I need help, please

[Deleted]

Months ago my parents decided it was best for my sister and mom's ferrets to be adopted out as my sister just started highschool and her grades were slipping. My best friend took them home to live with her little ferret Nyxa. One of them- Jack Daniels, who became Achillies in my best friend's home, crossed The Rainbow Bridge last night. There was a terrible accident, I wrote him a tribute and an explination as to what happened but something happened with my internet connection and it didnt get posted. I will post another later on but right now I need to adress a concern. Maybe this isnt the right place to put this but I wasn't sure where else to ask. I am sure that I can find general info on google but I feel like personal experience advice would be much more helpful in this situation.
Captain Morgan, who became Aries in my best friends home, was Jack's cagemate since Morgan was about a year old and Jack was 6 months old. This all goes back , I guess, to Miss Martini, my baby sister's first ferret. She had a birth defect in her throat that made it very painful/difficult to eat. Before she passed on the vet recommended to my sister that they get her a cage mate. Shortly there after my mom and sister and I went into pet co just to see the ferrets they had and my mom fell in love with one, Captain Morgan. Miss Martini lived long enough for them to make a tight bond and then when she passed away both my sister and Morgan took it pretty hard, soon enough my parents decided to get my sister another ferret since Morgs was 'my moms' and he needed a new cagemate. Thats where Jack came in.. Although my sister adored him dearly, my parents decided that her grades came first and since she didnt seem to have enough time for ferrets, grades and highschool social drama, they decided to find Jack and Morgan a new home.

I think that Morgan and Jack have been with my best friend for about 5 months, though they have been together since they were young they are so closely bonded its not even funny (you know the type that don't go anywhere with out eachother even for 5 seconds).
My concern is that, Jack is the second cagemate that Morgan has lost plus, I think he was just starting to get over leaving my mom and sister.
My best friend had 3 ferrets before last night- Jack, Morgan and Nyxa. So fortunately, Morgan still has Nyxa + Kahlua and Mojito(my two ferrets.. We don't live with them but we just moved into the apartment 2 floors above them so we're even closer than before.) the problem is that he hasn't really bonded incredibly with Nyxa, my best friend or her fiancee. He has somewhat of a bond with them but it isn't too strong. I know he and I had a stong bond when I still lived with my parents but since he moved in with my best friend I have felt him withdraw from me as well as being distant to them. I love him to death, when my mom told me she was looking to rehome them I wanted to take him and Jack myself but Marlo said 4 ferrets (the two of them + my two), 1 dog and 1 cat would have been too much for a one bedroom apartment- he said our two ferrets are enough. So I told my best friend and she took them in happily. Jack bonded well with Nyxa, who I am also worried for since they bonded so well, Jack bonded well with my best friend and her fiancee and he was fine. Morgan has been okay, the most lively I have seen him is when we took him to the ferret meet up with AnimalFarm2006 (not sure what her name is on the new forum, sorry). I know he loves being around Kahlua but Kahlua doesn't get along with Nxya, and Nyxa loves being around Mojito but I'm pretty sure that is why Kahlua doesn't like her (She is pretty protective/possesive of Mojito- ask AnimalFarm2006. When we were there, she played well with everyone which was a suprise but when Mojito was ready to go to sleep she was kicking everyone out of the crate he curled up in)
I need to know what to do for Morgan and Nyxa, is there a way to help them bond together? What if Morgan lashes out at Nyxa? (one reason she bonded to Jack so well was because when Morgan would scruff her or dominance drag her, Jackie would jump on Morgan's back and start a play- fighting to make Morgan back off, he was very much a peace keeper between the two) I know that my best friend and her fiancee are going to have to give each of them more attention, watch their weight/eating etc closer, I have also read about taking a dish cloth and dipping it in warm water then gently wiping their face to simulate their mother licking them.. but is there anything else? Do you think I should have her bring Nyxa and Morgan up to my apartment for a while and just try to keep Mojito with Nyxa and Kahlua with Morgan? Should my best friend and her fiancee wash his scent off everything? Bathe Morgan and Nyxa so they dont have his scent? Since this is the second time Morgan has lost a cagemate to The Rainbow Bridge, should we be more concerned about him? Any tips are greatly appreciated, thank you.

[Heather]

You should be concerned whenever a ferret looses a cagemate to the bridge. Some RR in the water will help make the acceptance easier. Unfortunately, you cannot force a friendship. It will happen if it's meant to happen. All you can do is prevent the fuzz from following his friends to the bridge. Lady "B" has buried 5 of her cagemates. Even though she became friends with each subsequent fuzz, she always mourned the loss of her best friend, Attila. She's not unhappy, just not the same as when she was with Attila. There appears to be a special bond between certain ferrets and that lasts for their lifetime. They will befriend others but it's just not the same. Ferrets do not mate for life and lead a very transient, solitary lifestyle in the wild. We take that away from them when they life with us.
ciao

[Deleted]

Feb 9, 2011 14:03:50 GMT -5 Heather said:

You should be concerned whenever a ferret looses a cagemate to the bridge. Some RR in the water will help make the acceptance easier. Unfortunately, you cannot force a friendship. It will happen if it's meant to happen. All you can do is prevent the fuzz from following his friends to the bridge. Lady "B" has buried 5 of her cagemates. Even though she became friends with each subsequent fuzz, she always mourned the loss of her best friend, Attila. She's not unhappy, just not the same as when she was with Attila. There appears to be a special bond between certain ferrets and that lasts for their lifetime. They will befriend others but it's just not the same. Ferrets do not mate for life and lead a very transient, solitary lifestyle in the wild. We take that away from them when they life with us.
ciao

Thank you, I will text her to get some RR and try to pick some up incase she cant- its crazy the things that go out of your head when you are upset, I totally forgot about RR - completely. Im worried about both Nyxa and Morgan but more Morgan simply because of the fact that he has been though a lot of change in the last five months and I hope loosing Jack wont be too much for him. My poor best friend was crying so hard last night I could barely understand her and she was barely breathing.. If something happened to Morgan now.. I could cry just thinking about it. I will get some RR- Thank you. Its not that Nyxa and Morgan hate eachother or anything its just the fact that they both want to be dominant and in the past they have both played with Jack rather than interacting with eachother, I am hoping that maybe now they will feel the need to lean on eachother and I am hoping that Morgan doesnt lash out at her (or even vise versa though Morgan would win because Nyxa is so tiny) Do you think its a good idea to have them come up and spend time with my Kahlua and Mojito since they are already friends? (Except Nyxa and Kahlua- they fight. I was thinking we could bring her two up stairs and let Mojito play with Nyxa in one ferret-safe area and Morgan play with Kahlua in another) Just to maybe keep their minds off things. I have always heard that having three ferrets is good incase one passes on but does that still work if the two surviving ferrets arent really that bonded?

[ttfr]

Oh dear! Sorry about jack. Wasn't he the one that stayed home the event?

I would try rr for sure. When Monster died, I had to put dingo on ulcer meds for stress and keep an eye on him. I know after monster passed, Dingo bonded with the other ferrets as a replacement. It has opened his eyes a bit to see other options.

Hopefully jack will bond more with nyxa

[Heather]

That's going to be a "up to the ferret" type thing. I can remember Mad Max and Porthos...inseperable trouble makers (nothing like having two hard core biters hang out together). Porthos passed on from lymphosarcoma (very quick, 2 months). Mad Max had already lost Mayhem (a partner that he was turned in with about 6 months before that). Loosing Porthos was horrible for Max, but little Nicodemus was in the cage with Porthos and Mad Max. They weren't close. Nico wasn't the brightest tool in the shed and Max and Porthos used to pick on him and stash him in the water bowl or in a tube....think of picking on the dumb kid...that type of relationship. Max latched on to Nico. They never were close...close friends but it took the sting out Porthos' loss.
As far as setting up a play date...why not. If it starts to go south or he doesn't act like he's enjoying himself then you can always stop and send all fuzzes off to their separate homes. I wouldn't do this before the RR is purchased and in use though.....just me
ciao

[Deleted]

Feb 9, 2011 14:49:42 GMT -5 @ttfr said:

Oh dear! Sorry about jack. Wasn't he the one that stayed home the event?

I would try rr for sure. When Monster died, I had to put dingo on ulcer meds for stress and keep an eye on him. I know after monster passed, Dingo bonded with the other ferrets as a replacement. It has opened his eyes a bit to see other options.

Hopefully jack will bond more with nyxa

Its heart breaking, I just keep listening to his song. He wasnt mine but since I've known him since he was 6 months and seen him almost every day, its just as much of a killer. He is the one who stayed home with Nyxa at the event since he was her little 'boy friend' and I hope she and Morgan (aka Aries, when you met him) end up bonding and relying on eachother. I am going to try to get a hold of RR, my phone died but I was going to text you and ask if you know weather or not they sell it at petco/petsmart in fburg? Thank you love. I am going to put up a memorial post for him <3

[Deleted]

Feb 9, 2011 14:56:34 GMT -5 Heather said:

That's going to be a "up to the ferret" type thing. I can remember Mad Max and Porthos...inseperable trouble makers (nothing like having two hard core biters hang out together). Porthos passed on from lymphosarcoma (very quick, 2 months). Mad Max had already lost Mayhem (a partner that he was turned in with about 6 months before that). Loosing Porthos was horrible for Max, but little Nicodemus was in the cage with Porthos and Mad Max. They weren't close. Nico wasn't the brightest tool in the shed and Max and Porthos used to pick on him and stash him in the water bowl or in a tube....think of picking on the dumb kid...that type of relationship. Max latched on to Nico. They never were close...close friends but it took the sting out Porthos' loss.
As far as setting up a play date...why not. If it starts to go south or he doesn't act like he's enjoying himself then you can always stop and send all fuzzes off to their separate homes. I wouldn't do this before the RR is purchased and in use though.....just me
ciao

Thank you. I hope thats what happens, I hope they end up relying on eachother. I will see if I can get some RR after work since I dont think my best friend is up for doing much of anything especially going to the pet store, poor thing, she is sick to death with grief. I figured it would be good for Kahlua and Morgan to get together since they've always been good friends but I will make sure to get the RR first.