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Post by katt on Sept 14, 2010 4:40:30 GMT -5
Koda just threw up the turkey he just ate! I was in class and lab all day and he was caged. I checked his toys and I don't see any missing pieces. This ferret is going to kill me this has been one of the longest weekends of my life, I feel sick, and now this! What could it mean other than a blockage?
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Post by katt on Sept 14, 2010 4:51:38 GMT -5
I gave him some squash babyfood/water soup and left the rest of the turkey in there. The turkey should be good it was frozen and thawed out only yesterday. I haven't been able to get a fecal in because it has to be within 8 hours and we have been at Shane's house for the most part and it (the poop) would have to last over night which would mean it is too old. lkgvdfhdafbsfjiehf I should have done that fecal when I first had the chance! His poops had started looking better though! Grrrrrr.....
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Post by katt on Sept 14, 2010 4:56:41 GMT -5
As a side note, Shane had some kind of bug recently where he would just get super nauseous in waves. I think I may have caught it because I feel pretty terrible tonight. Is it possible that he caught it?
I feel extra bad bc Saturday I was busy ALL day, Sunday he was at Shane's, and today I was busy ALL Day, so other than his usual litter box mess, he has not pooped outside of his cage in my presence for a few days. He did have a few poops at Shane's house, but I wasn't home all day today...
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Post by mustelidmusk on Sept 14, 2010 9:10:48 GMT -5
Keep an eye on him....and monitor his input/output. Kachina used to barf from overeating - LOL!!!She finally figured out that overeating is not the thing to do.
Koda is VERY emotionally sensitive. he could easily be stressed out. Do NOT feel guilty over changing his routine. It's better for him to get ued to change while he's young. I commonly see people with young animals not want to drop them off at the vet's office because it will be stressful. But I feel that people cannot provide a perfect life for their pets, so learning to be adaptable is part of raising an emotionally healthy pet. I would rather see an animal learn to be adaptable when it's young and healthy. If you wait for a pet to be old and sick before you have to leave it at the vet's, the pet will be at greater risk than if being left is a new experience.
I'm not sure ferrets can get stomach flu from people. How is his tummy doing in general? If he has bacterial overgrowth or a touch of IBD along with some stress, he may be nauseous.
Again, just keep an eye on Koda. Vomiting/regurgitating is not a good thing and Koda needs to be monitored for signs of distress, input/output, etc. , but it's not necessarily a major health issue.
Please keepus posted.
-jennifer
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Post by katt on Sept 14, 2010 11:31:24 GMT -5
Well he had a nice big poop this morning which was a relief. BUT he didn't really eat anything else. He didn't eat a ton before he threw it up either. Something tells me this is related to his pooping issue and he has some sort of infection. :,( My poor little buddy! I feel absolutely terrible for not bringing that fecal in the first time. I came onto lab early today so that I can be done here at school earlier. Hopefully he will poop for me out of his cage so I can rush it to the vet before they close. Blah I wish I didn't have research and class so I could just hang out at home with my buddy and snuggle him. And maybe get more sleep too lol My entire coffee spilled into my cup holder on my car this morning. This week is NOT going well for me.
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Post by Heather on Sept 14, 2010 11:45:27 GMT -5
Ferrets seemingly do get some of the flu bugs that we get. That may very well be what's the matter with Koda. Combine that with a bit of stress because his routine has been hijacked and you may just have a vomiting ferret. Keep an eye on him. I've had a few bugs go through usually it's weird...two ferrets in this group, two or three in another.....they will be a bit lethargic, rather off their food, they may have vomited a bit or have some loose stools (those I watch even closer). I watch to make sure that they don't dehydrate, snuggle them a bit more (if I'm not sick ). They're usually better in a day or two. ciao
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Post by katt on Sept 14, 2010 12:06:49 GMT -5
Thanks guys. I wish I didn't have class and lab so I could watch him better. Sitting and watching gels swish around in water with the knowledge that they will probably not titn out right now instead. I could be snuggling Koda. :/
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Post by mustelidmusk on Sept 14, 2010 16:07:26 GMT -5
have you tried the vaseline-based "poop protocol"? ( I swear that it flushes high bacterial levels out even without the colloidal silver.
There are times my brats are simply not interested in food. they may get a minor poop thing (loose stool) and not want to eat for a day. They usually clear up in a day or two. If not, I do the poop protocol.
The first time one of my kids (it was Shaman) failed to eat his food two meals in a row, I rushed him into the vet for xrays because I was afraid of an obstruction. He simply had a high bacterial count and was put on antibiotics. I've since learned that my brats will skip a meal or two, and this typically happens when their tummies are "off".
My ferrets do best when they get one light day of food per week. On the light day, they get only the freeze-dried raw. It think there may be times when raw-fed ferrets feel fine but don't eat a meal or two because they are "self-treating" a minor digestive upset - perhaps a little extra bacteria in the gut.
I've also found that REGULAR use of probiotics and digestive enzymes helps my ferrets' digestive systems.
If you're interested i the enzymes and/or probio's please let me know. I can recommend some different types and how to use them.
-jennifer
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Post by luci on Sept 14, 2010 16:36:51 GMT -5
Just last week I had a day where both cats and one of the ferrets threw up. All at different times after having eaten different foods. I could only attribute it to a bug of some sort because there wasn't anything in common. Other than seeming a little sleepier than normal and a couple of green ferret poops (which definitely could have been the ferret that didn't puke) everyone was fine and running around. The next day everyone was full of piss 'n' vinegar and having a blast chasing each other up and down the stairs. I don't know. I've gotta assume that they're healthy enough to deal with a little bug all on their own.
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Post by katt on Sept 14, 2010 17:00:19 GMT -5
Jennifer - here is m major concern. I give Koda doses of Vaseline relatively regularly. At least once a month if not more. I mix a little FerretVite in with the Vaseline and use it as his treat for doing tricks. I wanted to give him some last night, but my Vaseline seems to have disappeared. Even with regular Vaseline (but No colloidal silver), his poops were still off for a Long time. Then they got better, then worse. Now they seem to be hit and miss - he has some good poops and some bad. I noticed though that the color is still a little dark - he has been getting purely turkey so his poops should be light in color. I am going to do only chicken next. Anyways, between the duration of this whole thing, and now the throwing up I am thinking that he must have some kind of bacterial or parasitic infection. Do you think that the colloidal silver would help? I have heard mixed things about silver because it can be toxic/carcinogenic. I am not a big fan of antibiotics because they lead to so many resistant strains - which is why we now have such an issue with MRSA in hospitals. But at the same time, I want Koda to get better quickly and if it is antibiotic he needs, then antibiotics he will get.
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Post by katt on Sept 14, 2010 21:08:42 GMT -5
Well Koda graced us with a big stinky poop almost as soon as we got home. lol It was definitely a gross, slimy poop - perfect for a vet trip. It was all weird textured too and an odd color - which I think might be due to the squash and was just yicky. They said it will be a few days until the results get back. In the meanwhile, eh sure seems to be feeling okay. He is romping around and wrestling and stashing and snuggling just like his normal self. I will see how much he eats tonight.
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Post by katt on Sept 15, 2010 5:50:01 GMT -5
Just an update: gross poop still, but more solid. When we got home from Shane's I put him in his cage and there was a coughed up piece of turkey that I missed. I thought he was throwing up again bc I caught him with it hanging out of his mouth! I had a mini heart attack and then realized what it was and took it away. lol I then cleaned out his cage a little better (still need to do a thorough wipe down tomorrow) and gave him fresh turkey. He doesn't seem to have eaten much if any (though he seemed interested enough when I stuck it in there) and is sleeping now. I am hoping he eats later tonight.
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Post by sherrylynne on Sept 15, 2010 18:29:01 GMT -5
I hope the poor little guy is feeling better soon! It's weird. Mine seem to go off their food every so often, get the funky poos, the whole bit. In a couple of days, they are back to themselves again. Here's hoping Koda does, too!
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Post by katt on Sept 16, 2010 0:14:45 GMT -5
Ok sooo they got the results back and the vet said she saw no signs of parasites or bacterial infection... I was REALLY hoping that would be it so I could DO something to treat him! So now is where I need some extra help. I have an appointemnt to bring him in next Wed (I could have brought him in she said she would squeeze him in between appointments today, but my gar broke down - I ran out of gas on my way to the station and had to wait like 45 min for the my friend with a gas tank who was not in class to come from across town with a gas can to rescue me! haha). Anyways, I have an appointment in a week, but I am not sure if it is worth it to bring him in. The vet said she could prod his belly and check his glands and stuff, and maybe try a round or two of antibiotics. Though when I asked if they would be worth a shot anyways she said she doesn't like giving them unless they are really needed - which I agree with - but when I told her this has been going for a while she said it might be a possible route. Her first impression was that perhaps it was a change in diet or stress or something like that or even a small bug- our thoughts too right? Well I told her we thought that and tried different foods and that it had been going on for a bit and she wasn't sure. SO, with that said - her ideas thus far we have already covered. If the biopsy will only tell us he has IBD which isn't really treatable, I would rather pass on that. Obviously I am not a vet and don't know the spectrum of diseases and symptoms, but I am not sure if bringing him in will really tell me anything or not... What do you guys think? And Jennifer, yes I am interested in the probiotics. Also how you got your fuzz butts interested in the antler. Koda isn't crazy about them but I think he needs them. Also, Shane and I were talking and have decided that he does look a bit thinner. This could be because the last few weeks he has been getting mainly turkey which has little fat. Since the beef and other meats he was eating I am going to return him to his normal diet. I am also going to try to increase the amount of whole prey he gets. A friend is giving me 25 adult f/t mice she can't use for her snakes (they all graduated to rats) and I am starting to make some progress on the breeding. I also found a source of chicks for the future - it is an hour away though so that won't happen realistically this year. I also got some lard that I put in his cage just now for a lard lick. I am not sure he likes it yet though! lol Also, it has BHT and something else in it to preserve it so I am going to look around for a different brand. It was the only one the store had... Ideas? Suggestions for where to go next? Would it be worth it to bring him in do you think? I am at a loss here because I know SOMETHING must be going or he would not have such gross poops all of the time...
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Post by katt on Sept 16, 2010 0:17:14 GMT -5
Also, goodness forbid...but is ADV a potential issue? The people I got his cage from didn't seem like the brightest. While I DID clean it out REALLY well, it WAS in the house before it got cleaned as that was the only way to clean it... I haven't seen signs of hind limb weakness, or lethargy really, but funky poops yes...
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