Weight gain and loss in Ferrets

Question
Hi, my name is Krystal and I am owned by two ferrets. Both were purchased in NM through Petco. One by me, a female by the name of Zelda, who turned one this June. Another by someone else, a male by the name of Link, who I bought from an ad in the paper. He was purchased by a family from Petco also. They have both been descented and fixed. Link is supposedly only 5 months old but he is MUCH bigger then my one year old female. I know that there is a size difference between the sexes but I was shocked to see just how much bigger he was then her. His previous owners said that he ate well and got lots of excersize and they even had him with another female. I got him and he was and is just as sweet as ever, eats fine, has normal bowel movements, Is semi-active in play, and is just a lover. My female is VERY active, will take walks with me, eats and drinks, bowel is fine, and they both sleep ALOT. However, we just moved back to California and are living at my dad's so they are not getting as much play time as they were used to. I take them outside to have them walk with me and Link will have none of it. He plops down and that's it. He just wants to slink around and scent mark the grass. He'll chase a ball now and then but that's it. He has gained a good amount of weight. He's gotten about 1/3 bigger then he was when we got him and that's body weight. Seriously, he looks like a giant rolly poly. He doesn't run around much unless I have just towel dried him and then he goes nuts like normal ferrets do after a bath. Meanwhile my female has lost some weight. She's not skin and bones necessarily but I can feel her ribs. My husband thinks that she's the same size(I was shocked after she shed her winter coat) and that because Link is so big it makes her look so much smaller. Could he just be eating more then her? I know he needs more outside time and I will try to do that ( he poops everywhere and I can't break him of it where as my female will go in the cat box if she can't make it to her cage). We can't afford a vet right now as we fell on hard times and my health is bad. I am worried about them but my hubby is not. He says that they are fine. Any advice you can give will be much appreciated.

Answer
Hi Krystal:

Zelda and Link are most likely from different breeders, which can make a HUGE difference also.  Some breeders have been introducing a line of Canadian ferrets in the past few years that have been turning out some ferrets that are much much larger than the ferrets we are used to seeing here in the United States.  It's a good possibility that you are seeing that difference between Zelda and Link. That would be the "good news" possibility here.

There are some 'not so good news' possibilities here too.  One is that Link could be in a little bit of a depression considering that he's only five months old and it sounds like he has had a lot of 'new homes' to get used to in that time. That could also be a good reason he's having problems with his litterbox training. You are comparing him to Zelda, who has had one mommy and daddy and familiar stuff surrounding her for her whole life (even tho it did get moved to "grandpa's house"). Link could be a bit depressed - ferrets do get depressed. He's just a little guy and it sounds like he's already had a lot of changes for such a young little guy. Definitely sounds like he could use some stability and security in his life. Sometimes just little things like a routine you follow every evening before putting him to bed can make a big difference in helping him to adjust. He just may need *something* that he knows will be the same every day, at the same time, in the same way, no matter what. The best behaved ferrets seem to have one thing in common - repetition. Just like children, they really NEED to know what is expected of them, they need to know DAILY that they are loved and to have that reinforced by actions - just two minutes a day of *just you and Link eyeball to eyeball cuddle and "mommy loves you" time* with absolutely no interruptions. Little things like that make a big difference with kids and also with ferrets. It gives them stability and a place to view the world from. They know that no matter whatever else happens that day, that they will have their 'mommy time' and their 'daddy time' just for them.

Going down the list of what might be causing the differences in their sizes AND their physical capabilities, if you take ANY living being and increase their body mass by 1/3, they will likely become sluggish, less energetic, tire out much much more quickly. That's a HUGE change in weight!  And, if we really look at the reasons for the weight gain - probably less exercise and less attention, which we KNOW causes depression, then I think we pretty quickly have our reason that Link is becoming not only tired much easier, but probably also why he is a bit more difficult to litterbox train. In order to successfully litterbox train a ferret, you must first get the ferret to WANT TO PLEASE YOU.  As soon as that happens, the rest is just a matter of preference as to HOW one goes about it....but it WILL work if the ferret wants to please you and you just show him HOW you would like for him to please you.

The final building block of this problem - and I certainly hope this is not the case because Link is so very young - could be some problem with Link's heart. When we see low energy and/or rapid weight gain in ferrets who are young and *should be* healthy, we do have to take into account the fact that it just MAY be telling us that something physical MAY be going on with this ferret. When he plops down on his belly, he very well may just be telling you "Mommy, I just cannot go on".  It is in a ferret's nature to want to go along with the crowd; for him to want to go walking when you go out...and the only reason he would hold back, flop down or not participate would be that for some reason, he is just not capable of participating.  Ferrets can have cardiomyopathy fairly young and it is a progressive disease, so if his problem is cardiomyopathy, you will notice a decrease in his ability to participate in physical activities and he will continue to put on weight because he is still eating the high calorie diet that a young ferret generally needs.  

Until you know for sure what the reason is for Link's weight gain and lower energy level, it would be a good idea to have a look at his diet - is it highest protein (from MEAT SOURCES) available?  Here's a great chart you can use to check out the food you feed and see how it ranks along with other ferret foods:
    
   http://www.mdferretpaws.org/care/food_treats.html

Don't forget to include any "treats" you feed him into his daily "food comsumption".  NO sugars (or any food that ends in "ose" because that is a sugar); Sugars and/or carbohydrates in a ferret's diet has been found to be directly linked to INSULINOMA (cancer of the pancreas) and is fully avoidable if you simply DON'T FEED SUGAR of ANY kind! NO fruits or vegetables - ferrets are "obligate carnivores", which means they do not have a cecum in their stomach to digest plant proteins; their stomachs are made to eat MEAT ONLY.  So, check the list above and get the food with the highest number available in your geographic area (or order it online if you must in order to provide at LEAST an "9" or better.

Increase Link's opportunities for exercise, but don't *make* him run if he insists on flopping down - he knows his limits.  Maybe three "walks" a day instead of one "run" would be best for him. If he continues to gain weight, please consider getting a full blood panel done to try to determine the source of his physical tiredness and weight gain. Just as with people, diet and exercise ALWAYS affect our health and vice versa.

Sincerely,

Jacquie Rodgers