Question about bathing.

[savagedestiny]

I've heard pretty much everywhere that its bad to bathe ferrets more than once in a great while because it strips oils and dries out their coat. However, I often hear the exact same thing from dog people, and to be honest in my experience as a dog groomer I find that its just not true. I have yet to see a dog which gets bathed often have skin issues (unless the dog has preexisting allergies or somesuch)- in fact my weekly clients have the best skin and coats by far.

Now, I know for a fact if you bathe a dog often in shampoos with chemicals like sodium lauryl sulfate their skin will dry out and their coat too. But if you're using a natural, chemical-free shampoo that's simply not the case. I bathe Riddle weekly and her skin is amazing- especially for a dog who used to be nearly bald and broke out in hives all the time. I also bathe one of my cats once a month because she doesn't clean herself and gets really greasy and disgusting. She doesn't have issues either.

So I suppose I'm curious- has anyone ever tried bathing their ferrets often with a natural shampoo? What happened? I'd really like to bathe mine more often. I'm a complete freak about my animals being clean, and my ferrets' coats just don't feel as nice as my other animals who I bathe regularly.

[weloveourweasels]

I used to bathe my ferrets once a month with Theraneem soap free shampoo for sensitive pets. It is organic. I found that they did itch a tiny bit more and that they weren't as soft as they are now. They do groom themselves like cats should so there is no need to bathe them and waste shampoo if they are clean already. As they say if its not broken don't fix it so if it's not dirty don't clean it. Loki's fur is 2 inches long right now. Rolo's fur was that long before she shed (she is confused and thinks it is summer since she was birthed in artificial light through a forced breeding from Marshall's) So her fur is short but still very soft and shiny. Mr. Bean is only 7 months old (next week) and he is shedding right now. I don't know if he thinks it is summer yet because he isn't don't growing in his new coat. But overall they all have extremely shiny and soft coats and don't have emergency itches as much anymore.

[fortheloveofferret]

During the winter months, I usually "bathe" my ferrets with 100% natural colloidal oatmeal once or twice a month (their skin gets really dry and itchy during the winter, so I started using the oatmeal to help relieve their itchy skin). It's not really a bath though, it's more of a soak, but the oatmeal is a natural cleanser so they are being cleaned. I haven't used a "real" shampoo on my ferrets in over a year now and I plan on only using the oatmeal from here on out. I've never bathed my ferrets that often with a regular, natural shampoo, so I couldn't tell you what would happen if you did, but I can tell you these oatmeal soaks haven't caused any problem for my ferrets. Whether they soak twice a month or twice a year, it has never made mine itch more or dry out or irritate their skin, it's just the opposite actually- it relieves their dry, itchy skin (which is my main reason for using it), makes their fur super soft, and (since you're concerned about how clean they are) it does clean them. I do agree though that they are clean animals and don't really *need* to be washed unless they get something on them that isn't safe for them to lick off.

[savagedestiny]

The only shampoos I'd be using on them would be oatmeal or the hypoallergenic, tearless shampoos I have.

Maybe I'll just try it and see how it goes.

[Jen]

We had bad flea issues this summer so I would bathe Weasel about every 2-3 weeks with marshall's ferret shampoo (that's what he came with). We'd mainly use that, since the cat/kitten flea shampoo we have says to "only use once a month". The only difference I notice with more-often baths are extra-fuzziness for the next couple of days and less of a 'ferret' smell. I've had a vet recommend oatmeal once, but wasn't sure how to do that (real/plain/regular??)..

[fortheloveofferret]

Nov 21, 2008 11:40:47 GMT -5 Jen said:

I've had a vet recommend oatmeal once, but wasn't sure how to do that (real/plain/regular??)..

The oatmeal that I use is a powder. I buy the Aveeno brand and it can be found in the bath/beauty aisle of just about every store out there (your local grocery store probably even has it - the Weis and Giant stores near me sell it). It's in a box with eight individual packets and costs less than $10. Each packet is enough for one full tub, but the less water you use, the less of the packet you need. All you do is run the water, sprinkle in some of the oatmeal, then put in your fuzzies. You can just let them soak in it or rub and massage their bodies as they soak (which is what I do). Sometimes the oatmeal will clump together, so I usually take a clump and rub that into their bodies as well. If you want, you can rinse them with clean water after their oatmeal soak, but I usually don't. I'm a huge fan of this stuff - I've been bringing this up on several places around the net. It's great for a lot of reasons - for one, you can find it just about anywhere so no need to travel all over the place looking for it or make a special order online somewhere and then wait to have it shipped to you; it's a natural cleanser but doesn't dry or irritate your ferrets' skin like most shampoos do so you can do it more often, if needed (even some natural shampoos can make your ferret itch more if done too often); it makes their fur super soft (more so than any shampoo I've ever used); and, if you don't like it for your ferrets, you can use it (even if you do like it for your ferrets, it's still great for you, too - I use it for myself all the time during the winter!).

I also want to add - I always comment about how this can be used as often as once a week, but I am not saying that a ferret needs to be cleaned that often. I know they're clean animals and they clean themselves, but it is nice to know there is something out there that can be used that often if needed (in my case I want something that can be used that often during the winter to relieve their dry, itchy winter skin). I just thought I should add that so people don't think that I'm telling everyone that ferrets *need* to be cleaned every week.

[amyandfuzzies6]

Thank you for sharing about the oatmeal soak, Jessica. That makes perfect sense! I think I'm going to give that a try for next bath time but I don't bathe too frequently. Maybe once (if at all) in the winter and MAYBE 1-2 times in the summer. The cleaner their boxes and bedding are, the easier it is for the ferts to keep themselves clean....not counting when they "sleep with their meat" and wake up smelling like chicken or beef!

I have a natural organic shampoo for spot cleans for my insulinomic and liver disease ferts when they have egg and get potties on themselves. It doesn't dry them out and leaves them soft but I also only clean a small area.

Jessica, I just love your fur family siggy! A cat, ferrets and 2 rats!
Don't the rats get "nervous"? We pet sat for a neighbors bird and gerbil and the poor gerbil looked petrified the whole time it was at our house! I suppose it would be different if they were around each other all the time..

[fortheloveofferret]

Hi Amy! I Know you from naturalferrets.com (I'm ForTheLoveOfFerrets - you sent me the email with a whole bunch of homeopathic articles). I only realized it was you because of the sig - "Amy and Fuzzies 7." And, if I remember right, you have one or two adrenal ferrets, right? That's how I first heard about the oatmeal soaks - people use it for their adrenal ferrets to help relieve the excess itchiness that usually comes with adrenal. So the oatmeal soaks would probably be really good for your adrenal ferrets.

LOL, those aren't rats in my pic, they're chinchillas. And they aren't bothered by the cats or ferrets (but they also aren't anywhere near them). At my old house, the chins had play time in my room and on occasion, a cat or two (family pets include a few other cats) would be in my room and the chinchillas actually went after my cats! Somewhere in my collection of pics I have one of Jasper (the grey chin) on top of one of my cats. You can't see the cats' face in the pic, but I remember her looking pretty scared as Jasper stood on her back.

[weloveourweasels]

Wouldn't regular plain oatmeal work just as well and be way cheaper than that aveno stuff?

There is also this dry bath kit. It says it is out of stock but maybe if you e-mail her she could send you one.
www.freewebs.com/fuzzyloving/cottageproductsjewelry.htm

Also have you thought about using a rice dig box? Everyone who uses them says it cleans their coats perfectly.

[fortheloveofferret]

You can try using regular oatmeal, but it can be hard to grind it finely enough to produce the same results as the colloidal oatmeal does. If you don't grind it fine enough, it will just sink uselessly to the bottom of the tub. When added to water, the colloidal form will give the water a milky appearance, so just by soaking in the water you're getting the benefits of the oatmeal. If it's not ground fine enough and just sinks to the bottom, you're not getting the benefits of the oatmeal and it's just like soaking in plain water. I've experimented with making my own colloidal oatmeal, but I find it to be quite frustrating. It's just more convenient and easier to buy it already in the colloidal form.

I do use the rice dig box, but my ferrets get bored with that pretty quickly, plus it doesn't help with the dry, itchy winter skin. Mine prefer dirt baths (same as the rice box, but with clean dirt) over the rice "bath," but again, it doesn't help with the winter skin.

[weloveourweasels]

Good point. I have taken a few oatmeal baths myself and I found that if you soak the oatmeal in hot water and then take handful and squeek it through your hands it does give the water a very white milky appearance. Also I have a coffee grinder and that would work well to make a powder out of it. I'm sure everyone doesn't have a coffee grinder lol. As for the dirt I was going to suggest that but since Savagedestiny is a "clean freak" I thought that idea might wig her out a bit. As for other things to held try winter skin, you can feel 1 teaspoon of oil a day. Prefered is Emu oil or salmon oil, something meat based. But olive oil and vegetable oil work as well. You can also take the olive oil and rub a bit into their skin. I wouldn't do this myself because then the fur would get all ictified. Also if you brush them with a boars bristle brush (since the bristsles are natural and stiff not soft and flimsy like some pet brushes) it really helps in stimulating oil production and fur growth. Just a minute or so every day works wonders.

[fortheloveofferret]

I agree that brushing regularly helps. You definitely need to use a stiffer-bristled brush. When I got my first ferret, I bought the ferret brush the pet shop had available - it had softer bristles and was pretty much useless. Mine do get some fish oil almost every day and it's also something I usually include in my "duck soup" recipes (which they get once, sometimes twice, a week).

A note about making your own colloidal oatmeal - it will need to be ground more than you would coffee beans. It's almost ground as fine as chalk dust - maybe not *that* fine, but it does need to be ground very finely so that it absorbs the water and does what it's supposed to. - www.pvsoap.com/recipe_colloidal_oatmeal.htm

Savagedestiny - If you do start bathing your ferrets weekly (or however often it was that you wanted to do it) with shampoo and you notice it starts to bother your ferrets (itchier, smellier, etc.), you could try a washcloth rubdown. Using a damp (not wet, just damp), warm washcloth, start at their face and work your way down the rest of their body (wiping in the direction of their fur). Some ferrets might not go for this, but it's worth a try - it cleans them and it's great for bonding, too (it mimics what their mothers would do).

[savagedestiny]

I'm going to start bathing bi-weekly and see how it goes. If it doesn't work out for them, obviously I'll stop. I do have some cat grooming wipes that I use on my greasy kitty and my dog if she comes in from pottying with poopyfoot that I could try as well.

[amyandfuzzies6]

Nov 21, 2008 23:41:13 GMT -5 @fortheloveofferret said:

Hi Amy! I Know you from naturalferrets.com (I'm ForTheLoveOfFerrets - you sent me the email with a whole bunch of homeopathic articles). I only realized it was you because of the sig - "Amy and Fuzzies 7." And, if I remember right, you have one or two adrenal ferrets, right? That's how I first heard about the oatmeal soaks - people use it for their adrenal ferrets to help relieve the excess itchiness that usually comes with adrenal. So the oatmeal soaks would probably be really good for your adrenal ferrets.

Yes, I remember! It's a small ferret-cyber world! I have 2 adrenals! Sorry about that, been a little all over the place this past year and should read my resource articles a little more closely. I've never tried it for my adrenals but definitely will and I think I'll start using oatmeal soaks for baths.

LOL, those aren't rats in my pic, they're chinchillas.

I'm so sorry! I'm really glad you have a good sense of humor. Looking more closely I certainly do see they are chinchillas - and very cute ones at that I've honestly been having a lot of problems with my sinuses and vision and just looked at the picture much to quickly. Going blind a little here!

And they aren't bothered by the cats or ferrets (but they also aren't anywhere near them). At my old house, the chins had play time in my room and on occasion, a cat or two (family pets include a few other cats) would be in my room and the chinchillas actually went after my cats!

That must have been quite a sight to see - LOL

Somewhere in my collection of pics I have one of Jasper (the grey chin) on top of one of my cats. You can't see the cats' face in the pic, but I remember her looking pretty scared as Jasper stood on her back.

That's hilarious You have to post it if you can find it:)

[cristina]

Jessica~ I am in awe! I went out right after I read that you suggested Avenno oatmeal soak and I have NEVER even thought a ferret could be SOOO SMOOTH!!!!

I am an absolute fanatic with these oatmeal packets, I will never again use anything else!
Thank you so much, I would have never known! And Im so thankful now I do know!!!
(My little baby Mimi feels like an absolute cloud! and My Boomer had a bit of a course fur issue and its a miracle fix!)