Wet Ferrets

[Deleted]

I just did a little bit of research and car sickness does seem to be possible but rare and I can't find much information on it. Is there any info on this forum? It wouldn't be very much and only bile.
I've been doing the water bottle thing, except I've just been filling it up wit ice cubes since we have an abundance of those right now, and changing it more frequently. They also have one in their cage but they never use it.

[Mario's mom]

I took Mario on a 2 hour trip.  I had him in a hard plastic cat carrier. The carrier was held on the front seat with the seat belt.  There were 2 air conditioning vents pointed at the carrier.

About an hour into the trip I noticed that he was displaying signs of being overheated.  Panting, tongue hanging out, drooling, listless.  So um... breaking the speed limit I got to an exit as fast as I could.  I wrapped him in a damp towel to cool him down and then put him into his travel cage.

The very next time I placed him in the cat carrier he exhibited the same symptoms even before he had time to get overheated!

So I was wondering if your fuzzys are having a reaction to the carrier and are drooling/slobbering.

[Heather]

Is your cat carrier totally enclosed? That is a stress type reaction. I had a wee girlie (many years ago) who reacted to the verikennels in this manner. About the same time I got a rescue who came with an open type cage (Kaylee or something like that)....hard plastic bottom often sold as a guinea pig cage. Too small for anything to live in (just my opinion). It fit comfortably on my back seat and I could use the seat belt to strap it in. I could put a litter box, a hammy and some blankets in it and I used that. She loved it. She would sit up in the hammy and watch the world go by...no more stress. I've been using that type ever since. I've got a couple of them (different sizes), they work wonderfully for transporting....it's just a thought
ciao

[Deleted]

I haven't notices any panting or tongues hanging out, I have been in the back seat with them every time we take them out save for once when my girlfriend was instead. We leave the carrier out on the floor when they come out of their cage and they will play in it or go sleep in it. When we put them all in to go for a ride they scramble around a little bit, paw at the gate as you would expect, then after a few minutes they settle down and cuddle on top of each other, they don't seem to go to sleep, maybe not enough time to sleep. They will nuzzle my fingers when I stick them through the bars but everything else seems normal.

This is the cage we are using with their towel in with them. I have noticed that the bottom gets warm after a car ride. Should I try taking the towel out?

If it is a stress reaction I'm worried, because they are going to be on a long trip soon. My traveling situation is a bit weird. My parents are coming from California to pick us up (we are in maryland) to go to Connecticut. They have a pickup truck, Toyota camry, and a trailer for our stuff. They have a dog and a cat with them and we have a cat, hamster, and our ferrets. Our plan right now is to fit the ferret cage in the cab of the truck behind the passenger seat (they have a small cage because they free roam most of the time) The other place would be in the back seat of the toyota but our dog is and she is not a small dog. We might have to rig up the spare cage that we got from the previous owners, but it's very busted up and I know that our girl can escape from that one if she really tries.

If one of them is stressing enough to pee on the others are they going to be okay for the 6 hour ride to connecticut? Even if they are in a normal cage and it's cool enough? There's no real way to do a practice ride with the whole cage because right now we are using my girlfriend's mom's minivan. Any suggestions on what to do?

[Deleted]

Though it's never been with ferts, I've made some VERY long road trips with pets. 

Atlanta to Tucson and back with a dog
Atlanta to Tucson with a dog, 3 cats and a lizard
Phoenix to DC with a cat
Pittsburgh to Denver with 2 cats
Denver to Pittsburgh with 2 cats in a MINI!

I've found that the first hour is the worst.  Once they realize that they're not going to the vet and get used to the sounds and sights they relax.  That being said, none of my animals had issues with anxiety beyond what would be considered normal.

It seems like 10-15 minutes in the car might be just enough to get everyone stressed - even you.

Suzie

[abbeytheferret6]

I took my first 3 ferrets to Panama city Florida from Charlotte NC---about 9 hours. Mine were in a nice size wire cage similar to a guinea pig cage also. They seemed to enjoy the vibration of car in their hammock. I think being able to see all about them does help and having a hammock. As long as they r cool,have space ,and food and water, they should be just fine. U could also let them stretch their legs when you take stops---depending on the heat tho.

[katt]

I've made multiple trips with the boys. We used to travel back and forth between mine and my fiancé's places regularly - 15-20min drive in small cat carrier; we would also go to the cabin almost every weekend - 3.5hrs usually in travel cage, very rarely in the carrier when space was limited and the travel cage had to be packed with gear or put in a truck bed. Currently the vet is 20min away - they ride in the cat carrier. More recently, we made a several day trip down the ALCAN from AK to WA. We were driving non-stop (aside from gas stops and a brief visit in Canada with Sherry ). They traveled in their travel cage for that one - which is a modified Guinea pig cage. In a few weeks they will be flying in a larger airline-standard pet carrier that is big enough for a tiny litter box - flying will be new for them.

I've never had any issue with traveling with them - BUT every animal is very different and my boys have been making car trips since they were kits. Just because one ferret doesn't get car sick doesn't mean another won't.

I would REALLY suggest trying car rides in the cage they are actually going to be riding in for the trip. Also, worst case scenario ask your vet for appropriate Benadryl dosing to sedate the car-sick ferret(s) before you leave.

[Deleted]

I have one that drools when stressed. However he's been ok with car rides, we've travelled with ferrets by car throughout Europe (say 2000+km). I noticed that sometimes the carrier gets moist on short rides under blankies because of some... condensation? No idea. Nothing particularly bad though. They've learned to get pretty chill and sleep within an hour or so. Do take a break every 2-3h?.

[Deleted]

Update!

Today I took them for a ride in their full cage. They were scrambling around for a few minutes but after a while they all piled into the hammock and relaxed, didn't sleep though. At one point it looked like Hobbes was drooling a bit but I think he had just gotten a drink of water as it went away pretty fast. All together we were in the car for about half an hour and they were pretty good, I think the ride to ct is going to go fine.

[Deleted]

Hip Hip Hooray!!!!! Best Wishes For Sure - just take it easy, and allow them to acclimate, make sure they have water, are cool enough, and give them touches of love along the way. May your adventure be fruitful and relatively unproblematic. Here's To You and Yours!

[Deleted]

UPDATE!

The move was successful, just got the wifi running. The car ride wasn't much fun for anyone, I ended up rigging up a travel cage out of a large cat carrier because their cage wouldn't fit and the buddies made a mess. But they stayed cool, slept most of the way, had plenty of water and after a bit of a bath they are very happy at the new house. We're rigging up an outdoor playplace and working on a new ferret room. Thanks for all the help!

[Deleted]

Yay!! I'm glad everything went well and you can finally settle in your new place, I'm sure the ferrets are itching to explore their new home!