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Post by Heather on Jun 2, 2011 0:03:10 GMT -5
This is Minion's front paw. He's never had claws on it that I know of. As you can see the one paw is developing normally. There appears to be trace of a claw on the center digit but nothing on the rest. The fur grows normally on the toes, there appears to be a gap for the claws but never since he's come here has there been any claws. Minion has had his claws trimmed once on his front foot and the claws appear to be developing normally. According to the lady that recieved Minion he had claws when he came in, she trimmed them then. I'm wondering considering his age (approx 7 weeks) that she may have damaged his foot when she trimmed his claws. According to the staff on when these little ones came in, they were covered in dried poop and that it was caked on their feet and tails. They were in horrible shape. The pet store have since gone back to using marshals ferrets which also uses a different supplier (the previous one who sold the RC ferrets dealt with live reptile prey) Any ideas? A suggestion that have been offered is that the claws were never there, that this kit suffered hyper grooming from the ferret momma. I'm open to suggestions ciao
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Post by Deleted on Jun 2, 2011 6:54:03 GMT -5
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Post by Sherry on Jun 2, 2011 8:27:12 GMT -5
It really does look like they just never came in. Maybe the nail beds were too damaged previously by possible infection d/t the dirt, and feces
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Post by joclyn on Jun 2, 2011 11:00:11 GMT -5
it's most probably damage from over-grooming by mommy - and/or the condition they were in upon arrival at the store. acid burns (from both urine and feces), if bad enough, at that young age, along with the resulting infection could definitely do this - and there might not be any evident scar tissue due to him being so young when it happened.
it is worth having the vet look at it specifically to rule out an on-going infection issue, tho.
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Post by Heather on Jun 2, 2011 13:37:04 GMT -5
Vet has already looked at the foot. She did this when they fixed his bum. There is no apparant infection or redness around the toes, no swelling. They could see no issue or nor any apparant damage which left her rather scratching her head. There just doesn't appear to be any toenails growing there She said to wait and see if some grew in but as you can see the toes on the other foot are entirely normal with good claw formation. ciao
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Post by katt on Jun 2, 2011 13:58:24 GMT -5
I agree that it looks like he either never had claws, or lost them so young (over grooming, damage from trimming or infection, etc) that they healed with no visible scar tissue. Very strange. It is also possible that it is just some congenital defect. Does it hamper his walking and climbing at all? I would love to see a picture of the end of the toe face on (looking directly at where the nail should be). Just out of curiosity.
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Post by Heather on Jun 2, 2011 14:56:14 GMT -5
I will see what I can do for you Katt. It doesn't seem to hamper walking or climbing, unless it requires clawing type climbing...then he has problems (like climbing curtains or bedspreads). The other day he was outside digging up a storm, it didn't seem to hamper him at all. I find him regularly up on top of the cages, playing in the clean laundry (I've tried to tell him that it's not clean after he's been playing in it ). He races through the tubes with the best of them. I have noted a slight dip in the shoulder on that side but that will be because he's walking flat footed on one side (this happens when you cut your ferrets nails too short too) ciao
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Post by katt on Jun 2, 2011 15:03:34 GMT -5
I will see what I can do for you Katt. It doesn't seem to hamper walking or climbing, unless it requires clawing type climbing...then he has problems (like climbing curtains or bedspreads). The other day he was outside digging up a storm, it didn't seem to hamper him at all. I find him regularly up on top of the cages, playing in the clean laundry (I've tried to tell him that it's not clean after he's been playing in it ). He races through the tubes with the best of them. I have noted a slight dip in the shoulder on that side but that will be because he's walking flat footed on one side (this happens when you cut your ferrets nails too short too) ciao Hmmm....a declawed ferret...now doesn't THAT sound nice... ;D Heather, do you try to keep his other paw(s) trimmed really short at all? It would probably help to even up his gait a little and might be easier on his feet shoulder and back... Any imbalance in the body then skews the rest of the body to compensate. I know in humans this can lead to later back pain, neck issues, etc. Obviously with 4 feet things balance a little differently though...
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Post by Heather on Jun 2, 2011 15:08:28 GMT -5
I have trimmed his claws quite close this time to see if I can prevent him from compensating so badly. I agree, such issues often cause pain later. I'm not sure if it's as necessary on the back though. It's most noticeable on the front. ciao
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Post by katt on Jun 2, 2011 15:14:31 GMT -5
I have trimmed his claws quite close this time to see if I can prevent him from compensating so badly. I agree, such issues often cause pain later. I'm not sure if it's as necessary on the back though. It's most noticeable on the front. ciao Yeah I wonder that too. I don't have any idea if the back being shorter would help or not, but I would think it would seeing as how all 4 feet contribute to the gait, and that overall balance will help keep things even...but it might just be harder on his back feet... You probably already know this, but the quick receeds when you trim nails regularly, so I bet if you clipped them just a tiny bit twice a week you could gradually get them to be pretty short, and then be able to maintain that more easily.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 2, 2011 15:19:23 GMT -5
I did not know the quick recedes! I am always too cautious to trim nails short.
I think having the front paws balanced would be most important. Strange little fellow huh?
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Post by katt on Jun 2, 2011 15:27:37 GMT -5
I did not know the quick recedes! I am always too cautious to trim nails short. I think having the front paws balanced would be most important. Strange little fellow huh? Yup - it also "grows" so if you don't trim them often enough you can get nails that are really long even when trimmed because the quick has become so long. This goes for pretty much any animal by my understanding...
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Post by Deleted on Jun 2, 2011 18:21:52 GMT -5
Dixie had a split nail once and while I was clipping it she flinched and it ripped and started bleeding everywhere I had to use flour to stop the bleeding. Now I am a bit paranoid about clipping them. In the 2 years I've had Pixie I've never made her or Trixie bleed. It practically gave me a heart attack. I will try to trim them as short as possible. Might need to do it while those little buggers sleep
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Post by katt on Jun 2, 2011 19:59:21 GMT -5
Corn starch will stem the bleeding, and I always keep septic powder on hand. I have clipped their nails a little close a few times where they whimper and pull away but I rarely if ever (I think maybe once time) get the quick. My iguana is a different story. Her nails are long, thin, and curved (for hooking into trees) and she is much more difficult to restrain. I don't clip them often. I have got her quick a fair number of times. I got a nice deep bite to the hand for it once. Guess I deserved that one.
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Post by Heather on Jun 3, 2011 2:24:49 GMT -5
I did discover something tonight about that foot though (sorry Katt, no photos that's a two person job, unless he's asleep)....he can't contract the paw. If you put your finger in the center of the paw they will contract the paw around your finger (almost like holding your hand) You will be able to get the same response on all four paws. It's like it tickles and they close their paw. When you do that to the paw with no claws, nothing happens....even if you tickle it a bit. It's like there's some type of nerve damage to the foot. I don't think, I will have to check this further but I don't think he can move the toes on that foot ciao
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