>From:    Anonymous Poster <[log in to unmask]>
>Subject: Virus?????
>
>Has any shelter or anyone with ferrets for that matter, been
>experiencing a virus that consists of loose green stool turning to
>tarry stool, loosing weight quic kly, vomiting blood, and death
>usually within 2-4 days?
 
Dear Anon,
Without tests, either diagnostic or from a necropsy, it's difficult to
verify it's a virus causing the illness and death.  A bacterial infection
could do the same, as could lymphoma of the stomach.
 
You don't give a lot of information.  Is it a young, middle age or older
ferret?  Is it the only ferret in the household or one of several?  A new
or established ferret?  Is it the only death with these signs or have
there been more than one?  Since you give a range from 2-4 days it sounds
like you may have lost more than one with these symptoms.  Has a necropsy
been done to determine if it is an isolated cause or if it is possibly
contagious?
 
While it could be a number of things, my first suspicion would be an
ulcer.  Typically, the ferret would stop eating as much, due to
discomfort, causing stool changes and weight loss, possibly rapidly
dehydrating.  If the ulcer was located closely enough to a major blood
supply, once it ulcerated deeply enough, the ferret could bleed out
quickly, passing black tarry digested blood.  The stomach likely filled
with blood, either from the bleeding ulcer or shock, nauseating him, and
he vomited that out.  The green slimy stool for the couple of days prior
could easily be from stress, as the ferret was probably feeling ill and
it affected his digestive process.  A ferret can have a bleeding ulcer
long before there is enough digested blood to show up in a stool.  This
is why it is so very important to treat ulcers immediately and
aggressively until they are completely healed.  There is a good webpage
on ulcers below.  While the article is older, the information is still
good.
 
 http://www.afip.org/ferrets/ulcers.html
 
Helicobacter is bacteria, and often the basic cause of ulcers.  Couple
this with stress from anything from being surrendered into a new home or
shelter, the absence of a favored loved one (owner leaves for college),
or a change in their environment, to underlying illness such as adrenal
disease or insulinoma, and you've got a good case of Helicobacter with
ulcers.  I know of one ferret that crashed simply because his beloved
family moved him downstairs to keep him away from the smell while they
painted his room.
 
I recently took in a group of 4 ferrets, all 4-6 year olds, and we
needed to take three of the four ferrets through Amoxi and Biaxin for
Helicobacter and treat for ulcers.
 
Other possibilities I could suspect include lymphoma of the stomach,
poisoning, severe hairballs/foreign object or, as you feared, the
presence of a new viral infection.
 
Hopefully you had necropsies done and can share with us the findings
when you get the results.
 
My condolances on your losses.
Julie
 
 
Julie Fossa
FL (772)228-9067 winters
OH (419)225-8383 summers
West Central Ohio Ferret Shelter
http://www.wcofs.org
International Ferret Congress
http://ferretcongress.org/
[Posted in FML issue 5352]