Wednesday, February 02, 2011
Ferrets
are rascally little critters, who can be very entertaining and quite
mischievous. They will often hide
items of yours, such as keys or toys that they may hole up in the underside of
a mattress. They also like to eat
foamy spongy things, which can create intestinal blockages. They are quite social and do best in
groups so that they can entertain each other. Even still, the more the ferrets, the more the (fun) mayhem,
which will require ferret-proofing your home for their safety and your sanity.
Ferrets
are strict carnivores and need a very high protein diet. Due to the genetics of domesticated
ferrets, cancers are quite common and almost a certainty at some point in
life. Adrenal tumors, insulinomas,
and lymphoma are the most common.
Adrenal tumors tend to cause symmetrical hair loss and sometimes vulvar
enlargement. Lymphoma tends to
lead to weight loss and possibly diarrhea. Insulinomas make it very difficult for ferrets to maintain
normal blood sugar levels, and can go into hypoglycemic naps, seizures, or die.