Last night (10/10) sometime between 10pm-11pm we noticed that Ives was
trying to defecate without success.  Obviously we became more than a little
concerned and gave him some Linatone and Petromalt.  Along about 3am, he
started crying.  We gave him some more linatone and an enema which was
successful but didn't relieve his distress.  Then comes the hard part -
waiting for the vet to open.  After an X-ray, he went into surgery for a
blocked urethra.  Poor little guy's urethra was full of stones from the
bladder to the penis.  They had him in surgery for an hour-and-a-half, back
flushing him until they got most if not all of the stones.  They rerouted
his urethra such that he now if more like a girl than a guy ;->.  He should
be home any minute now and hopefully all will be well.
 
The size of the stones was impressive.  The poor little guy must have been
in discomfort for some time.  I wish ferrets were less stoic with their
discomfort.  It would be nice to get an early start on problems like these.
 
Two questions:
 
1.  When we were giving him an enema, how much fluid could be given?
 
2.  Any ideas on a diet that would prevent these from forming?  Because the
X-ray showed little or nothing, I assume that magnesium/phosphorus are not
the culprits as they should have showed up. (We will be sending some to
Acupath for analysis).  How common are these in ferrets?  Prevention?
 
Hugs to all fuzzies.
 
Greg Hastings                                  [log in to unmask]
Alice Dutton
Auburn, WA
 
When one finds himself in a hole of his own making, it is a good
time to examine the quality of workmanship.
[Posted in FML issue 1342]