From:     ACME Ferret Company-------   The Original  DUCK SOUP
 
 
     For years, we have been trying to find a super formula to fatten up sick
ferrets, oldsters and ferrets with ulcers.
We have been looking for something high in calories and protein, with added
vitamins. After trying just about
everything on the market for pets, we had just about given up, and were making
do with some things that were not
quite perfect for the little guys, because everything made for cats that we
could find  had a condensed milk base.
     Some of these products did see the ferrets through serious illnesses
because of their caloric value, but there was
always a trade-off with the severe watery diarrhea they caused. Our beloved and
aged Lucki Duck ferret (he
vacationed in Duck NC) contracted the flu. He had been losing weight over a
three month period and had not been
able to use his back legs very well for about two months. He had been to the
doctor many times, had all the blood
work done, but to no avail, no positive diagnosis seemed to fit, other than old
age, and perhaps a slipped disk. With
the onset of the flu, he was put on strong antibiotics and fluids, but he
continued to slip away. He wouldn't eat, and
became practically comatose. Rushed to the doctor, he wasn't expected to last
the night. In desperation we scoured
the grocery store aisles in hopes of finding something that he might eat, ice
cream, baby food, anything that might
stimulate his appetite.
     On the drug aisle we came across a product we had never noticed before. It
was called Sustacal made by Mead
Johnson. Billed as a nutritionally complete liquid food, it contained no milk
products, but was full of vitamins,
calories, protein, and minerals. It looked perfect, but we didn't know how he
would react to a corn syrup base, or
how it would taste. Figuring we had nothing to lose, we took it home to him. It
was incredibly sweet with a vanilla
flavor. We warmed it up and began feeding him with a dropper because he couldn't
hold his head up. He loved it
right away. The taste resembles vanilla ice cream, which he loves. After about a
tablespoon he was exhausted and
dozed off.  Delighted with our success, my daughter and I stayed up all night
feeding him as much as he could eat
every hour to hour and a half. When we peered into his cage about 7:00 am  his
little head lifted up expectantly
looking forward to the yellow liquid.  Although he was still so weak he could
hardly move, his stools had changed
overnight from watery nothing, to a medium brown liquid with a much thicker
consistency. We knew then that he
was getting some nourishment into his system.
     Over the next two days, we experimented mixing the Sustacal with  Just Born
or KMR's Puppie or Kitten
Weaning Formula, to see if we could get something solid down him. About 1 part
formula to2 parts Sustacal seemed
best. (Kitten Weaning Formula by PetAg, Hampshire IL is available from Jeffers
Vet Supply 1 800 JEFFERS). In
three days he was beginning to pull himself off his blankies to use the
bathroom, on paper, and then snuggling
himself back in.
He was now eating several tablespoons at a sitting, every couple of hours, but
we still had to hold him up in a towel
and offer him his food in a little doll dish. He was visibly putting on a tummy
and eating more each day. His stools
were still liquid but it had become thick and a good shade of brown.
     After a week he began pulling himself around by his front legs and we
decided to try to find a formula that
would work for long term maintenance. Obviously since his stool was still
liquid, this formula was too rich for him.
We also wanted to get him back on his regular food. Several days later, after
much mixing, and rejecting by Lucki,
we hit a compromise that he loved, we had "Lucki Duck Soup" (recipe follows)  We
only recount all the stages of
Lucki Duck's illness in order to  let you know of the hopelessness of his
illness - his miraculous recovery, and  to
guide you through all the steps, from full Sustacal to Duck Soup in caring for a
sick ferret.
    A year later at 8 years old, Lucki Duck is having his soup twice a day and
scooting all over the house. We have
also heard of many miraculous recoveries attributed to Duck Soup. It has helped
old ferrets, ferrets with insulinoma,
ferrets with hair loss, and ferrets who are just plain too sick to eat.
 
                                 DUCK SOUP
 
ONE CAN SUSTACAL 8oz (it comes in a larger size )
ONE CAN WATER    8oz
OPTIONAL --  TWO SCOOPS PUPPY OR  KITTEN WEANING FORMULA
4 OZ dry food  - soaked in enough water to cover and soften completely  mix
thoroughly /  we always nuke it for
them to the temperature of baby formula /we serve about 4 fluid ounces at a time
twice a day for maintenance, if
your little guys eat too much and you feel they are getting fat, you can
increase the amount of water/ we have tried
increasing the amount of dry food, but if it gets too thick some of them won't
eat it. This formula also freezes well-
The Sustacal must be used within 48 hours if left only in the fridge.
 
 
Post Script:
Lucki is no longer with us,  he was close to 9 when he died, but he would be
glad to know that he had contributed.
Ann Davis
 
[Posted in FML issue 0738]