(this is a duplicate of a message sent to the FHL; note that I am in touch
with my vet, and may well have brought Amelia in by the time you read
this.  I'm just trying to use all the resources at my disposal...)
 
Back in March 2001, Dr. Williams wrote in the FHL:
"Ulcers don't cause seedy stools - only the villar shortening resulting
from coronavirus infection does that."
 
Does the statement about ulcers apply generally speaking?  Amelia
(insulinoma, almost 7) just produced small amounts of seedy stool, with
what looks like mucous and possibly blood mixed in.  The stool really
looked like birdseed (or fish eggs, like largish tobiko), not just grainy.
Just before producing this stool Amelia had a vomiting fit (didn't produce
anything) and her appetite has been off.  I have a call in to the vet
right now and as I'm waiting I'm reading the FHL archives on ulcers.
Amelia crashed last Tuesday as a result of not eating, and an ulcer was
diagnosed.  She was released from critical care yesterday.  Right now
Amelia is on:
 
2.0ml pred 2xday
30.0mg diazoxide (proglycem) 2xday
25.0mg metronidazole 2xday
0.6mg Pepcid 2xday
0.2ml amoxicillin 2xday
 
All of these are oral suspensions, and the first two, of course, are for
insulinoma.  Could any of these medications be causing the seedy stool?
Also, as you can imagine, medicine time is no fun at all, could stress be
causing it?  She goes off everything but the pred and diazoxide on Friday.
She has been eating kibble and simply will not eat anything else, not even
kibble mush.  I wanted to get her on Gerber's second stage chicken, but at
this point I would have to force feed her and I'm afraid of stressing her
out more.  I am not willing to dabble in herbal remedies without the
advice and guidance of a vet; I don't know enough about it to make
informed decisions.
 
Finally, we did an ultrasound on her last week, and while her abdominal
fat made it difficult to see, the ultrasound did reveal nodules either
within her spleen or around her intestines.  Would these findings be
consistent with any of the above symptoms for something we haven't
considered yet?  In addition, her BG has been very low, anywhere between
45 and 65, though when she's awake, she's very alert and her legs are
reasonably steady under her.  The likelihood of ECE is pretty remote,
although there were a couple of other ferrets in the critical care unit
last week, both actually for ulcers as well.
 
This is very hard.  I know that her days are pretty numbered, what with
the insulinoma drugs at their maximum dosages for her weight just keeping
her stable at very low glucose levels, and I don't want her to spend them
in pain.  But when she's awake, she's so alert, and her personality is
very present.  She's always been a very tough fighter, not at all
intimidated by pain.  Which was good when it came to recovering from
blockage or adrenal surgery, but tells me now that if pain is affecting
her appetite, it must be pretty hefty.
 
Regina
 
Regina Harrison  [log in to unmask] or [log in to unmask]
 
Gossamer into Spiderweb:
http://www.channel1.com/users/regina/~gossamer.html
 
           So keep your candles burning
        And make her journey bright and pure
           That she will keep returning
               Always and evermore
                  into my arms
[Posted in FML issue 3545]