depressed ferrets?
@1deadmanwalking (11)
United States
May 24, 2008 12:46pm CST
we had two ferrets, but one, sadly, passed from us not too long ago, and ever since then our poor emma has been having spells of shaking and shivering, she is no longer active during the day and only comes out of her bed for
food, water, and the bathroom, then its right back to
bed, and she doesn't even do that as much.
we have tried getting her other ferrets (playmates) but all that does nothing but reminds her of her sister.
does anybody have a ferret who's lost a mate?
maybe you have some advice for me? i would appreciate it very much, and so would poor emma.
thank you,
any replies are appreciated.
2 responses
@shymurl (2765)
• United States
24 May 08
Do you still have the playmates?? cause after some time the loneliness will subside. Hold her as much as you can and show her a lot of love. that should help some. Have you tried reading up on it. I use to have ferrets but it has been a long time ago. I remember reading that a ferret can die from loneliness. good luck. keep me updated on her progress.
@1deadmanwalking (11)
• United States
25 May 08
yes, we still have one of the playmates, her name is noodle, she belonged to a family friend, like emma, she has also lost a mate, so our friend decided it would be best if they could be together, for both of there sakes. they are doing much better now that they have each other.
@charron0115 (23)
• United States
8 Jul 08
I hope you get the chance to read this. I truly, do. I had two girl ferrets. Their names were Jasper (yeah, I was told she was a boy as a 1st time owner I didn't know) and Dixie.
I'll never forget the day Dixie was diagnosed with adrenal gland disease. The vet said there wasn't much we could do, because she was elderly. She was active and happy until the last month or so. Eventually, I had to put her to sleep which was devastating.
Jasper was so saddened that she became very depressed. She wouldn't eat or play. I'd hold her for hours. I tried other playmates too, but she was hostile with them.
When I took her to the vet, because she seemed ill. I learned that she had a gastro-intestinal bleed caused from stress. It was too late by the time I took her to the vet.
Please have Emma examined her veterinarian. It may be that she is actually sick. Ferretts are prone to stress related illness. I do hope her sadness has passed and she is back to her frisky self.
Best wishes to you and your fuzzy.
