Paw Paw, ferret shuffling can aggravate some types of hip injuries, and the
medical team is probably unaware you do it.  Discuss it with them.  I
dislocated a hip almost 20 yrs.  ago, and still can not do much shuffling,
so when out our ferrets have learned to be cautious and I walk slowly and
purposefully.  The combination means that someone does get a foot (followed
by sincere apology) now and then, but slowly enough to not do any damage.
 
Dodie, have you and vet discussed the possibility of adding dried
cranberries or blueberry puree to your ferret UTI treatment?  They made big
differences in the past for our guys, even one with a particularly stubborn
infection.  We get our dried cranberries from 1-800-222-5886, but you will
want to check your grocery; raisin makers are starting to sell them in some
areas.
 
Adrienne, a quick note from a Neighborhood Watch Captain: When in doubt
always call the police.  They do NOT mind because they can not be
everywhere, and such calls often end crime sprees and sometimes even save
lives.  The life you save may be one you love.  What they DO hate is going
through a neighborhood afterward and hearing people say, Yes, I heard/saw...
a scream/glass breaking/a man with a pillowcase running/a stranger go into
my neighbors unlocked door, but I was too embarrassed to call you in case it
was nothing.  A nothing call takes a few minutes.  Working to solve a crime
can take months without pay dirt.  Yes, I DO agree that a criminal will
likely kick a pet to death if he/she feels that it might even slow down the
(often as short as two minutes) it takes to rob a house.  (BTW, N.W.also
makes me leery of money solicitations when the individual has not been
verified -- by actual investigation rather than kind assumptions -- by one I
know to be honest and logical -- since scams are so common.  Example: I know
and trust BIG and he has personal experience of Chere, plus I know of her
vet and Chere usually has moneys sent there to meet medical demands, so we
trust her.)
 
We were relieved to learn that the type of liver disease Ruffle has is not
painful in ferrets.  We heard from friend Barbara (Hi, Barb!) that such was
true of her little one, but did not know if it would be for Ruffle till
Hanan reassured us.  She is doing well even though she is dying.  That is a
welcome mercy.  I have never seen dying itself take so long in a little
thing, but she is happy.  I hope this helps some else not be as afraid of
heart disease or liver disease in ferrets, so that even one wil not be put
down before its time.  Her latest thing is that she can not have just a
little singing but wants us (despite our horrible voices) to sing more,
more, more!  No one expected her to survive so long after Sunday; she came
home that night to die.Otter says she is just too happy to let go.  It is
hard for us, but it is also letting us adjust and that will be a mercy for
us, too.
 
Ferrets have also been known to go orange from some of the cheap cat foods
influencing their skin oil.
 
Teething: it is quite normal for some baby teeth to not drop out for a while
even after adult teeth are in; chewing on anything (including you) will
often also increase.  I do not know how often in a pet store when a baby
starts to finger chew I hear a whisper of: See, ferrets bite.  I always say
rather loudly: This little one is teething; it is funny how they chew then
just like human kids do.
 
Cheryl, I expect you will find that your vet will cure the vaginal
infection.  We run into them now and then.  Sometimes some feces gets in
there, or clumping litter, or whatever and sets things off.  About a decade
ago (before our current vets) Fritter had a recalcitrant one.  She was
miserable, so in desperation I let some plain yogurt come to room
temperature, took a tuberculin syringe and slowly, gently tried to pack her
vagina.  It worked when nothing else would.  Since then, we have heard from
people with ferrets who have reoccurent ones swear by feeding yogurt in
conjunction with meds.  Discuss it with your vet.
 
Dave, the facts were correct.  A sadness of Ruffle and Meltdown being sick
is that we have not been able to contribute as much toward the second phase
of the rabies shedding project as we had for the first.
 
Errr, Bob Church (boob with 2 Os -- opps got it -s- backwards, but we bone
people know the second is the norm - -ses in back, that is, not breasts --
though I fail to see what breasts and stupidity have in common!  Hello,
friend!  I sent two very important Ruffle donation posts that are time
dependent, but have not heard from you.  Did they arrive?  I know life is
difficult now.  I am the biblio fiend, too.) and Bob of Rudy Ferlosopher
history are two separate people,unjoined at the cranium.  I have to agree
with Bob-Rudy that I also find baby talk posts hard to digest.  It is not
that I do not think there are worthwhile things in there; often there are
grand little jokes, but I just feel like I am slogging through mud since I
have to slow my reading down so much for it.  Also, when a person has
dyslexia, even only mildly as I have, it causes nasty, nasty problems.That
combination of wanting badly to get to the good parts, but feeling like my
vision is twisting into a knot to do so is extremely frustrating.  (BTW,
Rudy, Bob was right in saying that the dark time may be important to health
if some melatonin studies now under way turn out to bear fruit.  No, this
does not mean that we or any ferret should be given melatonin; like anything
else it can also have dangerous properties if taken in large amounts,
definition of which is still unknown, -- or, with this substance -- at the
wrong times, and, no, I do not think the marketers of it tend to know
squat.)
 
Being reminicsent of my norm, perhaps more wierd than thine,
        Sukie
[Posted in FML issue 1610]