EMMETT'S STORY
 
As a means of introduction, we are a family of six.  Two of everything,
human, cat and Ferret.  Recently we had a health scare with our two year old
sable male by the name of Emmett Weasel Weaver.  Here is our story.
 
We were to take a vacation the end of August 1997 to a cabin in the woods
and Emmett was coming with us for the adventure.  For a short while before
that Jim had been thinking that his coat was getting darker not lighter for
the winter but Emmett was his fun loving self and we were not overly
concerned.  He had a little diarrhea but got over that quickly.  After we
returned, on September 5, we brought Noel LaWeasel Weaver home and watched
as she ran circles around her older brother.  Over the course of about four
days we gave them time together and as time went on Noel seemed to be
running roughshod over Emmett.  Initially, he had some slight diarrhea which
got better, but by September 20th he wasn't eating well and the diarrhea was
back.  So at 7 p.m. we called the vet.
 
The group of vets that we normally go to was closed and the answering
machine gave the number for emergency calls during off hours.  That number
referred us to an animal hospital, that upon calling, informed us that they
did not handle "exotic" pets.  After frantic conversation, we finally got
the number for the Carlisle Small Animal Hospital, about 20 miles away.  We
drove out and arrived about 9 p.m.  The doctor took us in and did tests on
his stool and felt for blockages but found nothing.  Emmet seemed alert and
he was still eating so the vet got together some medicine to combat a
stomach virus and we went home.  He didn't seem to improve or get worse for
a few days but his stool was forest green and by Thursday he was hardly
eating.  We made an appointment and took him again where he stayed for the
day to get some blood work done and be under observation.  They gave us new
medication to combat Helicobacter Pylori and we took him home.  He wasn't
given any food while they were doing the tests and when we took him home
that evening he didn't eat anything more.  When the blood work came back it
didn't show any infection and we were to continue the medicine.  The next
day he was no better, he would not eat or drink and he would rest often and
look at us with pain in his bright eyes.
 
Again we went to the emergency room at the Good Hope Animal Clinic which is
a satellite office to the Carlisle Hospital.  The doctor on call, Curt
Barnett, came and examined him.  We all believed that he would not last the
night.  He would not stand for any length of time, he had nothing to eat or
drink and had only been taking the new medicine for a day.  We knew he
hadn't had enough time for the medicine to take affect and we didn't know if
his kidneys were still working.  There was obvious blood in his stools which
meant ulcers and the vet said he would be more comfortable dying at home
then in the clinic.  Emmett's spirit was tired, but not gone, and we felt
that if he could get some fluid into his system he would get the only chance
there was.  The doctor gave him a shot of fluid and told us to get some
chicken baby food in to him, gave us some syringes and bid us good bye never
expecting to see us (or Emmett) again.
 
We figured we couldn't give up until Emmett did so we settled ourselves in
for a long haul.  He absorbed the water in a couple of hours and we
established the regimen of feeding him about .2 cc's every 15 minutes.  This
started about 10 PM and around 1 we began giving him .3 cc's every half
hour.  At 3 am he urinated for the first time that evening and if we hadn't
been tired and sick with worry we would have danced around the house.  We
decided to spell ourselves in the feeding duties so Jim slept while I took
the morning shift.  To be sure we didn't miss a feeding I set the alarm and
kept to the half hour schedule and slept with him to keep him warm.  He had
lost so much weight that there was no insulation.  At 6 a.m.  he had a bowel
movement.  Still dark green and runny but his system was still working and
we had new found determination knowing that he was still fighting.  Over the
remainder of the weekend we continued with the scheduled baby food feedings
but we lengthened them from an hour to two and increased the amount
eventually to 1 cc.  He spent the whole weekend on a cushion on the couch
covered with a blanket when not sleeping with me.
 
He looked so pitiful.  He had gone from down to less than one pound.  Every
bone in his body stood out even through his fur.  His movement was limited
to a few steps before he would lay and rest most of the time falling asleep
where he stopped.  Once he seemed to fall asleep in the litter box, which we
continually had to help him into.  The weight of his legs seemed too much
for him and he would sometimes walk like a drunken sailor.  We weren't sure
we had done him any favors but we were on this track and determined to stick
with it.  We are fortunate that one of us can be home at all times and over
the next week we continued with the regular feedings and tried to increase
the intake.  He wasn't tolerating ferretvite or a mineral/vitamin supplement
that we picked up on Tuesday so the vet (who was intrigued when he found out
that Emmett made it through the weekend) suggested to go straight for the
fat.  We then began to add olive oil to the formula.
 
The formula that we began with was just chicken baby food.  I don't believe
any of us will ever be able to smell that again without getting nauseous.
As time went on Jim did considerable research and reviewed several recipes
for "duck soup".  He spent many hours researching everything about ferrets
and diseases in order to help Emmett.  Two weeks after the angel of death
came looking for our door we took Emmet in for a check up.  He was at two
pounds and eating a bit of his own food again.  The doctor was impressed
with his improvement and we shared with him all the research Jim had gotten
from the Internet.
 
For all those people who gave us information directly or indirectly that
helped to save our Emmett we are extremely grateful.  We owe special thanks
to Dr. Barnett because without his help we would have lost Emmett, and whose
willingness to answer countless questions with oodles of advise goes well
beyond the necessary.  We highly recommend the Carlisle Small Animal
Hospital and the Good Hope Animal Clinic in the Harrisburg, PA area.  The
staff is courteous and efficient.  We want to share this information as a
way to help others who may have the same problems in the hope that by
recognizing this malady sooner than we did, their ferret will get help much
sooner.
 
Note to the editor:  I did speak to Dr. Barnett and he has given permission
to use his name and the name of his practice on the internet.  Emmett is
still doing well and now weighs more then he ever did.
 
[OP]
 
[Moderator's note: Thanks for letting me know and for sharing the story. BIG]
[Posted in FML issue 2177]