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Post by zoologist on Jan 31, 2011 23:53:36 GMT -5
Does any one else's ferrets shake when they get picked up?
I've noticed the past couple of months when I pick up Chewey and cuddle him he starts shaking. He's not cold and he's not sick. He just shakes while i scratch him and stops shaking the second I put him down. Lily doesn't do this.
any ideas?
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2011 0:41:13 GMT -5
My Pixie does this occassionally. I'd be interested to hear any ideas as well. Pixie always shivers quite a bit when she wakes up, but I assumed this was normal. I also notice that Pixie always feels warmer to the touch than Trixie does. When the vets took her rectal temp, it was within normal range, so I don't think it's a fever.
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Post by bluemoose on Feb 1, 2011 0:49:17 GMT -5
Shaking when waking up is definitely normal. They just get colder while sleeping so they shiver to bring their temp back up a bit.
As for shaking when you pick them up, the only idea I have is excitement. Some animals are just more high stung than others so maybe he just gets excited when he's getting extra attention. Or I suppose he could be in pain for some reason when you hold him? Something internal that gets aggravated by the pressure of being held. Just ideas. I really have no clue lol
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Post by taratee on Feb 1, 2011 0:54:00 GMT -5
I thought it had to do with metabolism. like they shake to jumpstart their metabolism from sleeping metabolic rate to waking rate. all of my babies tend to shake a little when they wake up
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Post by bluemoose on Feb 1, 2011 0:55:19 GMT -5
Hm maybe. I always heard temperature but I don't know for sure.
Edit: I googled it and all the sites I saw said they shiver to regulate their body temperature. Not that google is always right lol
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Post by bluemoose on Feb 1, 2011 1:02:39 GMT -5
Speaking of regulating body temperature, maybe he shakes when you hold him because your hands are cold. Sounds silly but when you're as small as a ferret, being held in a person's hands could cool off your whole body.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2011 1:09:59 GMT -5
I've always read that the shaking when waking up is to bring the body temperature back up to normal values. Body temp usually drops while asleep. Same reason we shiver when we're cold.
Bluemoose, the cold hands thing is definitely a possibility. I didn't even think about that. Next time I'll try picking her up with gloves and see if she shakes.
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Post by wtferret on Feb 1, 2011 1:19:51 GMT -5
Its to raise body temp. There's a video of bob church at legalizeferrets.com from the sept 25 revival and I think he talks about it ( he did / lectures im not sure what ones posted)
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2011 1:25:20 GMT -5
From Wiki on thermoregulation:
4.Muscles can also receive messages from the thermo-regulatory center of the brain (the hypothalamus) to cause shivering. This increases heat production as respiration is an exothermic reaction in muscle cells. Shivering is more effective than exercise at producing heat because the animal remains still. This means that less heat is lost to the environment via convection. There are two types of shivering: low intensity and high intensity. During low intensity shivering animals shiver constantly at a low level for months during cold conditions. During high intensity shivering animals shiver violently for a relatively short time. Both processes consume energy although high intensity shivering uses glucose as a fuel source and low intensity tends to use fats. This is a primary reason why animals store up food in the winter.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2011 8:28:04 GMT -5
I know that this is not the case with Chewy, but Sophie Ann and Velma shake because they're scared (abuse/neglect) when they are picked up...
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Post by Sherry on Feb 1, 2011 10:15:30 GMT -5
If it's only when he's being picked up, it could well be excitement, since it stops when he's put back down. The only other thing I can think of offhand is low blood sugar, but that *should* continue until he eats.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2011 10:55:12 GMT -5
Does any one else's ferrets shake when they get picked up? I've noticed the past couple of months when I pick up Chewey and cuddle him he starts shaking. He's not cold and he's not sick. He just shakes while i scratch him and stops shaking the second I put him down. Lily doesn't do this. any ideas? It would be interesting to find out why this is, my best friend's little sprite, Nyxa, who is 8 months old shakes everytime anyone picks her up (except my best friend's fiancee)
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2011 12:54:41 GMT -5
I'm thinking it's cold hands. I don't think low blood sugar, because like Sherry said, that should persist until they eat. I picked Pixie up today with a blanket (no hand contact) and no shaking. I picked her up later with cold hand, and she shivered a bit.
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Post by acodlin on Feb 1, 2011 21:19:40 GMT -5
Naobi and Tasha shake like crazy when I pick them up. On rare occasions others will, but everytime I pick those two up in particular they do it. Not sure why, they are a group I adopted and they were already 3 years old. I thought it was fear but they dont try to get down, they play with me, come to me when Im sitting on the floor so maybe it is cold hands or something along those lines. They also shake like crazy if I put ferretone on their bellies, but I figured thats just excitement.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 7, 2011 13:25:01 GMT -5
I'm thinking it's cold hands. I don't think low blood sugar, because like Sherry said, that should persist until they eat. I picked Pixie up today with a blanket (no hand contact) and no shaking. I picked her up later with cold hand, and she shivered a bit. I am going to have to tell my best friend to try that thank you ;D
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