Hairball remedies plus

Question
Hi, I have 7 ferrets and love them all. A few questions for you. I have one that had a large hairball. I took him to the vets and got an Xray. It was hugh, thought he may need surgery. I worked with him for a month with the meds my vet gave me. He did finally got it out. What I am asking is I know it is high in sugar, is there anything else I can give all of mine a few times a week or more that is good for them plus helps hairballs. One more thing, I have a  one that seems to ummm hope I can say this , but humps one of the other ferrets. Someone told me that he may have adrenal disease, well one of them might, and I found another sniffing butts and dooks loudly. They all seem in pretty good shape and healthy otherwise. I feed them Evo Ferret food mixed with Blue Buffalo kitten food and chicken gravy (whole pieces cooked till bones are soft and then blended) Any extra help here is always good, thanks

Answer
Hello Lisa,

I am so very sorry that I have not answered this question sooner. I have been very busy with work and one of my own kids has been giving me a scare the past couple days.

Hair ball remedies are very sugary, but I think just like us, that it would be fine in moderation, if there are no alternatives around. Fortunately for you, and your little ones, there is an alternative. It is a product called Vetasyl. It is the pet equivalent to Metamucil and it is a psyllium powder. It will bulk up their poop and hopefully that will catch whatever could be blocking the tract. With the Vetasyl treatment, though, you need to remember that it could actually cause a blockage so if you are feeling hesitant about it, then you shouldn't do this!  

With the Vetasyl treatment, you should give it at least three days in a row (just once a day). You should take 8 (NO LESS) ounces of water and mix in about a teaspoon of Uncle Jim's Duck Soup (http://www.petco.com/Shop/Product.aspx?familyid=10504&Ntt=Duck%20SOup&OneResultR...). You should mix enough water in to make it the consistency of a pretty thin gravy. After you mix that in, you should heat the mixture up just until it is a little warm (not too hot) and then you should mix in the Vetasyl (*****just ONE capsule and don't put the actual capsule in: break the capsule open and pour the powder in and then discard the capsule*****!). There are two important things to remember with this treatment : one is that you need to make sure they drink as much as they can and two : (and this is the most important!!!) they need to have A LOT of water(which is why the "mixture" should be a thin gravy sort of consistency). They need to be drinking a lot of water during this treatment because if they don't, that bulk forming laxative will cause a blockage in their system. You want to give the treatment every day for at least three days and if their poops aren't bigger or at least back to the size they normally are, you should either continue with the treatment or you should see a vet. With this, you should be watching their poops because you may see some pretty amazing things come out. When they use the bathroom, you should pick it up and put it in a plastic bag with water in it and squish away. I know, that sounds utterly disgusting, but you want to make sure that the treatment is doing its job if there is a blockage there. Also, when you are giving the mixture, make sure that you keep stirring it because if you don't, the bulk of the Vetasyl could sink to the bottom and it would be useless. Also, something else to remember with this treatment: only give it if you are going to be around your ferret for the next few days that you give the treatment just in case it does cause a blockage and (s)he needs to be taken to the vet. Otherwise, I wouldn't suggest this treatment for you.

That is an alternative to the normal laxative, and it is a better alternative, I've found. You should do that once monthly for a clean out of their little bellies!

The food seems okay and the fact that you're supplementing it with gravy is even better. Humping in a neutered male can be a sign of adrenal disease. He is some more info about adrenal disease:

http://exoticpets.about.com/cs/ferrets/a/ferretadrenal.htm

Basically, you're going to need to head to a ferret friendly vet, which means that this vet is going to have to be ferret knowledgeable. If you don't already have a vet, please let me know and we can work on finding you one.

I hope this helps and if you need anything else, please don't hesitate to ask!

Sincerely,
Emilee Andrews