Ferret Help!?

Question

i think my ferret has the flu, but i'm not sure, and it's to late to take it to the vet.
some of the things my ferret has been doing, is sneezing a lot, and shivering a lot. i put an old sweater with him, which he seemed to like, because he fell asleep almost instantly.
he also drank a lot of water, so i don't believe he's dehydrated. but i don't know what to do,
so could someone help?

Answer 1

Flu is a big deal in ferrets; they can die from it. Make sure he is getting plenty of fluids - plain pedialyte is very helpful here. Make a soup of pureed chicken/turkey, olive oil/ferretone. and broth. They love this. Also, Gerber Stage 2 meats are great. If he stops eating, feed with a syringe if necessary. Feed Gerbers bananas and/or canned pumpkin (not the pie filling) for the runs if they develop. For sneezing, children's Benedryl is wonderful - nothing with tylenol or IB or aspirin. Check for dehydration by lifting the skin on his shoulders. If it's slow to return to normal, there is dehydration. If he has a runny nose, vasoline will help keep it from gettin dry and sore, just keep the nostrils clear. If he starts breathing through his mouth, his nose is stopped up - Marshalls Upper Respiratory Remedy works well here. He'll sleep a lot, this is normal; just make sure about the food and water. When in doubt, call the vet immediately.

Answer 2

I have a feeling what you are experiencing is normal.

Is your ferret "shivering" a lot when you first pick him up after sleep or in the middle of play? Ferrets "shiver" often to bring up their body temperature. You will most likely experience this when they first get up from sleeping. As far as sneezing goes...

Ferrets get into everything!! Are you keeping everything dusted and vacuumed thoroughly? Make sure that under heater grates, radiators, tables, and furniture are vacuumed out thoroughly. Use the vacuum attachment in hard to get spots to make sure it is free of dust and debris.

If you clean everything up REALLY well and your ferret is still sneezing AND the sneezing is accompanied with nasal discharge then there is a possibility that your ferret is sick. This absolutely requires a trip to the vet because ferrets go down-hill quite easily when sick.

Good luck and take care of those ferrets!

P.S. Check out this site...it offers all the "need-to-know" on ferrets and their care.

http://www.ferretuniverse.com

Answer 3

I am a ferret owner also... My ferret just recently was experiencing some of the same symptoms as yours. I thought it may be a hairball (why she is sneezing or coughing), but I went ahead and went directly to the vet the next morning to find out that she had a cold.

Be very careful- Ferrets can catch human illnesses easily from us.

Good Luck.

Answer 4

Try some bland meat. I've seen things like this in young ferrets before on just pellets. Give some meats and other types of "treats". Give water deep and big enough to play in, they love water. Clean and sanitize the cage.

These are the things I've done first with ferrets at my work who've had problems. That alone usually fixes it.

Most of our ferrets have problems when they come as they are young and when they are shipped to the supplier there can be as many as 500 packed together... sad!

If you try the meat, treats, clean cage and deep water dish and there is no improvement within 2 days... call a vet.

Answer 5

I am a Ferret owner, and the lady at the pet shop where I bought my Ferret gave me some CAT hairball remover and
said that this should take of it. Some Ferrets that clean themselves often tend to get hairballs caught in their throats.
Talk with your pet store owner and see what they think you should do if this does not work, or see your vet. Good Luck

Answer 6

http://www.wuzzles.com/ferrets/documents/whatisducksoup.htm