QUESTION:
Do ferrets get hair balls? If yes, then what can I do to help?

ANSWER:
Yes ferrets do get hairballs! It would help if you give your ferret LAXATONE or a CAT LAXATIVE each week. It comes in a tube and is flavored with molasses, you should give about 1/2" once a week.

During shedding time you should be giving about 1/4" daily to help keep the hair moving through the digestive system. This is very important to stop the hair from forming into a ball in the stomach.

If the ferret already has a hairball then surgery will be needed to remove it. The ferret cannot expel it like a cat and it will eventually block the exit from the stomach and the ferret will most likely start to vomit!

You would also notice that very little or no poops are being expelled. At this point it is a LIFE AND DEATH situation. The vet may choose to X-ray with barium to see if the ferret is able to pass anything through the system and if not, he will need to do surgery immediately to save the ferret's life!

Sometimes hairballs can remain in the stomach for some time and float around, the danger from this is sooner or later it will block the exit. The fact that it is moving around is often the cause of ulcers and this will be noticed by the ferret grinding his teeth, especially when eating.

In this case prevention is definitely better than the cure which can be very costly.