ECE Seconds -
A dear friend was hit with ECE the same year we were, 1996, but not from
us, she got it when they went to visit her son in Texas and her ferrets
contracted it from her sons ferrets.  That was the first time.  After about
a year of contamination they were finally clean (she had taken in several
ferrets after this time and none contracted ECE).  Then in late 1999 or
early 2000 she took in a very sick ferret and she was hit again.  Some of
the ferrets that had it before did contract it again.  After almost a year
of quarantine she took in 2 more ferrets and they too contracted it.  Her
ferrets symptoms, both the first and second time, were the same as when we
were hit, and the sick ferret she took in was diagnosed at KSU Vetmed as
having ECE (they had ruled everything else out and done a biopsy).  Had
she not taken the ferret he would have died.  She kept him in quarantine
for quite some time and it wasn't until he was allowed to roam in the same
areas at the others that the others contracted the virus.
 
With ECE some of our ferrets had the antifreeze colored mucus diarrhea and
all had a very dark tacky pudding like stool near the end of the sickness.
I've not seen either of these symptoms in other causes of diarrhea in the
ferrets and we've had our fair share and then some of diarrhea ailments.
The tacky stools were like glue on the floor and took quite a bit of work
to get them cleaned up, they were like very tacky glue.  We did experience
a horrid horrid odor that accompanied the diarrhea at one point.  Coccidia
too produced an awful odor but nothing compared to when we had ECE.
 
Obesity -
I've seen a few cases of obesity in ferrets that were severely malnourished
before coming to me and becoming obese after.  I had considered that
perhaps their bodies were unable to process the fat properly (like my body
that seems to horde fat!!!).  In my experience, ferrets with heart ailments
may become obese in the abdominal area and ferrets on pred may become obese
from fluid retention.  Grossly enlarged spleens have been involved in two
ferrets that became obese (all over obesity).
 
Warm hugs to all. tle
Troy Lynn Eckart
Ferret Family Services
http://www-personal.ksu.edu/~sprite/ffs.html
http://www.geocities.com/Petsburgh/Haven/5481/
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[Posted in FML issue 3296]