Dear Sharin:
 
>Meanwhile, tho, Ramone has totally given up on food.  He drinks water and
>will take nutrical and ferretone.  That's it.  I've been syringe feeding
>him watered down chicken babyfood & he acts like I'm killing him.  He is
>still somewhat energetic and doesn't look emaciated - but he's lost
>almost all his pudge so he doesn't have much more reserves.
 
It is not unusual that sick ferrets go off their food.  Good nursing care
and TLC is required in many cases.  You may try finger feeding with
undiluted baby food rather than syringe feeding - thi lessens the chance
of aspiration pneumonia, and you can often get more into him at a feeding.
 
>Should I conjecture that he has a mouth or stomach ulcer?  (I haven't
>found any tarry stools.) He did an odd thing like smacking his lips after
>eating nutrical - is that teeth grinding?  or just getting the sticky
>stuff off the roof of his mouth?
 
without tarry stools ar tooth grinding - it is difficult to prove that
there is a gastric ulcer.  Lip smacking is a sign of nausea rather than an
ulcer - however, ulcers can make a ferret nauseous as well.  A return to
the carafate 10 minutes prior to a feeding probably wouldn't hurt, and can
only help.  Carafate is relatively inert and you won't see any reactions.
 
>Do you think I should put him back on carafate?  Some people recommended
>Pepcid AC - would that be instead or in addition?
 
I also strongly discourage the use of Pepcid AC in ferets with ECE.  The
GI imbalances caused by ECE are only heightened by the decrease in gastric
acid production caused by Pepcid AC.  In ECE ferrets, the stomach is one of
the few things that is working well - Carafate will plug the holes if there
is ulcers, but doesn't disturb normal GI function - Pepcid AC does.
 
With kindest regards,
Bruce Williams, dVM
[Posted in FML issue 3298]