Hi everyone,
 
I'm sitting at work, w/ Amadeus fast asleep in a towel on my desk.  Twelve
days ago he was diagnosed w/ cardiomyopathy and, rather than helping, the
treatments seemed to have sped up his illness rather than bought us some
more time together.
 
Last summer he lost his winter weight.  In the fall he didn't gain it
back.  I took him in to the vet's where a full CBC, urine analysis, and
fecal analysis took place.  Nothing was found.  The vet asked me if I
wanted anything else done.  I said no...not even thinking of an x- ray.
We started a course of Amoxycillan in case he had once again gotten
helicobacter.
 
No improvement, but, not knowing any better, I delayed getting a second
opinion until two weeks ago, where an x-ray showed the presence of
cardiomyopathy.
 
He never coughed and swelling from water retention didn't show up until
Wednesday and he was seen Thursday, but in front of me is a ferret that
looks at me w/ trust through slitted eyes.  He has lost control of his
hind legs and drags them along.  In reality, I thought he'd taken a large
leap, missed his intended target and fallen and broken his back.  I tried
to find a ride to the vet's last night to get him put down but couldn't
find anyone who could take me.  Because he doesn't appear to be suffering,
merely tired, I didn't feel the need to take a cab.  Instead, I held him
while watching television and later while reading, and left him sleep by
my side all night long.
 
Lately he refused to drink water, preferring my artificially sweetened
ice tea.  This morning he drug himself to my dog's water drish and drank
and drank until I thought he'd burst.
 
I love my Amadeus so much and will miss him more than I can say.  He often
reigned as favorite.  Whenever other ferret folks met him the were amazed
at his trust in strangers.  Rather than squirming to get down he would
merely curl up and fall asleep....whether his bed was a pair of hands,
arms, or a lap.  His deafness was never a deterrent.  Instead, it made
him more aware of me.  His bite training and playing endeared him to me
all the more.
 
From this came a question that I hope people can answer if they can face
(and go past) their pain of losing their darling deaf Wardenburg syndrome
ferrets.  What do Wardenburg ferrets die from?  I have heard they have
shorter life spans than most ferrets...and that is indeed true in
Amadeus's case.  Could people let me know what was the cause of death in
their Wardenburg Syndrome ferrets?  I would truly appreciate it.  I can't
say I'll be able to start a chart of any sort w/o a sizeable sample.
 
A grieving,
Pat (and the rest of the Furry Inspirations)
[Posted in FML issue 3720]