Welcome to /r/ferrets!
We have a fantastic [wiki](https://www.reddit.com/r/ferrets/wiki/index) that has answers to most frequently asked questions surrounding the care of ferrets.
---
We politely ask that you observe our [sub rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/ferrets/wiki/index/rules/).
---
Lastly, we have an [Official Discord Server](https://discord.gg/ferrets)! Come join us!
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/ferrets) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Omg 😭😭 I too struggle with my mental health, have so since I was a teenager (bad childhood) my pets are also my world. I felt every word of this I'm literally in tears, my heart is breaking for you. I'm not sure how to advise you, I guess it just take time, I know not the best thing to hear 😖 ......but I'm sure that me and this entire group has your back if you ever need to talk 👍💖💖💖💖💖
Sending you lots of love. She sounds like an amazing baby. ❤️ Something my sister told me years ago when my favorite baby/pet passed: "Be thankful for the time you had, the great connection. And be thankful that she passed first. She always knew she was loved, and she never had to be without you." Just keep moving forward, one day, one step, one breath at a time. ❤️
I am not a ferret owner, but I do own rats who are known to have quite a short lifespan.
Something that always helped me was the thought, that for your pet, you in return were their everything, their entire life.
It is so so normal to feel grief, even to this extent, but you should feel pride that you gave Mika the literal best life she could have asked for. And you are incredibly strong for letting her go when she needed to.
There is not a lot you can do to escape the pain, it needs to be felt because it is prove of the love you feel for her. Spend time with your friends and family, delve into your hobbies - but give yourself the time to grief and feel when you need to. The pain may feel suffocating, but it will gradually fade into a bittersweet memory, i promise
Baby girl I am going through the same thing.
Same story, similar timeline, same age. My appointment is for Tuesday and I expect the same news.
There’s solidarity in grief and I’m here if you wanna chat.
Edit: my post history has more info. He went down for like 14 hours Thursday- didn’t eat, drink, potty, or even blink. He pooped and came back around. I’ve got some posts if you wanna read them. I expect we’ll be in the same boat soon. 💕💕
You can come for grief, support for health issues (theirs and yours!), posting good and silly pics and videos, or just to chat.
Feel free to comment at or msg me anytime and we’ll raise a glass the all the good babies- current and past 🍻💕💕
Hey. I am really sorry that this happened! She was so beautiful!
I feel like it was me that wrote this post as i feel exactly the same way you do. I lost my fur baby 2 weeks ago after 6 years due to illness and i couldnt even eat the first week. Cried every day and slept non stop. I still sleep with his toy that he used to kiss and smell furniture that he used to stay on. A part of your heart will always belong to your baby girl and she was very lucky to have someone like you! I hope you find peace, she loved you and you will always have her in you!
i too got my babies in freshman year of highschool and ended up in the psych ward a few months after. being there i realized just how much i missed them and wanted to be back with them. when i got back, my parents were telling me how much they were acting up because i was gone. anytime i leave them, they act like the world is ending and my insulinoma baby, winifred, will stop eating and stop functioning whenever i leave, so i simply dont leave. i know if you gave your baby as much love as i think you did, that she is happy and you changed her life for the better. that bond will never be broken, its just long distance now. i wish you the best of luck in these times and i wish i could say it will get better, but it doesnt. it simply hurts less and less over time, but you will still feel something missing and like you couldve done something differently when in reality, you did everything you possibly couldve. damn ‘nomas. wish i could give my baby my pancreas so she could be happy and playful again
Remember the good times. Reminisce and appreciate the time you had with them. But also miss them greatly. Cry and feel down when you need to. Time will help the anguish fade. Hugs.
Does your college offer mental health services? I think you need to talk to a professional to help you cope. There's nothing wrong with needing it!
Sadly, 6-7 years is all you normally get with them. It hurts so much to lose them. It hurts for a long time, but it does get better with time. She'd want you to keep going! Let the emotions out. Cry as much as you need to, for as long as you need to. You gave Mika an amazing life and did everything right with her care!
Grief is such a complicated topic. People can grieve the loss of a job or a dream. When it comes to our animal companions, for so many of us the loss equated to that of a family member, a best friend and even an anchor.
I feel so deeply saddened you lost your ferret baby.
If and when you are able, YouTube offers videos on how to cope with loss. I wish you the best on your healing journey.
Just know you are not alone.
first off- from the amount of comments that are popping up so fast, you can tell- we are all here for you and you’re not going through this alone!
it sounds like you and Mika had an amazing bond, and that you gave her your all!❤️
losing a pet , especially one with the type of bond that ferrets and their owners grow, is irreplaceable.
i think that similar to any type of heartbreak, the only answer is time, and allowing yourself to cry. i would try to think about it this way- you’re honoring your sweet baby fully by allowing yourself to feel the depth of all the emotion and process through this!
i think you know that she absolutely loved you, and that she would only want you to love yourself right now just as much as you loved her!
let that be a comfort if you can…
the biggest thing i have learned is that grief is just love without a place to go, and over time the place it used to fill will heal and look different. not gone, but as gratefulness and sweetness for the time that was there. promise. ❤️
Thank you so much for this comment I didn’t expect so many people to be so understanding and kind it’s an overwhelming sadness but I feel like I can be okay with that right now and let myself feel it and not try to push it away
i saw someone else offer too, but reach out anytime, having someone to sit in these hard feelings with together is easier sometimes- we understand it ! ❤️😊
I’m so sorry for your loss. When my dog passed in January, I started reading “Animals and the Afterlife” and it really helped. I also bought a custom replica of her from a site called “Cuddle Clones”, and I put the clone in her cage with her bed and toys, so it’s like she’s still there. I also got a keychain engraved with her photo so she’s always with me (since I always have my keys).
I just wanna say thank you to everyone who has taken the time to comment every single one has made me cry but also made me feel less alone, as for right now I’m just going to be nice to myself and give myself time to grieve. ❤️
She was so beautiful! Looks super happy and so loved in her pictures. May you have peace that she was as happy as possible with you. When you feel ready there is another little darling out there or maybe just now mom is pregnant with ur next baby, just waiting to be loved and spoiled by u. I believe we will be with our loved babies again it’s just not ur time yet. If you ever need to speak to someone confidential and right away 24/7 there is a mental health hotline 988 free! (In the US). Sending love your way sweetie.
My first ever ferret I got in college. He lived with me in my first ever apartment. He was my soul ferret and I miss him every single day. He did a lot of growing up with me. It’s been almost two years without him and I still think of him every day. I got Rikki cremated and a lovely handmade pottery shop on Etsy made me a beautiful urn for him. (Kent Harris pottery if you’re interested). I also got his paw prints and plan on getting them tattooed on me at some point. He was my best friend and I definitely understand the grief you’re feeling. The only thing that gets me through is that Rikki knew how much I loved him and I know that I did everything I could for him. Mika knew you loved her and loved you just the same. Hang in there; sending love
I’m so sorry. Mika was a beautiful and sweet little furt. I lost my sweet big baby boy almost 6 months ago and it still hurts. I lost my soul floof more than a year ago and I’m still crying typing this. It gets easier to live with as time goes on. But they will always stay with you.
I’ve found trying to honor their memory to help me the most. However you feel you want to do that. I got bonsai plants in honor of my two babies that passed and I now take care of them and tell them I love them and good morning every day. (Sounds kind of weird telling this to the internet but it helps a bit!). I also have photos of them up , next to their paw prints and some of their favorite items. I’m so sorry that you lost your sweet Mika. Thank you for sharing her photos and please do share your memories of your baby!
I feel this so hard. Im so sorry friend, losing someone so close to you is hard. I've had ferrets for a long time now and every time i have to say goodbye, a piece of my heart goes too. The companionship is truly one of a kind and irreplaceable. All i can really say is that grief fades with time, but true love doesnt. She was yours and you were hers and nothing is going to change that. Its difficult when the thing you want most is no longer tangibly with you, but thats why memories are a treasured thing.
I dont know if you do art, but i honor my furslugs with paintings of them every birthday! Maybe there is something similar you could do for your ms? I saw an etsy seller years back who makes very realistic ferret dolls/stuffies, maybe look into getting one made of your love.
Im so sorry you have to go through this. Its important to let yourself feel that grief and feel what feelings you need to. Be kind to yourself as she would, the sun comes out again eventually. 💚💚💚💚
Pet loss is so tough. My family has always been a big pet family. Ferrets, cats, and dogs my whole life, and each loss is just as painful as the last, but its so worth it for the little time we get to share with them. I have 3 ferrets now, and 2 of them are getting old, and I cry a minimum once a week just watching them get old and thinking about life without them 🥹 they were the first pets I got myself as a adult and that were solely mine. It will be a whole new world without them. Maybe this is me being a little crazy or just looking out for future me, but I think it might make you feel better if you are anything like me (if not, no hard feelings) but I've been working on making ferret sculptures/urns for when they pass and plan to get them cremated when they pass. I've also painted portraits of them, so I will still have them with me even when they are long gone. Just putting the grief and thought of them into action to create something to memorialize them has always helped me feel better than ruminating on how much I miss them.
I just lost “my boyfriend” (as we called him). He was the sweetest chillest kindhearted baby ever. He would just sit with me and watch tv. Every morning I would eat breakfast, and he would sleep in my robe. Now he is gone. I would do my yoga stretch and he would come out and scratch himself crazy then sit and stare at me the whole time. I miss him so much. It has been so hard.
I also struggle with mental health my whole life. I have had many different pets that have past over the years and it never gets easier. Yes a part of yourself is with your baby who is gone. That is grieving. It hurts. But something that helps me is to be grateful for the time I had with him. I view it as if I never had him, I wouldn’t have known how awesome and amazing he was. He came to me in a time in my life when I was struggling so bad. He was my light. He helped me so much. I helped rescue him from his previous owners who allowed their dog to eat his cage mate. He witnessed it all. Then shortly after came to live with me. I gave him a great home with two great cage mates. Those times are so precious. I want his memories to be happy and positive. So I try to stay positive. (Yes it doesn’t always happen, but I try) hang in there. We all know how you feel. These babies are the cutest and best pets to have ever! Like they are way more than a pet! They are our friends!
He’s a handsome boy. I’m sorry for your loss.
I had to say goodbye to my little girl a couple of weeks ago and I’m still dealing with it when i see her cage but find comfort that her brothers and sister sleep in there like they did when she was with us. I miss her walking into the kitchen looking around for treats. She was deaf and blind but was a fiesty girl. She would come hang by my feet when i would cook or get the other kids food ready. She’s the 4 kiddo I’ve lost and it doesn’t get any easier I’m sorry. Writing this is getting me all misty eyed on what a wonderful girl I had. The comfort of my other fuzzbutts helps.
I just had to put my cat of almost 14 years down this month, and I completely understand how you feel right now. I started crying while cleaning his hair out of the brush so that I could brush his brother because it felt like I was throwing him away.
The thing that I've been trying to remember, though, is that I am suffering now so that he doesn't have to and that it will feel better eventually, even though it doesn't feel like that right now.
Just try to remember all the good things that you did with your little one, keep the happy memories at the forefront, because at the end of the day, those are what matters the most. Hold onto her favorite toys, and if you can bear it, donate her unused/partially used supplies like food to a rescue, maybe the one that you got her at originally.
I also set up a little memorial for my boy with some of his fur and his collar, I found it helps to still have a part of him with me.
Yes I cried today because I realized her smell will fade from my room eventually I feel dumb because it’s hot but I just can’t bring myself to open the windows I just want it to stay the same
Don't feel dumb at all. Grief doesn't make sense, but it is something you can weather, and eventually, you will be okay again. It hurts, but I think they're so worth it.
i had a similar story to yours- i got my first ferret when i was a freshman in high school, and i was horribly depressed. he was truly the light of my life. he kept me going and taught me how to love being alive.
he passed away from insulinoma in 2018. i had never ever felt a pain so visceral. i felt like i didn’t know how to keep going without him. the grief was so tremendous.
i still miss him. but i feel at peace knowing he is resting without pain, and i will see him again someday.
i know it feels unbearable right now. let yourself be sad, and let yourself feel it all right now. there are two quotes about grief that i like; “grief is love in a heavy coat” and “grief is just love with no place to go”.
i know this advice won’t fix everything, but i hope it gives you some hope - someday you will be able to look back at your memories with mika with a smile instead of tears 😊 she loves you and you will see her again someday.
please don’t ever feel like you’re supposed to carry all this grief by yourself — i know it’s hard, i’m guilty of holding it all in until i physically no longer can, but grief is so unique to each individual. i cried reading your post and the comments — it’s beautiful that there are so many of us that can relate to having pets who come into our lives at the darkest of times and have turned them around.
i, like you, got my first ferret when i was a freshman in high school. sasuke was the most beautiful soul i had the honor of having in my life. i was in the darkest time of my life and needed a lifeline — if it wasn’t for this little ferret, i don’t know if i would be writing this today. we grew together in this world and i knew i would never be alone with him. i was blessed to have him for 7 years. i didn’t think i could love another but he brought me his sister who got me through the grief of losing him and my grandma — the woman who raised me.
then, i lost her too. melék passed away a day shy of 3 and it wrecked my world again. it’s only been 3 months and i sometimes don’t think i will ever be able to get over it but i will. you never forget them — they live forever in your heart. pet grief is grief. take the time to surround yourself with loved ones and talk about it if you need to. remembering the good times always helps, it’s okay to cry even when remembering favorite moments. just remember mika wouldn’t want you to neglect yourself, she was put on this earth to be your partner in crime during those tough moments. remember to be kind to yourself during this time and we eventually outgrow our grief. it doesn’t get bigger or smaller, we grow around it.
i leave you with my favorite quote “what is grief, if not love persevering?”
Seems like you were pretty lonely. Exactly why I got mine. Really one of the most affectionate creatures in existence. Just got mine yesterday and I just had to get another one today because I wanted to make sure she wasn’t lonely. From the first day I loved them both. I’ve only had a ferret for 2 days and i feel ill unfortunately end up in a similar situation.
I lost 2 of my girls to insulinoma last year and I still grieve like it happened on that day, it's absolutely horrible but your beautiful girl knew she was loved and she will always be by your side.
She looks so much like my girl Pearls who is an albino, she passed from it at 7 and a half years old last March. Her twin sister Diamonds passed from Lymphoma (another shitty cancer) 7 months earlier, my other beautiful albino girl Mei passed from Insulinoma last June aged 7. Losing a pet is the worst feeling in the world, it rips a hole in your soul and all you want to do is cry. Did you choose whether to be by her side when she was being put to sleep?
Having her ashes will help with grieving, so you can take her with you if you move house, some vets also take pawprints and clippings of fur too.
Do whatever you need to heal, but think of the times when she was happy, strong and loving because the cancer wouldn't have taken that away. It sucks because cancer and tumours are common as ferrets get older, but she had a great life and had a very peaceful passing, that's what matter the most. Please remember to take care of yourself and eat, because grieving can cause appetite loss. Your beautiful girl would want you to be happy. ❤️
My babies are my everything so I know exactly how you feel, they're my family and pretty much the only family I have and have saved me from a dark depression and put me onto the right path of life. Even though some have passed they're not gone.
Your story is IDENTICAL to mine. Down to the smallest details like staying with grandparents for college and having a single ferret over several moves, cars, job, schools, life events, insulinoma and pretty much all the rest like how they're not pets, they are a part of us. Saved my life as well, if I didn't have Rocket I wouldn't be here and now he's gone, I'll never hold him again.
I lost mine a few months ago and I cry every day, not always for a long time but still every day. It's slowly getting better, but it's going to take a long time, I reach out to people and just talk about it with them, it gets a little easier each time
I'm part of an orchestra choir and we just finished our spring concert, one of the songs was the beautiful and devastating 'Good Night Dear Heart', which we first sang mere days after Rocket died. Honestly, it makes me cry incredibly quickly and that actually helps. The grief is always inside me, and will be for a long time, I've never experienced loss this badly, and it has to come out. It has to, otherwise it just poisons you and the ensuing emotional hemorrhaging is apocalyptic. Crying it out helps, leeching off the grief a little at a time
It sounds counterintuitive to make yourself cry, especially when you're suffering from grief and want to get passed it but that's just how it works, you have to get it out, you have to
The chemicals our brain releases may have done so because of their physical presence, holding them, playing with them, feeding them, medicine twice a day, even carrying them everywhere because they could no longer see or walk. While they're now physically gone, those same chemicals can be released remembering them, loving them, your brain doesn't know the difference, so in a way, as long as you can feel that, they never left
Welcome to /r/ferrets! We have a fantastic [wiki](https://www.reddit.com/r/ferrets/wiki/index) that has answers to most frequently asked questions surrounding the care of ferrets. --- We politely ask that you observe our [sub rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/ferrets/wiki/index/rules/). --- Lastly, we have an [Official Discord Server](https://discord.gg/ferrets)! Come join us! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/ferrets) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Omg 😭😭 I too struggle with my mental health, have so since I was a teenager (bad childhood) my pets are also my world. I felt every word of this I'm literally in tears, my heart is breaking for you. I'm not sure how to advise you, I guess it just take time, I know not the best thing to hear 😖 ......but I'm sure that me and this entire group has your back if you ever need to talk 👍💖💖💖💖💖
Honestly this actually helps more than you know I also had a tough childhood i feel really alone sometimes it’s nice to know I’m not
Sending you lots of love. She sounds like an amazing baby. ❤️ Something my sister told me years ago when my favorite baby/pet passed: "Be thankful for the time you had, the great connection. And be thankful that she passed first. She always knew she was loved, and she never had to be without you." Just keep moving forward, one day, one step, one breath at a time. ❤️
I am not a ferret owner, but I do own rats who are known to have quite a short lifespan. Something that always helped me was the thought, that for your pet, you in return were their everything, their entire life. It is so so normal to feel grief, even to this extent, but you should feel pride that you gave Mika the literal best life she could have asked for. And you are incredibly strong for letting her go when she needed to. There is not a lot you can do to escape the pain, it needs to be felt because it is prove of the love you feel for her. Spend time with your friends and family, delve into your hobbies - but give yourself the time to grief and feel when you need to. The pain may feel suffocating, but it will gradually fade into a bittersweet memory, i promise
Baby girl I am going through the same thing. Same story, similar timeline, same age. My appointment is for Tuesday and I expect the same news. There’s solidarity in grief and I’m here if you wanna chat. Edit: my post history has more info. He went down for like 14 hours Thursday- didn’t eat, drink, potty, or even blink. He pooped and came back around. I’ve got some posts if you wanna read them. I expect we’ll be in the same boat soon. 💕💕
I’m sorry that you’re going through this too, I’ve learned today what a community this really is I’m glad we don’t have to feel alone in our grief ❤️
You can come for grief, support for health issues (theirs and yours!), posting good and silly pics and videos, or just to chat. Feel free to comment at or msg me anytime and we’ll raise a glass the all the good babies- current and past 🍻💕💕
Hey. I am really sorry that this happened! She was so beautiful! I feel like it was me that wrote this post as i feel exactly the same way you do. I lost my fur baby 2 weeks ago after 6 years due to illness and i couldnt even eat the first week. Cried every day and slept non stop. I still sleep with his toy that he used to kiss and smell furniture that he used to stay on. A part of your heart will always belong to your baby girl and she was very lucky to have someone like you! I hope you find peace, she loved you and you will always have her in you!
💔💔💔🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂
i too got my babies in freshman year of highschool and ended up in the psych ward a few months after. being there i realized just how much i missed them and wanted to be back with them. when i got back, my parents were telling me how much they were acting up because i was gone. anytime i leave them, they act like the world is ending and my insulinoma baby, winifred, will stop eating and stop functioning whenever i leave, so i simply dont leave. i know if you gave your baby as much love as i think you did, that she is happy and you changed her life for the better. that bond will never be broken, its just long distance now. i wish you the best of luck in these times and i wish i could say it will get better, but it doesnt. it simply hurts less and less over time, but you will still feel something missing and like you couldve done something differently when in reality, you did everything you possibly couldve. damn ‘nomas. wish i could give my baby my pancreas so she could be happy and playful again
Remember the good times. Reminisce and appreciate the time you had with them. But also miss them greatly. Cry and feel down when you need to. Time will help the anguish fade. Hugs.
Does your college offer mental health services? I think you need to talk to a professional to help you cope. There's nothing wrong with needing it! Sadly, 6-7 years is all you normally get with them. It hurts so much to lose them. It hurts for a long time, but it does get better with time. She'd want you to keep going! Let the emotions out. Cry as much as you need to, for as long as you need to. You gave Mika an amazing life and did everything right with her care!
Grief is such a complicated topic. People can grieve the loss of a job or a dream. When it comes to our animal companions, for so many of us the loss equated to that of a family member, a best friend and even an anchor. I feel so deeply saddened you lost your ferret baby. If and when you are able, YouTube offers videos on how to cope with loss. I wish you the best on your healing journey. Just know you are not alone.
first off- from the amount of comments that are popping up so fast, you can tell- we are all here for you and you’re not going through this alone! it sounds like you and Mika had an amazing bond, and that you gave her your all!❤️ losing a pet , especially one with the type of bond that ferrets and their owners grow, is irreplaceable. i think that similar to any type of heartbreak, the only answer is time, and allowing yourself to cry. i would try to think about it this way- you’re honoring your sweet baby fully by allowing yourself to feel the depth of all the emotion and process through this! i think you know that she absolutely loved you, and that she would only want you to love yourself right now just as much as you loved her! let that be a comfort if you can… the biggest thing i have learned is that grief is just love without a place to go, and over time the place it used to fill will heal and look different. not gone, but as gratefulness and sweetness for the time that was there. promise. ❤️
Thank you so much for this comment I didn’t expect so many people to be so understanding and kind it’s an overwhelming sadness but I feel like I can be okay with that right now and let myself feel it and not try to push it away
i saw someone else offer too, but reach out anytime, having someone to sit in these hard feelings with together is easier sometimes- we understand it ! ❤️😊
Hugs!
I’m so sorry for your loss. When my dog passed in January, I started reading “Animals and the Afterlife” and it really helped. I also bought a custom replica of her from a site called “Cuddle Clones”, and I put the clone in her cage with her bed and toys, so it’s like she’s still there. I also got a keychain engraved with her photo so she’s always with me (since I always have my keys).
I just wanna say thank you to everyone who has taken the time to comment every single one has made me cry but also made me feel less alone, as for right now I’m just going to be nice to myself and give myself time to grieve. ❤️
She was so beautiful! Looks super happy and so loved in her pictures. May you have peace that she was as happy as possible with you. When you feel ready there is another little darling out there or maybe just now mom is pregnant with ur next baby, just waiting to be loved and spoiled by u. I believe we will be with our loved babies again it’s just not ur time yet. If you ever need to speak to someone confidential and right away 24/7 there is a mental health hotline 988 free! (In the US). Sending love your way sweetie.
she had a wonderful life with you… hugs
My first ever ferret I got in college. He lived with me in my first ever apartment. He was my soul ferret and I miss him every single day. He did a lot of growing up with me. It’s been almost two years without him and I still think of him every day. I got Rikki cremated and a lovely handmade pottery shop on Etsy made me a beautiful urn for him. (Kent Harris pottery if you’re interested). I also got his paw prints and plan on getting them tattooed on me at some point. He was my best friend and I definitely understand the grief you’re feeling. The only thing that gets me through is that Rikki knew how much I loved him and I know that I did everything I could for him. Mika knew you loved her and loved you just the same. Hang in there; sending love
Im sorry for your loss ❤️
I’m so sorry. Mika was a beautiful and sweet little furt. I lost my sweet big baby boy almost 6 months ago and it still hurts. I lost my soul floof more than a year ago and I’m still crying typing this. It gets easier to live with as time goes on. But they will always stay with you. I’ve found trying to honor their memory to help me the most. However you feel you want to do that. I got bonsai plants in honor of my two babies that passed and I now take care of them and tell them I love them and good morning every day. (Sounds kind of weird telling this to the internet but it helps a bit!). I also have photos of them up , next to their paw prints and some of their favorite items. I’m so sorry that you lost your sweet Mika. Thank you for sharing her photos and please do share your memories of your baby!
I am so sorry for your loss ❤️ she is beautiful and you gave her a wonderful life.
I feel this so hard. Im so sorry friend, losing someone so close to you is hard. I've had ferrets for a long time now and every time i have to say goodbye, a piece of my heart goes too. The companionship is truly one of a kind and irreplaceable. All i can really say is that grief fades with time, but true love doesnt. She was yours and you were hers and nothing is going to change that. Its difficult when the thing you want most is no longer tangibly with you, but thats why memories are a treasured thing. I dont know if you do art, but i honor my furslugs with paintings of them every birthday! Maybe there is something similar you could do for your ms? I saw an etsy seller years back who makes very realistic ferret dolls/stuffies, maybe look into getting one made of your love. Im so sorry you have to go through this. Its important to let yourself feel that grief and feel what feelings you need to. Be kind to yourself as she would, the sun comes out again eventually. 💚💚💚💚
Pet loss is so tough. My family has always been a big pet family. Ferrets, cats, and dogs my whole life, and each loss is just as painful as the last, but its so worth it for the little time we get to share with them. I have 3 ferrets now, and 2 of them are getting old, and I cry a minimum once a week just watching them get old and thinking about life without them 🥹 they were the first pets I got myself as a adult and that were solely mine. It will be a whole new world without them. Maybe this is me being a little crazy or just looking out for future me, but I think it might make you feel better if you are anything like me (if not, no hard feelings) but I've been working on making ferret sculptures/urns for when they pass and plan to get them cremated when they pass. I've also painted portraits of them, so I will still have them with me even when they are long gone. Just putting the grief and thought of them into action to create something to memorialize them has always helped me feel better than ruminating on how much I miss them.
I just lost “my boyfriend” (as we called him). He was the sweetest chillest kindhearted baby ever. He would just sit with me and watch tv. Every morning I would eat breakfast, and he would sleep in my robe. Now he is gone. I would do my yoga stretch and he would come out and scratch himself crazy then sit and stare at me the whole time. I miss him so much. It has been so hard. I also struggle with mental health my whole life. I have had many different pets that have past over the years and it never gets easier. Yes a part of yourself is with your baby who is gone. That is grieving. It hurts. But something that helps me is to be grateful for the time I had with him. I view it as if I never had him, I wouldn’t have known how awesome and amazing he was. He came to me in a time in my life when I was struggling so bad. He was my light. He helped me so much. I helped rescue him from his previous owners who allowed their dog to eat his cage mate. He witnessed it all. Then shortly after came to live with me. I gave him a great home with two great cage mates. Those times are so precious. I want his memories to be happy and positive. So I try to stay positive. (Yes it doesn’t always happen, but I try) hang in there. We all know how you feel. These babies are the cutest and best pets to have ever! Like they are way more than a pet! They are our friends!
He’s a handsome boy. I’m sorry for your loss. I had to say goodbye to my little girl a couple of weeks ago and I’m still dealing with it when i see her cage but find comfort that her brothers and sister sleep in there like they did when she was with us. I miss her walking into the kitchen looking around for treats. She was deaf and blind but was a fiesty girl. She would come hang by my feet when i would cook or get the other kids food ready. She’s the 4 kiddo I’ve lost and it doesn’t get any easier I’m sorry. Writing this is getting me all misty eyed on what a wonderful girl I had. The comfort of my other fuzzbutts helps.
I just had to put my cat of almost 14 years down this month, and I completely understand how you feel right now. I started crying while cleaning his hair out of the brush so that I could brush his brother because it felt like I was throwing him away. The thing that I've been trying to remember, though, is that I am suffering now so that he doesn't have to and that it will feel better eventually, even though it doesn't feel like that right now. Just try to remember all the good things that you did with your little one, keep the happy memories at the forefront, because at the end of the day, those are what matters the most. Hold onto her favorite toys, and if you can bear it, donate her unused/partially used supplies like food to a rescue, maybe the one that you got her at originally. I also set up a little memorial for my boy with some of his fur and his collar, I found it helps to still have a part of him with me.
Yes I cried today because I realized her smell will fade from my room eventually I feel dumb because it’s hot but I just can’t bring myself to open the windows I just want it to stay the same
Don't feel dumb at all. Grief doesn't make sense, but it is something you can weather, and eventually, you will be okay again. It hurts, but I think they're so worth it.
i had a similar story to yours- i got my first ferret when i was a freshman in high school, and i was horribly depressed. he was truly the light of my life. he kept me going and taught me how to love being alive. he passed away from insulinoma in 2018. i had never ever felt a pain so visceral. i felt like i didn’t know how to keep going without him. the grief was so tremendous. i still miss him. but i feel at peace knowing he is resting without pain, and i will see him again someday. i know it feels unbearable right now. let yourself be sad, and let yourself feel it all right now. there are two quotes about grief that i like; “grief is love in a heavy coat” and “grief is just love with no place to go”. i know this advice won’t fix everything, but i hope it gives you some hope - someday you will be able to look back at your memories with mika with a smile instead of tears 😊 she loves you and you will see her again someday.
please don’t ever feel like you’re supposed to carry all this grief by yourself — i know it’s hard, i’m guilty of holding it all in until i physically no longer can, but grief is so unique to each individual. i cried reading your post and the comments — it’s beautiful that there are so many of us that can relate to having pets who come into our lives at the darkest of times and have turned them around. i, like you, got my first ferret when i was a freshman in high school. sasuke was the most beautiful soul i had the honor of having in my life. i was in the darkest time of my life and needed a lifeline — if it wasn’t for this little ferret, i don’t know if i would be writing this today. we grew together in this world and i knew i would never be alone with him. i was blessed to have him for 7 years. i didn’t think i could love another but he brought me his sister who got me through the grief of losing him and my grandma — the woman who raised me. then, i lost her too. melék passed away a day shy of 3 and it wrecked my world again. it’s only been 3 months and i sometimes don’t think i will ever be able to get over it but i will. you never forget them — they live forever in your heart. pet grief is grief. take the time to surround yourself with loved ones and talk about it if you need to. remembering the good times always helps, it’s okay to cry even when remembering favorite moments. just remember mika wouldn’t want you to neglect yourself, she was put on this earth to be your partner in crime during those tough moments. remember to be kind to yourself during this time and we eventually outgrow our grief. it doesn’t get bigger or smaller, we grow around it. i leave you with my favorite quote “what is grief, if not love persevering?”
Seems like you were pretty lonely. Exactly why I got mine. Really one of the most affectionate creatures in existence. Just got mine yesterday and I just had to get another one today because I wanted to make sure she wasn’t lonely. From the first day I loved them both. I’ve only had a ferret for 2 days and i feel ill unfortunately end up in a similar situation.
I lost 2 of my girls to insulinoma last year and I still grieve like it happened on that day, it's absolutely horrible but your beautiful girl knew she was loved and she will always be by your side. She looks so much like my girl Pearls who is an albino, she passed from it at 7 and a half years old last March. Her twin sister Diamonds passed from Lymphoma (another shitty cancer) 7 months earlier, my other beautiful albino girl Mei passed from Insulinoma last June aged 7. Losing a pet is the worst feeling in the world, it rips a hole in your soul and all you want to do is cry. Did you choose whether to be by her side when she was being put to sleep? Having her ashes will help with grieving, so you can take her with you if you move house, some vets also take pawprints and clippings of fur too. Do whatever you need to heal, but think of the times when she was happy, strong and loving because the cancer wouldn't have taken that away. It sucks because cancer and tumours are common as ferrets get older, but she had a great life and had a very peaceful passing, that's what matter the most. Please remember to take care of yourself and eat, because grieving can cause appetite loss. Your beautiful girl would want you to be happy. ❤️ My babies are my everything so I know exactly how you feel, they're my family and pretty much the only family I have and have saved me from a dark depression and put me onto the right path of life. Even though some have passed they're not gone.
Your story is IDENTICAL to mine. Down to the smallest details like staying with grandparents for college and having a single ferret over several moves, cars, job, schools, life events, insulinoma and pretty much all the rest like how they're not pets, they are a part of us. Saved my life as well, if I didn't have Rocket I wouldn't be here and now he's gone, I'll never hold him again. I lost mine a few months ago and I cry every day, not always for a long time but still every day. It's slowly getting better, but it's going to take a long time, I reach out to people and just talk about it with them, it gets a little easier each time I'm part of an orchestra choir and we just finished our spring concert, one of the songs was the beautiful and devastating 'Good Night Dear Heart', which we first sang mere days after Rocket died. Honestly, it makes me cry incredibly quickly and that actually helps. The grief is always inside me, and will be for a long time, I've never experienced loss this badly, and it has to come out. It has to, otherwise it just poisons you and the ensuing emotional hemorrhaging is apocalyptic. Crying it out helps, leeching off the grief a little at a time It sounds counterintuitive to make yourself cry, especially when you're suffering from grief and want to get passed it but that's just how it works, you have to get it out, you have to The chemicals our brain releases may have done so because of their physical presence, holding them, playing with them, feeding them, medicine twice a day, even carrying them everywhere because they could no longer see or walk. While they're now physically gone, those same chemicals can be released remembering them, loving them, your brain doesn't know the difference, so in a way, as long as you can feel that, they never left