Fat Ferret & Flying Food

Question
Hello! I have two ferrets and I just changed their food from Marshall's to Totally Ferret. It seems like the very next day, my 4 mo. old ferret got really fat!  He's very active (actually more now, if that's possible), very healthy looking, eating/drinking/eliminating fine, but he's a big fatty after only a day on the food. Is that possible?  His hammock is on the top level and his food on the second from the top. I found him this morning with his fat butt in the hammock, his body stretched way down and his head in the food dish, eating away. Yes, it appears he loves his new food. What do you think of the apparent weight gain?  He's 4 pounds now.

Also, I am struggling with a good cage configuration. I have a Super Pet multi-floor cage - the lower level is the ideal place to put the litter and food because it has high sides. There are three half-shelves in the cage as well.  I put the litter boxes, one for each ferret, in the bottom (back). I used to have the food in the bottom (front-left) but with all of the litter getting dragged/thrown around, the food gets scattered and I don't want litter and food mixed together in the cage. Right now, I have the food dish on a higher level, and my baby (2 mos.) loves to snorkel in and throw the food around, which ends up on my floor. It's a big waste and a lot of clean-up. Do you have any suggestions for me?  Sorry for such a long message, and thank you so much in advance!

Answer
Dear Beckie,

I am mildly alarmed to hear that your 4 month old baby has gained weight so very quickly!  Usually male ferrets will gain about 40% of their weight around November and loose it again in the spring, but I do not think this is related to seasonal fluctuations.  Totally Ferret is a highly recommended food for our fuzzies, so I don't want to assume that its not good for your baby.

A rapid weight gain *can* mean that the ferret is bloated and swollen in his belly, often indicative of a blockage.  If you have a vet, give him or her a call and ask them over the phone.  In the meantime, watch his bowel movements and water intake very closely.  If he should have watery bowels or a strong intake of water with little elimination, take him to the vet immediately.

Of course, he could just be adjusting to the new food.  He will probably level out as time goes by, but talk to the vet anyway just to put your mind at ease.  :-)

As far as the cage is concerned, let me say this:  My little girl LOVES to snorkel, both in food and in water.  I learned very quickly that giving her a water bowl will result in a sludge of food, litter and water all over the cage floor.  So I had to resort to a water bottle.  But still, she'd push her face through the food bowl and seemed to delight in knocking 80% of it on to the floor and sometimes in or near the potty box.

Here's what I did to solve the problem: I got two food bowls that mount to the side of the cage (they save floor space, especially on multi-level cages), and attached them on two different levels (2nd and 3rd) just to the side of each half-shelf so that the ferrets can sit on the shelf and eat.  Each bowl is deep enough to hold a night's worth of food, but I only fill them 1/3rd of the way deep.  

That way, the ferret can munch all night while I sleep without running out of food AND without being able to push the food out of the deeper dish.  Plus they get exercise by having to climb up or down to get to the bowl.  You can always just put one dish in, but be sure that they have enough in there to eat when they want without running out.  

Hope this helps!

Let me know how your chubby-wubby does!

Stephenie