Worried about Sophie...Possible Blockage Protocol?

[Deleted]

I may be prematurely panicking but I was just attempting to put the ferrets back in their cage (against their liking) and Sophie kept going in and out of each litter box like she wanting to poop but then not pooping. She did this about 4-5 times and then finally settled in a corner and pooped.

Now she always yawns when she poops and sometimes makes a squinty face (I figure no different than people pushing) but this time she was really squinting and then she made the tiniest wimper and then all that came out was a little bit of runny stuff and then naturally I started panicking a bit.

She seemed perfectly fine an hour ago, had a couple really nice looking formed thick poops this morning and she ate last night and this morning but didn't really want food right before this happened (it was goat though and they were both being really picky about eating it attached to their new feeding dens).

So I gave her a glop of vaseline (she refuses to take hairball meds because she hates the sticky feeling on her whiskers but apparently she loves vaseline).

Now she was face rubbing but only after I gave her the vaseline (she despises when she gets stuff on her face/whiskers).

I also gave her as much pumpkin covered in olive oil as she would take (probably about 1 tsp total) and my room now looks like a pumpki massacre took place.

And now she's dooking and wrestling with Olivia and playing with me and running around like everything is perfectly fine.

I know vaseline is bad but I really don't want to take any chances so what's the protocol on how often/how much vaseline and pumpkin and oil to give?

And do I keep giving it until I see a good looking orange poop or should I see a couple of good poops?

My room is seriously empty except ferret toys and all toys have been inspected and are in tact so unless it's a floating hairball blockage, I really don't know what it would be.

I'm watching her closely for the next few hours and will take her to the vet if I see anything really bad but she's literally wrestling like crazy with Olivia right now and seems fine.

Should I do Pumpkin and vaseline every couple hours?

Edit: she seems to be really beating up on Olivia hard, is this a bad sign? Or is she just being a jerk because she feels like it?

[Deleted]

Forgot to ask: what about food? Should I not give her any until I see a good poop in case there is a blockage.

She hasn't really eaten for a couple hours so I don't want her to go much longer without food though, so can she have raw soup ice cubes melted?

Edit: I decided to give her some raw soup because she looked starving and she's eating it up so that's a good sign right?

The whole trying to poop and not pooping and then whimpering and just liquid coming out thing really freaks me out though

Could it be that she just didnt have anything left to poop out since she was being picky about the goat and hadn't really eaten anything since she had a few big poops?

I'll give her some more pumpkin but should I give her more vaseline? I really don't want to cause any malabsorption problems either...

[Deleted]

Tried to poop a few more times, still nothing, a bit of liquid but that's it.

So I gave more vaseline and pumpkin and she ate some more raw soupies. Still has an appetite, no teeth grinding, only face rubbing after she eats the vaseline and then she stops once it's off her face. No major warning signs that she needs to see a vet asap... yet.

But I'm starting to really freak out that she's not pooping. How long does it take for the pumpkin and vaseline to start pushing poop out?

It's really not like her to go into litter boxes and not poop

Any advice would be appreciated. I've got my mom ready to drive me to the vet at any time, but I don't want to jump the gun if the vaseline and pumpkin will work.

[Deleted]

First, relax. Breathe deeply.

Okay, is it possible she was trying to fake you out? go potty then get to play out of the cage? Mine do it all the time.

The whimper isn't a good sign. Is she shedding? Could be a hairball.

I would alternate pumpkin and vas. Every hour. Make sure to keep her hydrated. If she starts refusing to eat, becomes lethargic, paws at mouth, grinds teeth, then it's time to take her in.

Ferrets are really good at hiding illness, but her level of activity and appetite is a good thing. If she goes much longer without a bowl movement, I would take her to get a barium x ray. How long has it been since she had a real bowl movement?

[Sherry]

Give her some vas. and pumpkin every couple of hours til you see a good poop. Since she's still playing and doing well, she's not in immediate danger, but it can go south pretty quickly if it is a blockage.
The fact she's eating is good. It is *possible* she simply doesn't have anything left in there also.
The pumpkin should work it's way through in about 3 hours or so.
And yes, let her have something to eat if she's willing.

[Deleted]

Thanks guys
I'm trying to breathe but I've gotten myself so stressed out I'm having an awful IBS cramping attack too I guess IBS makes you not very equipped to deal with ferret stress.

Her last real bowel movement would have been this afternoon, maybe around 3-4? She has a few this morning and the last time she ate was around 11-12 this morning.

Her and Olivia are sleeping right now on my floor, they aren't used to me waking them up every 20 minutes to check on Sophie so they're too tired to play. I have them separated in the cage to see if Sophie poops.

I will definitely take her in if she doesn't have a bowel movement in the next few hours or if she gets worse in any way. I just don't know if he has enough food in her to have a decent one but I should at least see a giant glob of Vaseline and pumpkin come out if She's not blocked right?

Her belly doesn't feel hard at all and she's let me palpate her, not that I know what to feel for but I don't feel anything and she's not tender. I just really hope she poops soon, or she's going to the vet. My bowels need to stop freaking out too so I'll make it to the vet. Ugh. I hate scary pet situations

[miamiferret2]

don't panick. Sonny does this sometimes too. all of my ferrets have done this. i don't know why they do this. i am sure it is not a blockage.
sometimes sonny hops on the newspaper several times. he runs around then goes back on it and backs up, nothing. then he acts like he went and he drags his butt across the floor.
stop giving her the vaseline and pumpkin. i am sure you have given her enough. separate her onto a different floor of her cage. check on her in the middle of the night or in the morning and see if there is poop. if she is eating, drinking playing then don't worry.
btw, i don't know if you remember a recent thread that i started on here about the size of my ferrets poops on raw diet and the frequency of his poops. i have gone to work at 9 a.m. i have come home at 6 p.m. and Sonny will have pooped only once and it is small. so don't worry.

[Sherry]

Jun 15, 2011 21:59:52 GMT -5 @carpetsharks37 said:

I should at least see a giant glob of Vaseline and pumpkin come out if She's not blocked right?

Yes, you should. Especially if you get enough pumpkin into her.
With Lucrezia's blockage, I alternated 1 tsp pumpkin, 1/2 tsp vaseline every hour. So, hour one, 1 tsp pumpkin, hour two, 1/2 tsp vaseline hour 3, 1tsp pumpkin, hour four, 1/2 tsp vas.
Good luck! And if she shows signs of refusing treats esp, get her in.

[Deleted]

Thanks guys Sophie always has really nice formed poops and the running in and out of the litter box is classic for Olivia when she's being a brat and wants out of her cage, but Sophie is my perfect pooper so that's why I freaked out a bit

She did just have a poop... if you can call it that. It basically "orange goop", looked like pumpkin mixed with vaseline. It wasn't exactly formed and it wasn't a huge amount, probably the size of one of her small normal poops, but more stretched out since it didn't really have any substance to it to "form" it. There wasn't really any food in it though, some seedy pieces but that's it.

I gave her some more pumpkin and a final glob of vaseline for good measure but I think I am going to ease up on the vaseline now and just get her to finish off her raw soupie + pumpkin. She doesn't like to get her face wet, what a princess but she'll eat the raw soup if I hand feed it to her or angle the flat dish so that she doesn't get her whiskers wet.

When is it okay to give her some real food? Would ground turkey be okay? I just feel like the raw soup isn't going to give her enough food to actually have a good poop. But the pumpkin and vaseline is starting to move through her so I'm sort of on a good track right?

[miamiferret2]

Did she swallow anything? The poops are so inconsistent on raw diet. Some days Sonny poops 4 x a day sometimes less (2 x). They are usually small. And he eats alot!!

[Deleted]

Not that I know of. I literally have NOTHING in my bedroom except ferret toys and I inspected them all quite thoroughly after she started this. So the only thing is could be (unless she somehow got some unknown thing - who knows right) is a hairball. And I don't really think they are shedding. I don't find ferret fur anywhere and their fur doesn't come off when I pet them. their coats do look like they are changing though so maybe they are starting to shed?

[Deleted]

Never in my life have I been so happy to see such a beautiful poop ;D ;D ;D


In the litter box. You can see compared to the size of the wood pellets that it's nice and thick and good


Same poop on a paper towel


I smushed it up afterwards and it was pure pumpkin, no foreign bodies. Nothing weird looking or concerning

So am I in the clear???

I made up some raw soupies for Sophie and might still keep her and Olivia separated tonight to make sure she has a few more good poops, but I'm stopping the vaseline and pumpkin (she still gets pumpkin and olive oil on her food anyways).

She really wants to eat the veal and beef that Olivia is having tonight. Not sure if I should let her or keep her on the raw soup for tonight to help with whatever caused this?

[Heather]

The only concern would be a floating blockage. Keep an eye on her and see. She didn't exhibit many signs or symptoms of a blockage other than the lack of poops. She wasn't lethargic, pawing at her face, vomiting...she was straining in the litter box. So, I would say casual observation at this point. I would be tempted to let her have some food but again this is your comfort level not mine that we need to see here.
ciao

[Deleted]

excellent!

[Deleted]

Thanks
She was starving but turned her nose up at the raw soup and gave me this look like "give me some real food already!" so I caved and gave her some ground veal and turkey. It was ground up good so I figure it will be easy on the digestion and if she has a few more good poops, then she can have regular meat and bone tomorrow.

Floating blockages terrify me, it's like you never know if you're in the clear or not. Will definitely monitor.

Thanks everyone for the advice and keeping me calm and putting up with my panicking.