Baby Ferret With Sore Bottom

Question
i'm a new ferret owner and today i noticed my ferrets bottom is a little red and swollen and i dont know whats wrong, am i feeding him to many vitamins with his food? he is a baby so i have to let his food soak in water and mush it up for him and then i add a drop of vitamins.

Answer
Hi Starlin:

Sorry to hear your baby is having problems.  That sounds painful too!

If a kit (baby ferret) eats dry food too early in life, it will cause the anus to somewhat protrude and appear red and swollen. This is because the intestinal lining just isn't developed quite enough yet to handle the dryness of the food and process it all the way through the digestive system and out the other end.

You didn't say how long you've had your ferret, but it certainly sounds like you are making his 'mush' properly.  The only thing I can think of is possibly you could add a little more water than you have been.  Usually by the time ferrets are ready to go to their forever homes, their mushy food is usually not very wet by then, in preparation for the next step in complete weaning, eating dry kibble.

Also, you didn't say what food he is eating, but unless it's a junk food like Kaytee and some other really bad foods (or any cat foods that some folks feed - NOT a good idea), your ferret probably really doesn't need vitamins. It is possible that the vitamins could be just a little too much for his digestive tract.  

Totally Ferret makes a great food now for kits - it is a soft food and has extra vitamins in just the right proportions that a young ferret needs.  Of course, it's always hard to get a ferret to change foods, but I think most ferrets transfer over to TF pretty well - buy a small bag just in case he absolutely refuses to accept it though. Start by handfeeding him a couple of pieces as if they were treats :-).  Then put just a couple pieces in his food bowl. This way, the new food is something 'special'.  Then when you refill his food bowl, do about 25% TF kit food and 75% whatever you are feeding now. Each time you refill the bowl, increase the TF and decrease the food he's eating now until he's changed over completely.  Your ferret definitely does not need to be on vitamins while on TF.  TF for kits is especially for ferrets first year of life and it gives them a great start in life; often the early experiences can have a huge effect on overall health later in life, so it's definitely worth the trouble to make the change, in my opinion, of course.

For right now, I would definitely stop the vitamins, even though I just can't imagine that one drop could be causing this; also add just a little bit more water to the mush to be *sure* he doesn't have to strain to poop. Make sure he has plenty of fresh water available at all times. If you can get some extra fluids into him, that may help if he's a bit constipated. Some tricks to help get fluids into him are to dribble a few drops of Ferretone on top of warm water; or and sugar-free flavorings you have on hand - just go lightly on the flavors and don't forget - nothing heavy on salt or sugar.  Also, for his sore bottom, you can put just a tiny bit of "Preparation H" hemorrhoid cream on the red area, but do make it a scant amount and then try to keep him distracted so he doesn't go lick it off right away.  If he won't leave the red area alone, you can get a teeny tiny Elizabethan collar at PetSmart so he couldn't lick the area.

If the area gets worse, bleeds or continues to want to lick it excessively, you really should get him to a vet.  Hopefully it will just calm down a bit and resolve itself.  If he's not better within about a week, it would be a good idea to have the vet look at him (I suspect he will be just fine in a week).  

One last little note.......just *in case*........is he having poops that are very small in diameter or scant, or lots of little poops?  His poops should be nice and big around, nearly like your little finger for a kit.  If you feel your ferret's poop is not nearly that diameter, it's a possibility that your ferret has an intestinal blockage.  The only reason I'm mentioning that here is that IF this happens to be the problem, it would be absolutely life and death emergency that you get him to a good ferret vet immediately for surgery to remove the obstrucation. Most likely you would also notice his little tummy feels a bit bloated too.  What you have described doesn't *really* sound like this is what you are describing, but *IF* his poops do fall into this category, please get him to an emergency vet immediately.

I really think your little guy is going to be just fine. Welcome to the wonderful world of being a ferret mommy! :-) I age about 10 years every time one of mine get sick. It's always good to be well-read on all the potential things especially that can go wrong with ferrets - things you can do *before* things happen to avert disaster. There are two books by Kim Schilling called FERRETS FOR DUMMIES (if you can't get both, just get the first edition) that are just great references for all ferret parents.  Here are some great websites with all kinds of information for new owners too:

   http://www.ferretcentral.org/faq/index.html

   http://www.cypresskeep.com/ferretarticles.htm

A few days and some extra fluids should make all the difference in the world for your little one.  It's always a good idea to stay on top of anything that doesn't look quite right with ferrets, though, because by the time a ferret looks sick, they are usually at death's door.  You are very wise to be doing your homework and staying on top of this - what a lucky little ferret to have such a good mommy!

Sincerely,

Jacquie Rodgers