Hi.  Well, we had one and a half weeks with no problems, then last night
(It's Thursday.) RUFFIE SICK AGAIN: Ruffle went in 2 hours from being fine
to being a bit dehydrated and convulsing.  Seems she has picked up some sort
of intestinal bug.  We were able to stablize her with Gatorade (having run
out of Pedialyte, for which a special trip was made by Steve), then managed
to get some Sustical into her, and later some Pedialyte with Nutrical
"soup".  She will go in this evening to see Hanan; at this point she is well
stabilized and it probably is no more than a bug, but with her heart
condition we don't want to leave that to chance.  Obviously, she is off her
Lasix for a bit.  Right now she just has loose stools and abdominal swelling
and gurgling; the swelling is with felt intestinal features rather than the
smooth water balloon feel so it is not heart related fluid retention again
at this point.  It sounds horrid but I'm glad they were well for that long
not only for their sake and our sleep sake, but also because we can now use
the front shower because I had a chance to recaulk it.
 
RETARDATION: Ruffle's biggest threat might actually be her retardation
because she just does not adjust well to any type of change.  This has
always been the case; what is exciting to the others is always very
frightening for her.  She has responded to her illness the same way, and
when it is really bad she acts like a not too sharp pre-weaned kit.
 
Marc asked one day how we knew she was retarded but it was the morning and I
had the flu at the time (BTW, Marc, I asked around at a number of vet drug
wholesalers in case we might find a way to help you, but none had
Progylcem.) A general BTW: retardation is NOT common in these guys.  Over a
span of what 14 (?) years I have only read/discussed/seen three besides
Ruffie.  Okay, here are some of the ways we knew:
 
1.  Everything in the world could frighten her out of her skin for much of
her early life.
 
2.  She just can not adjust to changes well.  It is easier since she caught
onto language.  Now we can gently cradle her and introduce something
potentally scary while saying that it is a "Ha-ha", but how the heck do you
make day-to-day (even not serious) illness related changes seem less scary?
Fortunately, her meds are no problem, but it is hard to get her to eat much
of anything and even her sense of thirst is botched up, though not as much
as when she had daily Lasix.  Ideas are very welcome.  We need some.  I do
worry that she won't get enough taurine in now.
 
3.  It took her three years to realize that "treat" even meant something.
(Now she knows: Her name and nickname, "good", "treat", "cranberry",
"raisin", "beasty-yeasty", "gentle", "Ruffle's house", "blow nose" (Yes, she
uses a handkerchief if we hold it.), "roll over", " raisin word", "tube
treat", "ha-ha", "romp room", "rock treat" (her meds), "belly-belly", "fix",
"go tube-tube", "Daddy", "Mommy", "Hanan-Daddy" and a few others.) Before
she caught on that words have meaning -- we find it normally takes a ferret
an average of a few weeks to pick up the limited vocab we use over and over
with them without a lot of extra words till they learn, even if they do
ignore humans when convenient (If you get seriously ill or have an op you
might find your's obeying anything you say till you are a bit healed; we
did, for as long as 6 weeks.) -- she used to get extremely frustrated and
frightened at least every few days so we were always covered with canine
bites.  Fear biting is sort of nail with the canines and then run and hide,
but frustration biting is rapid fire canine biting in one small area
(typically six to eight was what we'd get each time) and bruises and swells
terribly.  She was more challenging than rehabs., and certainly nothing like
normal (i.e. non-biting once teething is over and kit play has calmed down
from non-punishment means), well-loved (and therefore loving) ferret.  You
wouldn't guess now that she was ever mouthy
 
There are other differences, but I am too tired to think straight.  Anyone
who meets her comments on what an unusual individual she is.  Frankly, the
critter she most reminds me of was a wild diabetic orphaned skunk which was
kept in captivity by someone I knew long ago, both because she moves like a
skunk since she's an acondroplasic dwarf, and because she acts like that one
did much of the time, except that she made huge behavioral strides once she
learned some language and hasn't been a biting problem since.  We do not
know why she is retarded.  In the other three cases the cause was known and
happened after severe fevers while they were kits.  One of those had a
serious biting problem like Ruffle used to but fortunately was placed as a
keeper with an experienced shelter owner willing to cope and learn.  Ruffie
has so many genetic problems that it may be an additional one, or (given the
others) she may have fevered badly before we had her.
 
Sukie
[Posted in FML issue 1557]