Although I have been on the FML for around two years, I have only posted two
or three other times.  I have learned so much from just "lurking" though.  I
have all of the last couple of years posts on a zip disk.  To get to the
point of this post, I noticed this morning that our 4 to 5 year old male,
Cujo, was in and out of the litter box every few minutes, but nothing was
happening.  I was 99% certain that it was urinary.  I called Debbie Coburn,
from our local club in Orland, the Central Florida Ferret Friends, who gave
me the number of an emergency vet clinic in the south part of Orlando.  My
wife and I took him in immediately.  They will do a needle drainage on him
and x- ray and probably operate yet tonight.  We have to pick him up before
7 am Monday morning and then take him to the vet we take our dog to for
follow-up.  I had to leave a $430 deposit with the possibility of another
$400 or so in charges, plus whatever the follow-up vet costs.  We are not
rich, but we are ferret people, so we are not normal either.  We can handle
the costs.  It won't be easy, but we couldn't NOT do it either.  I know you
all know what I mean.
 
I will search my back-issues of the FML, but would appreciate ANY help or
advice on urinary blockage that anyone may wish to offer.  Our three boys
get Totally Ferret, one pump of Ferretone a day, one raisin a day, and we
mix Sustacal with water and freeze it and give them one-half cube of that
every evening, melted in the microwave.  The Sustacal is just to get them
"hooked" on something that we know they would take should they become sick
and dehydrated.  They LOVE the Sustacal and sound like suckling pigs as they
gulp it down.  Could I ask for your thoughts and prayers for Cujo?  We love
all three of our boys, and losing one would be very hard.  By the way, one
of the other ones, Bandit, seemed overly interested in Cujo's "private
parts" when they were out last night.  Three or four times, we seperated
them because Bandit was licking Cujo there.  He has NEVER done that before.
I think he knew something was wrong.  They are amazing little creatures.
But you all know that already.
 
Sorry if this runs long or kind of rambles.  I'm a little "shook".
 
Thanks for being here and for any help you can offer.
 
Charlie in Kissimmee, Florida
[Posted in FML issue 1916]