my elderly ferret

Question
My ferret Roxy is 7 years old. Shes not sick and in need of vetinary care but i know that she is dying. She can no longer get up to go to the toilet and dosnt eat unless fed. She also wobbles when she walks i love ehr dearly but i dont know how to deal with her dying , its a lot harder than i thought it would be. what can i do to mak her more comfortable and what can i do to help me.

Answer
Hi Tasha, I'm sorry to hear about Roxy. It's possible (in fact, likely) that she has insulinoma and/or adrenal disease. 7 is solid old age for a ferret so it's natural for her to have a variety of symptoms. I strongly recommend you take her in to your vet as soon as possible for an evaluation. There are medicines available to prolong her life and make her more comfortable, depending on the diagnosis. Please do this for her as soon as you can. Keep cleaning up after her and show her lots of love.

I also recommend that you read the chapter on letting go in the book "Ferrets For Dummies" - this will prepare you to say goodbye to your little friend when that becomes necessary.  Also, take a look at these web pages as well:

http://www.weaselwords.com/page/ferret_art025.php

http://www.ferretvillage.org/articles.php?page=lettinggo

Your veterinarian is a good resource, too; he or she has seen many animals at the end stages of their lives and he  or she will be able to direct you to a local support group specializing in pet loss after Roxy passes away.  Finally, there are discussion groups online for ferret owners and you might want to plug into them to talk about your ferret's symptoms and your own feelings.  Try http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/Ferret-Talk2/ to start with.

Good luck,
DG