what a start.....

[mole catcher 1]

......to this coming season.

Fed the stinkers this morning and all was well. All 7 came out of their hutch bounding a full of joy. about 5 hours late the wife tells me a ferret is stuck behind its climbing tree within its hutch. When i look its not stuck but in a realy poorly state, as was another jill.

I have seen this bofore in my ferrets about 5 yrs ago. I tried allsorts last time to keep them alive but sadly they just got worse and demised what can only be described as a miserable death. with this being the second time ive witnessed this i chose to end their suffering.

 

When i picked them up they were realy cold and almost looked as if they had starved to death, nothing on their midrif weight wise..

 

1, 5 hours ago they were healthy, full of life and weight

2, inner eylids were across their eyes

3, stone cold whilst alive

4, very laboured breathing

5, shivering as if suffering from cold or shock

6, allthough their hutch and sleeping quarters were clean and free from fleas, as were their hutch mates. they were absolutly riddled with them.

7, their hutch and quaters are in the shady part of the garden so its not the sweats

 

I checked their dung pile and there was nothing out of the ordernery, all healthy colour and shape.

Like i said this is the second time in 5yrs i have witnesed this, anyone else sufferered from this?

[Guest bullterrier]

sorry to hear that mate all the best ..john

[Kay 3,709]

You say they were riddled with fleas , its possible they had become anemic , were there gums very pale almost white /grey in colour

 

also this might be off use

 

http://www.all-about-ferrets.com/aplastic-...in-ferrets.html

[mole catcher 1]

i checked their gums and tounge to see if their was any oxy debt but nice and pink as normal. maybe as they droped they couldnt scratch and the fleas were unable to be scratched off? i dont know.

 

amemia would have resulted from flea infestation before deathsurely? as their hutch mates are and were fle free i doubt if it would have been that, unless im thinking on the wrong wavelength.

[anita&paul 0]

sorry to here that, how old were they?

never heard of or come across that before.

 

hope the others are ok

 

kind regards

 

nita and paul

 

just a long shot, we have noticed a lot of wasps around the carcasses, is it possible that they were stung and had a bad reaction to the stings?

just thinking of different possibilities..............especialy as they declined so quickly and only the two..... a&p

Edited September 9, 2007 by paul magrino

[Boom 0]

my mates ferret went like this the other day. he had a few pigeons gave him for his ferrets he gave one ferret one of the pigeons, later that day it fell ill and died

he thinks the pigeons was poisoned or something along them lines.

 

im not too sure myself

Edited September 9, 2007 by Boom

[DUCKWING 302]

HI MATE ,

 

SOUNDS LIKE IT COULD BE BOTULISM TO ME MOLECATCHER ,

ALWAYS DODGEY IN WARM WEATHER WHEN FEEDING MEAT .......... FERRETS BEING THE LITTLE HOARDERS THEY ARE........... TRY AND STORE TITBITS FOR LATER USUALLY IN THEIR BEDDING , IT DOESNT TAKE LONG TO GO BAD = DEAD FERRETS QUICK .......... OFTEN SWAYING LIKE A DRUNK & SOMETIMES LOOSE THEIR STRENGTH IN BACK LEGS

 

AFTER LOOSING A FEW REAL FERRETS 20 YRS AGO , I SWITCHED TO DRY FOOD DURING THE WARM MONTHES ....... NEVER HAD ANY TROUBLE SINCE ..... THOUGH THE CONDITION IS NEVER AS GOOD AS WHEN I SWITCH TO FLESH IN THE AUTUMN , WINTER

 

ALL THE BEST

 

DUCKWING

[Boom 0]

what dry food do you give them pal ?

[micky 3,325]

years ago ,i fed my two young ferrets a mixi rabbit,they bothwent the way you describe,never done it since. p.s. it was late september and very hot.

[mole catcher 1]

from the end of their working colder months(march) to the start of their working season(october) they are feed on dry food only, apart fron the small pieces of meat that they are put into their carring boxes to eat. after a short while if its not eaten its binned there and then. Because of the way their fed and so on cant be botchalism.

[DUCKWING 302]

HI BOOM ,

 

BELIVE IT OR NOT ....... YRS AGO I FED THEM ON THE DECENT QUALITY HIGH PROTEIN GREYHOUND FOOD THAT I FED TO THE DOGS ., SUPPLEMENTED WITH AN EGG ONCE OR TWICE A WEEK ,

PLENTY OR FRESH WATER AS NORMAL WITH A BIG SPOONFUL OF GARLIC AND HONEY MELTED INTO THE WATER BOTTLE TWICE A WEEK ,THEY GOT FED DURING THE SUMMER WARM MONTHES LIKE THIS FOR YRS AND I NEVER SAW ANY ILL AFFECTS

 

SINCE THEN IVE USED A GOOD QUALITY HIGH PROTEIN DRY CAT FOOD ......

 

 

ALL THE BEST

 

DUCKWING

[Boom 0]

thanks for the info mate ill go get some dry cat food tomorrow lol

[Kay 3,709]

Buy the best you can afford not that whiskers or go cat shite

[Boom 0]

could you name a few brand names i should be buying for them ?

 

cheers

[Kay 3,709]

It depends what your politics are ,brands like iams , Arden Grange Etc there more expencive than complete ferret food mind but are suposed to contain meat protein rather than soya protein