>From:    Amy Robbin <[log in to unmask]>
>Subject: Yellow nose, dark urine, rapid decline
 
Re; "Buster" - 4.5 y.o. previously healthy male ferret; Death following
Yellow nose, Dark urine
 
>Does anyone have any clue as to what the skin yellowing may be (Kidney
>failure?  okay, what causes that in an otherwise healthy young male)
 
Sorry to hear of your sudden loss of Buster.  It is always devastating
when we lose these wonderful pets at such a young age and with such
little warning.
 
It sounds like Buster presented with "jaundice" ["jon-dis"].  Jaundice
is a sign that something is wrong with the body's normal handling of the
break-down process for red blood cells (RBCs).
 
In healthy animals RBCs are constantly being destroyed and new RBCs
are being made.  Old RBCs release hemoglobin molecules into the blood.
Hemoglobin is broken down into "heme" and globin.  Heme is converted to
"bilirubin" -- a yellow-colored molecule, which is then carried to the
liver.  If the liver is working properly, most bilirubin is processed
further ("conjugated") before it is excreted into the bile, and then into
the intestines.  Bilirubin is further metabolized by intestinal bacteria
to "urobilins," which contribute to the color of the feces.  A small
percentage of these compounds are reabsorbed and eventually appear in
the urine.
 
Normally very little bilirubin reaches the urine.  When there is
something wrong with this process, bilirubin accumulates in the skin,
eyes and other tissues, turning them yellow ("jaundice"), or in the
urine, turning it dark.
 
Jaundice is often a result of liver failure, or the sudden destruction of
red blood cells.
 
Abnormal liver function can result from infections (bacterial, viral,
parasitic), ingestion of toxic materials (including drugs, poisons,
poisonous plants), drug toxicity, tumors, direct (physical) injury to the
liver, or even congenital metabolic errors or anatomical abnormalities
(e.g., gallstones causing blockage of the bile ducts).
 
In some cases the liver is not the primary problem.  Rapid break down
("hemolysis") of RBCs can overwhelm the liver's ability to eliminate
bilirubin fast enough.  Causes of hemolysis include infections (see
above), poisonings (see above), drug effects, auto-immune disease, or
from unknown causes, such as idiopathic hemolytic anemia.  These events
are often sudden.  In such cases, transfusions are usually ineffective in
treating hemolysis, because the new blood is destroyed as quickly as it
is infused.
 
While an autopsy might have uncovered the cause of Buster' medical
problem, some causes might not be readily apparent, requiring additional
testing methods.
 
Regards -
 
[FE]
[Posted in FML issue 4750]