To Troy Lynn E. concerning Colitis
>Perhaps the doctors on the list have some suggestions. Gizzies sick again.
>So far everything we've read suggests antibiotics and supportive therapy, but
>it takes so long.  If this runs the same course as the earlier one this year
>(this means Gizzie will only be well - 4 months this year), it will take 3-4
>months to clear up.  I administer oral Gentocin for 6 weeks, clean him and
>apply ointment several times a day, feed him his special recipe and yogurt, and
>make sure he gets plenty of fluids.   Is there anything else I should be doing?
 Is there anyway to stop this from recurring?  Could it be stress or diet
related?
 
        Well, there are several questions here, and the first is - what is
causing the colitis?  In ferrets, probably the most common single cause is
infection by a type of bacteria which has not yet been given it's own name, but
is similar to an organism also seen in pigs, hamsters, and rabbits.  It wcauses
a syndrome in ferrets known as proliferative or inflammatory bowel disease.
This problem is seen sporadically in young ferrets, often first showing itself
at 4-6 months of age, and recurring on a regular basis.  The primary clincial
signs are frequent painful bowel movements which may have a littel blood.  The
lining of the colon becomes both markedly thickened and ulcerated.  There is
little treatment, only the good nutrition, fluid balance and antibiotics that
you have mentioned.  Most fo the treated cases (a lot aren't treated) have been
treated with chloramphenicol.  Although this treatment helps, the animals often
relapse again and again.  There does not seem to be anything that completely
eradicates the problem.
 
        In fact diagnosis is difficult - surgical biopsy of the colon if rarely
done.  The bacteria is incredibly difficult to cutlure, and sites that culture
for it are few and far between.  Most cases are treated symptomatically, and the
definitive diagnosis is often made at necropsy.
 
        Stress plays a large part in diarrhea of ferrets, as it does in many
other species.  Ferrets have nervous colons, as anyone who has brought a new
ferret into the house can attest to.  Stress probably also bears a large part of
the responsibility for bringing on recurring attacks of proliferative colitis.
 
>Instead of conducting unwarranted research like the shedding studies on
>ferrets, why can't the researchers work on curing deadly existing illnesses!
 
        I agree with you on the usefulness of the shedding studies.  The reason
researchers can't work on the ongoing illnesses in ferrets is that there just
aren't any researchers.  There is no money for this research, and very few
places can afford to fund it without grants.  Now, as we see with this
ill-conceived shedding study, researchers are having to go hat in hand to other
areas for funding....
 
       Bruce Williams, DVM                 Department of Veterinary Pathology
       [log in to unmask]         Armed Forces Institute of Pathology
       (202) 576-2453/2454                 Washington, D.C.  20306-6000
 
[Posted in FML issue 0924]