A little Ronan update
Mar. 14th, 2007 10:18 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
alonewiththemoonJust thought I'd provide a little Ronan update to those who are curious and for my own records... He's doing amazingly well right now. He pretty much refused to have anything to do with the rabbit-based kibble, although Seti liked it. His litter deposits are rather awful on a cyclical basis, but he isn't grinding his teeth when he eats. His spleen has gone way down to about normal size, so I don't think he's having problems with infections. It may be that he is sensitive to chicken, but since he's refusing other meat sources, food that upsets his digestion a bit is distinctly preferably to not eating at all. As of last night, he weighed 1175g, an entirely normal weight for a ferret his size, and best of all, his activity level is great. He's initiating play with both Seti and us; last night Mathew walked by him with an armload of clothing, and Ronan pounced on the dangling sleeves and pant legs, brk-brk-brking away. Seti is clearly very happy to have a playmate again. Ronan can even fit through the tunnels again!
So, although he's not 100 percent where a ferret his age (4ish*) should be, he's so much better than he was, and given his history maybe this is his personal best case. He's finally growing back in his belly fur from when it was shaved last summer; it's been my experience that healthy uncompromised ferrets grow their fur back quickly but compromised ferrets do not (as though they need the hair-growing energy elsewhere in their bodies), so I take that as an indicator of overall good health.
*I might have somewhat unreasonable expectations of ferret behavior and energy levels at that age anyway. The vet texts say they are geriatric starting at age 4 or 5, but I think of them as middle aged at that point b/c of past experiences with Amelia and Cully who were quite hale and hearty up until 6.5 or 7, and Seti who is still a bundle of energy at 5 (he turns 5 on Saturday! We should have him a little party with kibble cake with ferretone frosting! :)
edited to add: I forgot to mention the cutest thing--Ronan gets his pediapred sometime between 7:30 and 8:30am each morning. On weekends, he very reliably wakes me up by scratching a few times inside the nightstand between 7:30 and 8:30. He scratches, I roll over, and there he is looking up at me saying "treats? treats now?" So I'll stagger out of bed, give him his pediapred (he loves it) and some breakfast, and fall back asleep knowing that his medication is taken care of for the day. Such a responsible little weasel!
So, although he's not 100 percent where a ferret his age (4ish*) should be, he's so much better than he was, and given his history maybe this is his personal best case. He's finally growing back in his belly fur from when it was shaved last summer; it's been my experience that healthy uncompromised ferrets grow their fur back quickly but compromised ferrets do not (as though they need the hair-growing energy elsewhere in their bodies), so I take that as an indicator of overall good health.
*I might have somewhat unreasonable expectations of ferret behavior and energy levels at that age anyway. The vet texts say they are geriatric starting at age 4 or 5, but I think of them as middle aged at that point b/c of past experiences with Amelia and Cully who were quite hale and hearty up until 6.5 or 7, and Seti who is still a bundle of energy at 5 (he turns 5 on Saturday! We should have him a little party with kibble cake with ferretone frosting! :)
edited to add: I forgot to mention the cutest thing--Ronan gets his pediapred sometime between 7:30 and 8:30am each morning. On weekends, he very reliably wakes me up by scratching a few times inside the nightstand between 7:30 and 8:30. He scratches, I roll over, and there he is looking up at me saying "treats? treats now?" So I'll stagger out of bed, give him his pediapred (he loves it) and some breakfast, and fall back asleep knowing that his medication is taken care of for the day. Such a responsible little weasel!
