, I noticed
after a while that he had almost no "hop" in his walk and that when he
slowed in his walk or stopped walking that he would rub his butt on the
floor.  I got to watching him and thought "Maybe I didn't rinse him off
enough and the ferret shampoo is irritating him.  So off we went to the
bathtub.  I rinsed him off well.  He stopped rubbing his butt on the floor
and perked up a little.  After a while he grabbed a towel from the laundry
room and went to sleep.  So I grabbed him and put him in his cage.  He woke
up after a little while.  I gave a little of that ferret goop-in-a-tube
stuff that drives him totally nuts...he just kinda sniffed it and ever so
slowly licked at it.
 
Later, I finally found out what happened.  He backed in a corner to poop.  I
grabbed the paper towels.  I went to clean it up and stopped and stared.
His poop was all mushy and tannish in color.  Looking even closer I noticed
a film over this mush that I find hard to believe that came out of his butt.
Sticking a corner of thed paper towel to the film, I realized with a shock
that it was that cooking oil!!!  Thinking back, I finally understood why he
was rubbing his butt on the floor.....he was "Whiping" the oil off of his
butt.
 
I understand that excess oil in a human can cause the runs, heartburn, and a
general uneasy fealing.  My question is : Is there anything I need to do or
should I just let it work it's way out of his system?  He seems better
now....He's in his usual place by my feet sleeping as I fiddle on the
computer.  Anybody got any suggestions?
 
Zephris
[Posted in FML issue 2033]