Hi all!  About a week ago - I noticed that Ricky (my 2.5 yr old male)
was acting kinda funny - started last Wednesday.  He was getting around
realllllly slowly - and acting real tired all the time.  I also noticed
that he was shedding - a bit more than usual.  I attributed this
(correctly I found out) to the new climate we are living in - and didn't
worry too much about it.  However, Thursday - when I came home from
work - he was so lethargic he wouldn't move.  He also wasn't eating or
drinking, or anything.  I let them out of the cage (Lucy and him) and he
didn't get two steps before he laid down and didn't move.  Well being
the calm person I am, I PANICKED and drove' to the Emergency Vet Center.
Thank the heavens - it is right across the street and down a couple
drives from the hotel we are at.  The vet there (and this kid was
yoooouuunngggg...) determined that he was lethargic AND severly
dehydrated.  I allowed the blood draw, urine sample taking, etc......
they could not come up with anything wrong with him.......they also
wanted a total of $562.00 to process the lab work, keep him overnite,
IV, etc.  Also - they checked his sugar level there - which they said
was perfectly normal.  They said however, that an alternative to leaving
him there w/IV's would be to give him sub-Q liquids (just under the
skin) - and then I could take him home.  The vet did not think he was in
immediate danger - and I didn't have 500 smackers - so we went home.
Thru the night - I was "force feeding" him sugar water, using a syringe.
He didn't appreciate it much - but it seemed to do the trick.  After
doing this (two syringe fulls every 2 hours) all night - the next day -
he seemed better, but still not quite "right".  He was eating/drinking on
his own - but not in large quantities.  So I took him to a vet I located
here in Kansas that was not only fert knowledgable - but super friendly,
helpful, etc.  He did NOT charge me the office visit to bring Ricky in (I
told them how much I spent the night before) - which I thought was
fabulous!  He said Ricky looked down still - but didn't think he was in
immediate danger.  He did tell me that giving him the sugar water was a
good idea - and it probably did help.  He did a thorough exam -
determined that he was too young for Insuloma/Adrenal disease - and
figured that he probably caught a "bug".  He gave him a penicillin
shot - another "under the skin" dose of liquids - and sent us home with
amoxicillin.
 
This vet was soooo good, kind and ferret knowledgable!!!  I talked to him
about my reluctance to "vaccinate" my kids - and guess what he told me?
His clinic no longer vaccinates (for distemper) ferrets due to the fact
that they had so many ferrets with horrid reactions, and a couple deaths.
I asked him what types of vaccines they used and he said they had tried
several different ones, but the percentage of reactions/deaths was too
high for their comfort level and that they didn't feel comfortable with
how sick the kids got from it (and this was also with the ferts who had
been pre-treated for reactions).  He did of course, let me know the
dangers of distemper - etc - but said that with the kids being indoor
kidlets - and where we live, chances of them contracting anything were
slight (but still there).  Now before everyone goes off half-cocked - he
DID tell me the dangers of NOT vaccinating, etc.  Soooo anyways, Ricky
picked back up by day 3 and seems now a week later, to be fine!!!  I was
soooo scared though guys......I never saw an animal go downhill sooo
quickly - and not have any reason for it......oh, for the record - I did
take all the blood/urine/stool that was collected at the ER to the new
vet - who said that he would keep it in the fridge - for 2 days - just in
case the moxy didn't work - so that we could send it in to be analyzed.
My question?  Has anyone else out there ever had this happen?  I mean -
not being able to find anything "wrong" - but havin a fert get so sick,
so quick?
 
Any advise (besides flamming me about vaccines) would be appreciated!!!
Honestly though folks, please, please - don't waste breath trying to
convince me about vaccinating - I am fully aware of what I need to do
regarding that.  Thanks all!!!!
 
Kim and Her Army of Idiots
[Posted in FML issue 4569]