Well, last Friday we finally got a little brother for Tony.  Tony is about 1
1/2 years old, sable, mf male.  New baby is a little mf silver mitt (gift
from mom).  The baby has no name yet....
 
The bad news is that Tony was scared of him.  That Friday night I noticed a
drippy nose and I don't think he slept much.  The new baby was very vocal
and I think it scared him.
 
Anyway...I wanted to check with those of you who have experience with
ferrets about Tony's symptoms.  He has a drippy nose, not eating or
drinking, hiding and keeping to himself.  Early Sunday morning (about 1:00
a.m.) I force fed him some Duck Soup-type nourishment.  But all day Sunday
he didn't eat.  And that evening his nose was a dark pink as were the pads
on his feet.  They are usually a light pink.  Then, after I'd put him in his
clean cage - he peed on himself as he lay in his hammock.  I really got
scared then and called the vet who referred me to the emergency clinic.
They said he looked fine (not dehydrated) but force fed him anyway and
referred me back to my vet in the a.m.  My vet kept him yesterday morning
and drew blood for bloodwork.  Sent him home with antibiotics in case it's
an upper respiratory infection/cold.  I picked him up at noon and he looks
okay.  Not as listless.  Eyes are clear.  But he's still not eating or
drinking on his own.  I had to force feed him last night too.
 
So, my question is - is this normal behavior due to stress from the new
baby??  Is it an upper respiratory infection/cold??  As for force feeding
him - should I be doing it every 3 to 4 hours?  Or just like 3 times a day?
I'm just so scared and worried.  This is the first time he's ever been sick.
 
Any ideas, advice would be MOST welcome.  Thank you!!!
 
Ludivina & Tony & new baby
Austin, Texas
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[Posted in FML issue 1869]