Post by stargazer420 on Apr 24, 2009 22:53:28 GMT -5
It's unbelieveable how quickly a ferret can go downhill~! Even though he's my moms ferret, I saw Hootie everyday, and he was the biggest and fattest of all so I would always mush around with his belly.
Last Saturday, less than a week ago, I noticed he was dragging himself through the litter pan and kind of dribbling when he peed. I wrote it off as just hind leg weakness due to his prior abuse and figured he was just kinda laying down to pee.
No other noticeable problems untli Wednesday. When I picked him up to play with his belly I noticed a small lump. It was firm but squishy and could be moved around. It didn't appear to cause him any pain. It was too late to call the vet Wed, so I called first thing Thursday morning and couldn't get an appt until 3:20pm on Fri. (today)
When I got to my moms Thursday, the mass had tripled in size and could be felt from his belly and his back. He was very lethargic and his breathing was weak. The vet was already closed, but mom and I agreed we would take him first thing in the morning to be put down.
Hootie wouldn't have it that way, and he passed away around 4am in my moms arms. He's at peace now.
this is an older picture of him, not when he had the lump
the rest of his album is here:
smg.photobucket.com/albums/v482/stargazer420/Ferrets/Hootie
We got Hootie about 4 1/2 years ago. No clue how old he was. The absolute WORST case of neglect I've ever seen. Living in a tiny cage with a wire floor. 1 hammock, no food bowl, water or litter pan. His hair was so thin you could see the dozens of fleas crawling all over him. One of his toes was black and barely hanging on. It actually fell off on it's own before I could get him to the vet to have it removed. He weighed less than 1 pound when we got him and tried with all his might to eat my moms thumb as we were carrying the cage into the house. He gained 1 pound in 1 week, and continued to plump up to nearly 4 pounds, and also regrew all his hair. He had permanent hind leg damage from spending his life in the cage with the wire bottom, and he never really learned to play. He was just a big fat mamas boy, and I'm glad at least his years with us were happy ones.
Lynlee
Last Saturday, less than a week ago, I noticed he was dragging himself through the litter pan and kind of dribbling when he peed. I wrote it off as just hind leg weakness due to his prior abuse and figured he was just kinda laying down to pee.
No other noticeable problems untli Wednesday. When I picked him up to play with his belly I noticed a small lump. It was firm but squishy and could be moved around. It didn't appear to cause him any pain. It was too late to call the vet Wed, so I called first thing Thursday morning and couldn't get an appt until 3:20pm on Fri. (today)
When I got to my moms Thursday, the mass had tripled in size and could be felt from his belly and his back. He was very lethargic and his breathing was weak. The vet was already closed, but mom and I agreed we would take him first thing in the morning to be put down.
Hootie wouldn't have it that way, and he passed away around 4am in my moms arms. He's at peace now.
this is an older picture of him, not when he had the lump
the rest of his album is here:
smg.photobucket.com/albums/v482/stargazer420/Ferrets/Hootie
We got Hootie about 4 1/2 years ago. No clue how old he was. The absolute WORST case of neglect I've ever seen. Living in a tiny cage with a wire floor. 1 hammock, no food bowl, water or litter pan. His hair was so thin you could see the dozens of fleas crawling all over him. One of his toes was black and barely hanging on. It actually fell off on it's own before I could get him to the vet to have it removed. He weighed less than 1 pound when we got him and tried with all his might to eat my moms thumb as we were carrying the cage into the house. He gained 1 pound in 1 week, and continued to plump up to nearly 4 pounds, and also regrew all his hair. He had permanent hind leg damage from spending his life in the cage with the wire bottom, and he never really learned to play. He was just a big fat mamas boy, and I'm glad at least his years with us were happy ones.
Lynlee
At least Hootie was lucky to have found you guys,what a beautiful boy he was.
