Injured in Fall

Question
My ferret, Lilly, has fallen about an hour, hour and a half or so ago, its now
3:45am, so I can't call a vet.  She bit someone and they dropped her, rather
hard, on a cloth on the concert on our porch, not like a pile of cloth like a
thin layer of cloth laid out, so it was not padding, i think that she probably
landed on her head, she has a little scrape on her mouth thats why I think
that.  I wasn't there to witness it, I KNOW, I KNOW it was an accident and he is
VERY VERY upset and EXTREMLY traumatised about it. Lilly seems to be rather
alert and attentive for having taken such a tramatic fall.  She is moving a
little, I am trying to keep her still.  I have looked up some stuff on the
internet, trying to figure out what to do.  She is pooping and peeing slighlty
runny kinda like slightly watered oatmeal, is the only way I can think to
describe it. There is a very very little red tint to it but not at all bloody, the
first one was more runny and a little more red than the last, and she has gone
a few times already.  Oh, she just pooped and its more normal consistency,
still a little oatmeal like, no reddish tint, she is getting up to poop and fixing
her blankets.  I am trying to keep her warm.  Her gums were pale and her
tongue.  Her gums are still pale but her tongue seems to have more color to
it than a little while ago.  She is a brand new ferret, we have had her about a
week, I have had another one for a year and a half so I am not terrible new to
ferrets, but I don't know her normal color. She is about 1 1/2 years old.  I am
worried about internal bleeding but she is not bleeding from anywhere, like
her nose, ears or mouth and had not thrown up or had trouble breathing.  
What else can I do besides calling the vet and taking her there, i will but I
want to know what I can do here.  I tried giving her a little water in a syring
and then read that if they have internal bleeding not to do that, so I am not
sure.  We have a very ferret proof house because we have 3, so I try to make
sure that nothing like this happens.  Do you think she will be ok?
Kelley

Answer
Hi again Kelley:

Here's what I use for "soup" for my kids:  I get Hill's A/D Feline, canned food - scoop out about 1/4 of a can and warm in microwave for about 10 seconds (more or less according to how your micro works), add enough water that it looks like gravy when you stir it.

Dip your finger in and then put your finger in the side of her mouth a few times until she gets a good taste of it and eats it on her own. Most ferrets LOVE this stuff.  That's why I don't bother making 'soup', because the best one has already been made and is easy to use!  A/D is very high in easily digested protein, which is really important when the kids are sick. It has all the nutrients your ferret needs to get well and to maintain weight while sick...and they eat it readily, even when they don't feel particularly well once they are used to it.  I use it as a treat, so my kids come running when I holler "soup!".  You will have to get it at your vet's office.  You probably won't need an appointment, just stop by and tell them your ferret isn't eating and you need some A/D to feed it.  I buy it by the case so I always have it on hand for treats and/or when somebody is sick or not eating.

I'm thinking that your little one was already 'imprinted' on the food she was eating before you got her.  Now you need to get her used to some other food.  I would recommend either Totally Ferret or Path Valley Crunchy Chicken food. Those are the most common well-liked foods available for ferrets. They also meet ALL nutritional requirements. My kids eat a combination of three premium ferret foods and these are two of them (I change the third one each time I order so they won't get too 'picky' about their food).

One way to determine if your ferret is eating or not is to count the kibbles you put in the food dish.  Put in 20 or so, then watch to see how many she eats in 8 or 10 hours. Hopefully she ate all of them, but if not, you must feed her (and make sure she eats) something to keep her strength up.  You may also want to give her some Pedialyte - they can go longer without food than water, but once they are dehydrated it is nearly impossible to get them to eat, so keep giving fluids even while you are waiting to see if she eats.  

I really think the biggest problem here is that you don't know what food she was eating before you got her apparently.  If there is any way you can find out that information, it would certainly save you a lot of work and worry while you try to get her to accept another food.

This is the reason people combine several foods together; to be sure their kids aren't stuck on ONE food. In the past, manufacturers have occasionally changed the formula for their foods and ferrets all over the place suddenly won't eat!  It's just a good idea to mix several foods together so they have a wider range of what they will accept as food.  Especially since she is young, you have the opportunity to expose her to many different flavors and hopefully she won't be so picky.

You may want to try giving the kibble as a 'treat' when she is out playing. Telling her 'good girl!' and giving her a piece of kibble works well.  If it's a treat, it must be better than *real* food, right?  Ferrets are so much like kids that way - the way you act towards their food affects whether they will accept it or not, so get excited when you give her a good food kibble...it really does help.

Best of luck. Continue to try to handfeed her the kibble. If she doesn't eat, tho, be sure she is getting some A/D "soup" so she doesn't get too weak.  Ferrets are NOT one of those pets that "will eat if they get hungry enough".  If a ferret doesn't recognize something as food, they just won't eat it and will actually die; so it's really important that you are aware of how much she is eating and making sure she IS eating, even if it's A/D 'soup'.  Quick to make, easy to keep on hand.  Just be sure that any wet food is discarded after an hour and fresh food given the next feeding.  Wet food attracts bacteria and can make the ferret really sick unless they eat it within an hour after it is warmed and served.

If I can help, please don't hesitate to write again.  Getting ferrets to eat can be tricky. Hopefully you will be better prepared now.

Sincerely,

Jacquie Rodgers

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Hi Kelley:

Hopefully by now your little one is eating and drinking. If not, you definitely need to get her to a vet for an exam.  

What you want to be looking for in this case is pale gums/tongue/pads of the feet.  Having taken a fall, it would be very normal for them to be a bit red, as no doubt she was scared and got her blood circulating, preparing her body to heal any injury.  However, our concern is that she may have fallen hard enough to either cause an aortic bleed or spleen or liver rupture - all of which would cause her to bleed out so fast that you *probably* couldn't get to a vet soon enough to help her, especially in the middle of the night.  However, if you do notice pale mouth and/or pads, you should TRY to get her to an emergency facility if one is available in your city. A call to your vet is in order if not.

Watch her for vomiting, which would probably indicate a head injury. Look in her ears for any signs of blood. Keep her calm, securely snuggled and warm. If she vomits and/or passes blood, either in pee, poop or vomit, get her to the vet.

If her gums do NOT go pale, she *probably* does not have any internal bleeding, then just continue watch her for the next 24-48 hours, again to see if she gets pale gums and/or if she passes any blood in her urine or poops. If she passes blood or has pale gums, you definitely need to get her to your vet or an emergency vet A.S.A.P.

If she does not get pale gums, no blood in her stool or pee, then you will be watching for just general soreness, limping, neck stiffness, etc.  You will need to treat any symptoms as they occur. You are right to keep her warm and to offer a bit of water, maybe even some 'soup' (made from Hill's A/D, or baby food meat only, warmed and thinned a bit with water to make it soupy.  It is always a good idea to get fluids down a ferret if you suspect anything may be wrong.  The thing that usually spells death for a ferret is when they stop taking in fluids. Don't force her, but a few drops of water would be a good idea if she is interested - maybe if you offer it in a bowl she will be more likely to drink it, especially if she usually uses a water bottle. In general, ferrets just like to drink from a bowl and will drink more than if they use a water bottle.

Let her rest for a few days; know that she is sore. Don't be surprised if she is a little 'nippy' the next few days because she will be a bit distrustful and also very very sore.  It could be a week or so until the soreness is gone, so do cut her some slack.

Hopefully whatever caused her to fall the first time won't occur again - if she lives this time, consider it your *warning* that whatever was going on was NOT a good idea for a little ferret. No doubt she was scared and will appreciate some gentle hugs, maybe some rocking (hopefully you don't have a rocker in the room where the ferrets are, tho - that's a huge danger. However, it is nice to have a rocker somewhere in the house, as sick ferrets love to be rocked :-)

Ferrets are pretty tough - of course, it's a toss up whether she sustained any severe and lasting injuries. At the very least she will be sore and no doubt a bit distrustful of people holding her for a while. She needs to know she is being held securely. Anyone who doesn't hold her securely will *probably* be bit, and I certainly don't blame her.  She is tiny and when a person picks her up to their eye level, it's waaaaay up in the air to her and if she doesn't feel safe, she will probably nip the hands holding her, trying to make them put her down. I believe I would do the same if I were in her fur :)

Hope she is all better really soon!  These things just happen sometimes and even when we are very very careful and protective of our 'kids', sometimes accidents do happen. Just give her lots of love and know that she will have emotional scars (fear) in addition to her aches and pains, so you will have to be gentle with her, especially while she is healing.

Sincerely,

Jacquie Rodgers