Dear Kerry:
 
>I have a very sick little boy named: Buddy Luv .  Please pray for him and
>keep him in your thoughts and prayers.  He was fine on Saturday.  Sunday
>he starting vomiting .  Monday we went to the vet for x-rays and blood
>work, but he is not responding to his meds.  X-ray didn't show any
>possible blockage.  Blood work ok except his live enzymes were up
>slightly.
 
Please don't rush to rule out blockages on the basis of a negative X-ray.
While blockages are certainly not the only cause of vomiting, they only
show up on radiographs about 10% of the time.  Barium studies may double
or even triple that percentage, but that still leaves 70% that can't be
diagnosed on an X-ray.
 
It can be a real tricky problem, and surgery often is done based on a gut
feeling on the part of the owner and vet (pardon the pun).  If there is no
other diagnoseable problem, and this is a young ferret or one who spends a
lot of time in the cage, you may want to revisit this option.  You may
also want to closely examined the presence and shape of stools - are they
dimished, loose, or pencil thin - this may also be a sign of GI blockage.
 
With kindest regards,
Bruce Williams, DVM
[Posted in FML issue 3301]