# Loki is being spayed next thursday



## noushka05 (Mar 28, 2008)

:Nailbiting 

I'm a bit worried but I've booked by favourite vet to do the op. Hes spayed four of my bitches, neutered my dog & I think he did Sid our stray cat - so thought he might as well do my ferret as well lol One thing that concerns me is she has definitely put a lot of weight on, to the point that her stomach looks fat! My hubby was convinced she was due to have kits - thats how big shes got. (she cant possibly be, she had the jill jab & we've had her way over the gestation period) I thought you free fed ferrets? but did I ought to restrict her food? She is SO greedy - her nose is never out of the dish when shes awake lol Do you think its because she might have been deprived of food before I found her? She seemed skinny to me then, I think I commented about it on the other thread.


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## SarahBugz (Mar 14, 2011)

I don't have loads of experience with Ferrets but I know some can be quite chunky. When mine was outside before we moved she was quite chunky... especially over the winter months but now we live in a flat she's slimmed down a bit. I free feed her. Again when she's awake she normally eats or is trying to stash food somewhere.


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## noushka05 (Mar 28, 2008)

SarahBugz said:


> I don't have loads of experience with Ferrets but I know some can be quite chunky. When mine was outside before we moved she was quite chunky... especially over the winter months but now we live in a flat she's slimmed down a bit. I free feed her. Again when she's awake she normally eats or is trying to stash food somewhere.


Thank you so much Sarah, you've put my mind at rest somewhat  I was thinking it was abnormal for her to be so plump. I'm hoping once shes got over her spay & shes living permanently with the male she'll get into shape lol


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## Frolicking Ferrets (Mar 1, 2016)

Being food deprived over a long period of time can trigger ferret to eat more. Have you got a photo of her belly?

My jills are greedy guts but they have their reasons such as lactating to feed their young or being pregnant, or have just been mated......... My hobs are also greedy, Vinnie was deprived of food before I got him so he eats loads and is very heavy even though he's not fat, likely because he's an entire male and is currently in rut and Jimmy is just a big ferret with an appitite to match his size.


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## noushka05 (Mar 28, 2008)

I took these the other day when she was rolling around  They're not great but I will try to get some better ones.


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## Sled dog hotel (Aug 11, 2010)

It was years ago we had them pre all the dried ferret food, and ours were fed raw, so they were fed only at specific times not free fed. So maybe its the free feeding and she is just eating too much perhaps?


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## noushka05 (Mar 28, 2008)

Sled dog hotel said:


> It was years ago we had them pre all the dried ferret food, and ours were fed raw, so they were fed only at specific times not free fed. So maybe its the free feeding and she is just eating too much perhaps?


I think this is the case June. Shes incredibly greedy - she seems to eat much more than Jango does. I give them raw every night, but she either hides hers or if its a mince just leaves it in her dish. Shes very funny with raw. I remember @Frolicking Ferrets saying that they imprint on their food when they're babies, so is it possible she wasnt fed the meats I'm giving her perhaps? I give them natures menu rabbit & chicken & the chicken one. Lamb hearts & I've tried liver - neither of them will eat that. I found Loki's piece stuck on the side of her box!:Wtf lol Maybe I should try some different meats? See if she likes them.


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## Sled dog hotel (Aug 11, 2010)

noushka05 said:


> I think this is the case June. Shes incredibly greedy - she seems to eat much more than Jango does. I give them raw every night, but she either hides hers or if its a mince just leaves it in her dish. Shes very funny with raw. I remember @Frolicking Ferrets saying that they imprint on their food when they're babies, so is it possible she wasnt fed the meats I'm giving her perhaps? I give them natures menu rabbit & chicken & the chicken one. Lamb hearts & I've tried liver - neither of them will eat that. I found Loki's piece stuck on the side of her box!:Wtf lol Maybe I should try some different meats? See if she likes them.


Maybe its because neither of them have ever had raw and so will only eat the dried stuff then FF advice is usually terrific and much better then mine. I wonder if they would eat something like beef or lamb mince or chunks, even my dogs wont eat chicken mince or chicken pieces and they weren't that keen on the natures menu either unless it was tripe beef or lamb any of the other ones they didn't eat unless it was red meat. When we had ferrets years ago now and showing my age, my dad used to get them raw horse meat from the pet food stall that's how long ago that was and they loved it would just give them a piece of it.

I wouldnt recommend Battenberg though, I remember when my Nan tried to give my Dads Ferret Battenberg cake and was worried when they wouldn't eat it Lucky they had the sense not to heavens what it would have done, whatever possessed her to give it to them I don't know.


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## noushka05 (Mar 28, 2008)

Sled dog hotel said:


> Maybe its because neither of them have ever had raw and so will only eat the dried stuff then FF advice is usually terrific and much better then mine. I wonder if they would eat something like beef or lamb mince or chunks, even my dogs wont eat chicken mince or chicken pieces and they weren't that keen on the natures menu either unless it was tripe beef or lamb any of the other ones they didn't eat unless it was red meat. When we had ferrets years ago now and showing my age, my dad used to get them raw horse meat from the pet food stall that's how long ago that was and they loved it would just give them a piece of it.
> 
> I wouldnt recommend Battenberg though, I remember when my Nan tried to give my Dads Ferret Battenberg cake and was worried when they wouldn't eat it Lucky they had the sense not to heavens what it would have done, whatever possessed her to give it to them I don't know.


Jango's not so bad - his previous owners did say he wouldn't entertain certain meats but he loved hearts, hence why I bought them (a £7 carrier bag full!) lol. But I feel you're right about Loki, so I'm going to try the beef & lamb like you suggest. Thank you. I'll not bother with natures menu - i'll get some from the butchers, I'm almost out of hearts anyway:Wtf I bet your Dads ferrets were a lot better on a more natural diet. I dont think dried is always for the best.

Battenburg:Hilarious Bless your Nan, she was just being kind. Its the sort of thing my Nan would have done


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## Sled dog hotel (Aug 11, 2010)

noushka05 said:


> Jango's not so bad - his previous owners did say he wouldn't entertain certain meats but he loved hearts, hence why I bought them (a £7 carrier bag full!) lol. But I feel you're right about Loki, so I'm going to try the beef & lamb like you suggest. Thank you. I'll not bother with natures menu - i'll get some from the butchers, I'm almost out of hearts anyway:Wtf I bet your Dads ferrets were a lot better on a more natural diet. I dont think dried is always for the best.
> 
> Battenburg:Hilarious Bless your Nan, she was just being kind. Its the sort of thing my Nan would have done


Back then there wasn't such a thing as dried ferret food, even when he found a ferret in much later years he did still give it a raw diet, they all seemed to thrieve on it and all lived to very old ages as far as I remember.


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## Frolicking Ferrets (Mar 1, 2016)

To me Loki looks fine, I wouldn't say she's fat, just a bit on the chubby side which shows she has a healthy appetite


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## noushka05 (Mar 28, 2008)

Sled dog hotel said:


> Back then there wasn't such a thing as dried ferret food, even when he found a ferret in much later years he did still give it a raw diet, they all seemed to thrieve on it and all lived to very old ages as far as I remember.


I think an appropriate diet is best so I'm going to keep trying to incorporate more raw into their diets  I wish I had the stomach to feed them roadkill We get loads of dead pheasants round here, such a waste - though I suppose they provide food for our scavengers.



Frolicking Ferrets said:


> To me Loki looks fine, I wouldn't say she's fat, just a bit on the chubby side which shows she has a healthy appetite


Aw thats brilliant, I was worried about her. She does love her food, bless her lol


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## Sled dog hotel (Aug 11, 2010)

noushka05 said:


> I think an appropriate diet is best so I'm going to keep trying to incorporate more raw into their diets  I wish I had the stomach to feed them roadkill We get loads of dead pheasants round here, such a waste - though I suppose they provide food for our scavengers.
> 
> Aw thats brilliant, I was worried about her. She does love her food, bless her lol


That is another thing my Dads used to get on a regular basis too, they used to love it, but does take a bit of a strong stomach I suppose.


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## noushka05 (Mar 28, 2008)

Sled dog hotel said:


> That is another thing my Dads used to get on a regular basis too, they used to love it, but does take a bit of a strong stomach I suppose.


My stomach is weak - I think this could be another job for my hubby


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## SarahBugz (Mar 14, 2011)

Hope Loki's spay goes ok today!!!!


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## Frolicking Ferrets (Mar 1, 2016)

Good luck to Loki!


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## noushka05 (Mar 28, 2008)

SarahBugz said:


> Hope Loki's spay goes ok today!!!!





Frolicking Ferrets said:


> Good luck to Loki!


Thank you both so much for your best wishes for her xx The op went fine & shes all done & dusted. When I went in the shed this morning she came out of her box when she heard me. She looked ok but I couldnt see her wound so will have a look at that later. She has to go back to the vets tuesday for them to check shes healing ok - obviously if I'm worried in the meantime I'm to take her before. I'm so relieved to get the op over with. I cant wait to get her fully integrated with Jango - and neither can Jango!


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## Frolicking Ferrets (Mar 1, 2016)

Good to hear the op went well


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## noushka05 (Mar 28, 2008)

Thank you x The wound looks very neat. She wasn't up when I went in earlier so I'm hoping she hasnt been meddling with it.


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## Frolicking Ferrets (Mar 1, 2016)

Ferret don't usually mess around with op wounds which is why you never see a ferret in the cone of shame or any other preventative to stop them from nibbling at it.


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## Sled dog hotel (Aug 11, 2010)

Glad to hear the spay went well, and so far recovery seems to be going well too. Be nice when they can be together.


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## noushka05 (Mar 28, 2008)

Frolicking Ferrets said:


> Ferret don't usually mess around with op wounds which is why you never see a ferret in the cone of shame or any other preventative to stop them from nibbling at it.


I think you're right. Shes healing amazingly well - theres hardly anything there I'm going to try to get a photo when my hubby gets home to hold her..



Sled dog hotel said:


> Glad to hear the spay went well, and so far recovery seems to be going well too. Be nice when they can be together.


 Thank you June. Yes, so far, so good. I've been showing them each other though the bars - they both seem keen to get to each other, especially Jango.


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## noushka05 (Mar 28, 2008)

This was taken last night, so 4 days after her op. How neat is that?  She was supposed to go back to the vets tonight, but I couldnt get the vet I wanted till tomorrow, so tomorrow it is. I'm certain they will be pleased with her progress.


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## SarahBugz (Mar 14, 2011)

Wow! That's impressive! Has it really only been 4 days?


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## Sled dog hotel (Aug 11, 2010)

That is really need and healed very well too by the looks of it.


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## Frolicking Ferrets (Mar 1, 2016)

Looks like it's healing great


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## noushka05 (Mar 28, 2008)

SarahBugz said:


> Wow! That's impressive! Has it really only been 4 days?


I know, isn't it amazing



Sled dog hotel said:


> That is really need and healed very well too by the looks of it.





Frolicking Ferrets said:


> Looks like it's healing great


I love my vet, I knew he'd do a good job & I'm so pleased she hasn't bothered with it. What tough little animals they are. Shes carried on like nothing has happened to her, bless her. I'm wondering how long I should keep her seperated from Jango for? Jango is VERY boisterous, so I'm a bit scared to rush things.


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## Frolicking Ferrets (Mar 1, 2016)

Ferrets need at least 6 weeks to heal properly before being put with another ferret, ideally about 8 just to be safe.


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## noushka05 (Mar 28, 2008)

Frolicking Ferrets said:


> Ferrets need at least 6 weeks to heal properly before being put with another ferret, ideally about 8 just to be safe.


I'm really glad I asked that question, I was thinking giving her a couple of weeks. Thanks very much FF for your great advice x. I've waited this long to put them together another few weeks wont hurt them


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## Babyshoes (Jul 1, 2016)

Glad her spey went well. I'm always amazed at how quickly ferrets heal! 

She is a lovely little chunk, I do love to watch a chunky ferret bounce - they look like a little furry rubber ball when they go all out on the war dance. I find they sometimes put on and lose weight with the seasons. As mine are indoor fuzzies their bodies can sometimes get confused - I've had some lose weight and shed their fur in the autumn when our heating goes on, and put on weight in the spring... We adopted one boy (Tetris) who was so fat when he came to us that his tummy touched the floor when he was relaxed or squatting to pee - he always had a wet tummy after going to the toilet on paper... He lost a fair bit of fat with plenty of encouragement to play, but was always quite round, even when he was regularly bouncing around like a younger ferret. It never seemed to cause him any health problems, apart from a rash (like nappy rash) if he didn't wash himself properly at the time he kept getting a wet tummy. 

If her weight is a worry, you can get a cheapy digital kitchen scale for around a tenner, then put an old icecream tub or similar on the scale and zero it before putting ferret in the tub. A drop of ferretone/ferret oil on the tummy will keep them still long enough for the scale to settle. If you are doing that, you probably want to keep a record of weight every week or so.


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## noushka05 (Mar 28, 2008)

I was amazed. I thought dogs healed quickly but I think ferrets must take the biscuit lol

She is lovely - & chunky! The problem I have with Loki is shes isn't a particularly bouncy ferret. She prefers to roll around on her back when she plays - the rest of the time she like to investigate things - and eat! lol When shes living permanently with my VERY active & playful boy, I'm hoping this will help get her into shape a bit. Its a great idea to get some scales, I'll definitely get some & keep a check on her weight. Thank you


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## Babyshoes (Jul 1, 2016)

noushka05 said:


> I was amazed. I thought dogs healed quickly but I think ferrets must take the biscuit lol
> 
> She is lovely - & chunky! The problem I have with Loki is shes isn't a particularly bouncy ferret. She prefers to roll around on her back when she plays - the rest of the time she like to investigate things - and eat! lol When shes living permanently with my VERY active & playful boy, I'm hoping this will help get her into shape a bit. Its a great idea to get some scales, I'll definitely get some & keep a check on her weight. Thank you


Something else I forgot to mention with a chunk is to be careful of how you hold them. You may already know & do this, but be sure to support her back end when holding her, rather than letting her weight hang as you hold her round the chest. While hanging ferrets is generally safe for a slim fuzz for a short time, extra tummy weight (whether due to fat or pregnancy) when hanging can stress the spine and cause damage. With particularly heavy fuzz, like my Tetris was, I try to support all the way up from the ground whenever possible, which can be tricky if you're reaching into an awkward space to collect a sleeping fuzz. Luckily I have fairly long fingers, so if picking up one-handed I can stick my baby finger out and support the tummy a bit while the thumb and first 2 fingers are holding the front end - I tend to place my palm a little further back too so the weight is more balanced - hard to describe! Once you've got the ferret up, it's easy enough to support the weight by holding them against yourself and/or lying them along your wrist and arm.

In terms of playing, I've found that they all seem to have different ways of having fun, but most seem to enjoy a cat teaser which rattles (rather than jingles). They can be hard to find, but if you see one in a shop, grab it to try! I used to get some from Wilkos which had a fairly loud, hard plastic rattly ball and a feather on the end. The feather would be shredded in minutes (and take weeks to find all the pieces), but they loved the rattly noise. Unfortunately Wilko discontinued those some years back - I'm guessing cats weren't as keen on them as ferrets! You could also try shaking a towel or clothing at her that she can catch, then pull it out from under her to get her excited - my Duke loves the 'hanging out washing' game... Something else that seems to get them excited is to explore an area they don't usually go. Our flat is tiny, but quite often after play time I will let one of mine out of their usual play area (the lounge) into the rest of the flat for a run around. Make sure you put the lid down on the toilet and close any cupboards first if you do that! I only let one at a time out, as the rest of the flat is not completely ferret proof, so I do need to keep an eye on them. Also, not going out every day keeps it interesting and exciting when they do go out.

Good luck with slimming her down, but if that doesn't happen don't worry too much. Like us humans, some ferrets are just a bit rounder than others, so relax and enjoy the extra fuzziness to cuddle!


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## Frolicking Ferrets (Mar 1, 2016)

That's how I hold my jills when they're pregnant or just a bit over weight, lay them alongside inside of my forearm, do it with my hobs too but sometimes they like to spray on me so I have to keep baby wipes with me at all times lol XD


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## Babyshoes (Jul 1, 2016)

Frolicking Ferrets said:


> do it with my hobs too but sometimes they like to spray on me so I have to keep baby wipes with me at all times lol XD


Lol, that's just part of being a ferrent though! Goes with the ferret fur all over your washing...


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## Frolicking Ferrets (Mar 1, 2016)

Mine don't get fur all over my washing as they're outdoor ferrets but it does stick to my clothing when I handle them and they're moulting so sticky tape becomes my best friend lol.


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## noushka05 (Mar 28, 2008)

Babyshoes said:


> Something else I forgot to mention with a chunk is to be careful of how you hold them. You may already know & do this, but be sure to support her back end when holding her, rather than letting her weight hang as you hold her round the chest. While hanging ferrets is generally safe for a slim fuzz for a short time, extra tummy weight (whether due to fat or pregnancy) when hanging can stress the spine and cause damage. With particularly heavy fuzz, like my Tetris was, I try to support all the way up from the ground whenever possible, which can be tricky if you're reaching into an awkward space to collect a sleeping fuzz. Luckily I have fairly long fingers, so if picking up one-handed I can stick my baby finger out and support the tummy a bit while the thumb and first 2 fingers are holding the front end - I tend to place my palm a little further back too so the weight is more balanced - hard to describe! Once you've got the ferret up, it's easy enough to support the weight by holding them against yourself and/or lying them along your wrist and arm.
> 
> In terms of playing, I've found that they all seem to have different ways of having fun, but most seem to enjoy a cat teaser which rattles (rather than jingles). They can be hard to find, but if you see one in a shop, grab it to try! I used to get some from Wilkos which had a fairly loud, hard plastic rattly ball and a feather on the end. The feather would be shredded in minutes (and take weeks to find all the pieces), but they loved the rattly noise. Unfortunately Wilko discontinued those some years back - I'm guessing cats weren't as keen on them as ferrets! You could also try shaking a towel or clothing at her that she can catch, then pull it out from under her to get her excited - my Duke loves the 'hanging out washing' game... Something else that seems to get them excited is to explore an area they don't usually go. Our flat is tiny, but quite often after play time I will let one of mine out of their usual play area (the lounge) into the rest of the flat for a run around. Make sure you put the lid down on the toilet and close any cupboards first if you do that! I only let one at a time out, as the rest of the flat is not completely ferret proof, so I do need to keep an eye on them. Also, not going out every day keeps it interesting and exciting when they do go out.
> 
> Good luck with slimming her down, but if that doesn't happen don't worry too much. Like us humans, some ferrets are just a bit rounder than others, so relax and enjoy the extra fuzziness to cuddle!





Frolicking Ferrets said:


> That's how I hold my jills when they're pregnant or just a bit over weight, lay them alongside inside of my forearm, do it with my hobs too but sometimes they like to spray on me so I have to keep baby wipes with me at all times lol XD


I do hold her like this - and she always licks my arm She also licks my neck when I'm cuddling her to me. Is this just for salt or is she showing affection? I really do feel she is being affectionate.

She has various toys @Babyshoes but whereas Jango (the male) loves playing with balls, toys on elastic (tbh he sees anything & everything as a toy) Loki doesn't. She will sometimes play with a knotted rope, that's perhaps her favourite, but she never goes mad like Jango does. She seems happy just doing her own little thing. Thank you for all the great tips & ideas, even if Loki doesn't benefit - Jango will! lol


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## Frolicking Ferrets (Mar 1, 2016)

The licking is usually for the taste of salt but can also affectionate grooming too, they usually slight and very gently nibble too when they're grooming :3


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