Severly underweight!!!

[geringe]

hello, i'm new to the forum, i've been lurking here for a while, but this will be one of my first real posts.

i got a call today about a female ferret that needed rehoming ASAP. her cage mate died and she was described as being "very depressed, not eating much". i knew she very urgently needed a new forever home with other ferrets she could socialize with. i have two little boys (sherman, nearly 1 yo, and martin, who is 2.) and i was excited to be bringing home a sweet little girl.

i knew absolutely nothing about her, except that if she wasn't homed today that she'd be taken to the humane society to be euthanized. when i met the lady who was rehoming her for one of her cousins i was absolutely shocked. there is absolutely no fat on this girl at all. she is the most critically underweight ferret i have ever seen. i was absolutely heartbroken. worried that she was anorexic from the stress of her cage mate dying, i asked the woman that i met up with for more history on her, to my surprise her cage mate only died (an accidental death) yesterday!!!! she has obviously been severely neglected!! her ears were crusty, her nails were overgrown, her vulva is a bit puffy and red, possibly infected, and she has a lot of hair loss. the hair loss i'm guessing is from malnutrition because she has no signs of adrenal.

so, she's set up in a cage in my bedroom away from my boys where i can keep an eye on her all the time. she's eating (and pooping!!) very well, which was extremely relieving. she's moving around well, healthy body temperature, and has good energy, but what's the fastest way i can help her put on weight??? i feed my furts high quality, grain-free cat food, which she has already taken to because i did not want to feed her the marshalls food her previous owners had sent with her. in addition to that i've been giving her chicken baby food, which she loved, and an egg yolk, which she didn't touch. i'll be taking her to the vet in the morning.

she's about 3 or 4 years old, and a deaf albino, she's so precious, i don't understand how she went neglected for so long please help!!

[Heather]

In all honesty....from the description you give she has advanced adrenal and should be seen by a vet ASAP for an implant. She needs a health check. Weight loss can be caused by neglect I won't deny it but the symptoms you give are classic adrenal symptoms. Get that looked to and you will see with the good food and her adrenal treated she will put weight on
ciao

[geringe]

thanks for your quick response, i did not think it was adrenal since her fur is just thin and not patchy, and her lady parts are just a tad irritated looking and not nearly as swollen as some adrenal ferrets, but a lot of symptoms so you're probably right. my vet just started doing implants so we're in luck. she's got an appointment tomorrow.

[Sherry]

I agree- she sounds adrenal. And so glad you are able to get her the implant so quickly! Thank you for giving this wee girl a forever home. Also, have your vet do a bg test just in case. Adrenal and insulinoma frequently go hand in hand with kibble fed ferrets and the adrenal can mask the insulinoma.