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Gimlet
• Surrendered to the Shelter on February 2, 2024. |
March 3, 2024:
The check for Gimlet arrived. Thank you for helping us take care of her. I thought I would send an update on Gimlet instead of just a thank you.
Gimlet has settled in nicely, we have a daily routine now, she gets up with me at 4am, when I walk into the playroom, turn on the light I look over the side of the pen, there she is front feet on the side of her box looking up at me. She knows she is getting up. I pick her up for a hug, set her back down telling her I will be back to get her when I get night shift put away.
Once all the other ferrets are put to bed, I go in to get her up. I close up the playroom gate because she loves going to the top sleep box to settle in, it is difficult for me to go up and down the step ladder these days so I don’t allow her up there. I want to be able to put my hand in to make sure she is not chewing on something. She gets to run in 3 rooms while I set up the soup dishes with meds in them. If I don’t see her going back and forth I go looking for her to be sure she is not getting into trouble. As I am calling and looking for her she will pop up behind me, looking at me like what is your problem I’m right here. I’ll pick her up to give her a hug and remind her not to be eating things she shouldn’t. I’ll set her back down to run from room to room until I am done serving the meds.
She likes to sleep in the bungalow in the ferret room, when she first came I would put her back in her pen when I was leaving the room. Now however I will stick my hand in the bungalow to make sure she is not eating the blanket, she is curled up sound asleep in it. She has also found the dresser she likes to sleep in; I continually put my hand in where she is to be sure she is sleeping not eating. There are a few things she showed interest in chewing; I removed them from the room.
I now allow her to be in the room without me for short periods of time, I found a treat she likes Bil-Jac peanut butter treats, they are tiny she gets 4 in the dish in the ferret room. She will grab one run under a cage to eat it, go back to get another. She gets to stay up until noon, that’s when I put morning shift away.
Once I put her back in her pen, she settles down to go to sleep. She has her paper shredding, and cornstarch peanuts, if I forget to fluff up her shredding she will sleep in the cornstarch peanuts.
She is doing well, is a happy little girl, I am thrilled you trusted us with her. Dr. Sandra said she may very well stop eating things in time; it seems so far that is happening. There are rooms I don’t let her hang in when I am not around but so far the bungalows in the ferret room and the top dresser drawer she is happy to sleep in without eating the blanket she is curled herself in.
Again thank you for trusting us to keep her happy and healthy.
Brenda
February 22, 2024:
I spent the morning setting up the sick pen with a tray of different foods. a single kind in each bowl. I'm trying to determine which food this little girl likes to eat, right now it seems to be TF.
February 5, 2024:
Before and after pictures:
February 21, 2024:
Dr. Ferderbar is back to work. Wouldn't you know the she was eating kibble when I got her in into the exam room. Dr. F palpated her tummy she could not feel any foreign objects, or notice any tenderness. the check up came up with nothing. Dr. F did say she may have enteritis, Dr. Sandra suggested the same.
We did not do x-rays because Dr. F felt she was bright, active and showing no signs of discomfort, she felt it was not wise to anesthetize her when she did not feel she had an obstruction. They did fluids before we left.
February 20, 2024:
I may be going to the vet this morning. We have a fur kid that may have a blockage. I'm waiting to hear from Dr. Sandra. I text her with what is going on. I'm going to call the vet at 8.
We could not get into the vet today, we have 9 am appointment tomorrow morning.
Gimlet was surrendered to us for a chewing disorder called Pica. Pica is a disorder in which there is a strong urge to ingest inedible items. In ferrets this is extraordinarily dangerous as the obsessive chewing can lead to life-threatening blockages. Pica appears to be correlated to ferrets with IBD, or may be a psychological problem. If you think your ferret might have Pica, first have your ferret evaluated by a ferret knowledgeable vet as chewing is often a sign of underlying disease or pain. If your ferret checks out as healthy and the obsessive chewing continues, consider whether your ferret might be bored and in need for more stimulation. Last but not least, it is VITAL that any and all objects that your ferret can chew be removed from their living area, and that they are very closely supervised when out.
I made some changes to Gimlet's pen. I let her spend some time with me in the ferret room this morning after I got her pen settled. when I'm working in the ferret room I will get her up to spend time with me. I believe with time out to play she will stop the excessive chewing, at least I hope so. The home she was in kept her in the cage with little to no run time. A true challenge.
