My Chief Ferret, Bumble B.  Bobbitt, had to be hospitalized Saturday night
with a very sudden illness.  I'm asking for your prayers, and also
wondering if anyone has had quite this type of thing happen to one their
ferrets.
 
Bumble was fine and playful Friday night.  I realize now, however, that I
didn't see much of him when he and his friends were out Saturday night.
He'd put himself to bed in his cage before I started gathering the rest up,
and that was a first for him.  While my SO and I were watching TV later, we
saw Bumble straining at the litterbox and making a loud clucking sound we'd
never heard before.  I picked him up and looked at his bottom, and his
penis looked very red and infected.  We've had a couple of scares about
Bumble since the middle of September which some of you may remember: first,
I'd become worried about adrenal disease since he was exhibiting rutting
behavior, but his regular vet said since he didn't have any of the other
signs, we could wait and see.  Then a few weeks ago, he drank water tinted
pink from some licorice pieces the ferrets had dropped in their water bowl,
and was peeing pink.  It was a great relief when we figured out what the
cause was --- and now this.
 
We took him to the emergency clinic which is, thank goodness, only about 15
minutes away.  He had his bladder drained that night (the doctor said it
looked as if Bumble had been chewing at his penis, possibly trying to open
it).  He stayed overnight to have tests done and be stabilized for surgery,
which was done late this afternoon.  The surgeon found that both Bumble's
bladder and abdomen were full of pus.  He was too swollen for a catheter,
so the doctor did a cystostomy, directing the flow of urine out through the
abdomen.  This can either be a temporary or permanent measure, depending on
how Bumble does otherwise.  They found a large swelling beneath the
junction of the kidneys and bladder, which they couldn't get at during
regular surgery.  It would require micro-surgery for the removal and
reconnection of the tubes...they are so small in a ferret.  The adrenal
glands didn't seem to be enlarged.
 
Bumble is resting tonight; the last I heard was at around 8 p.m.  He's
receiving fluids and the antibiotic Cefazolin.  The doctor will call me if
an emergency arises.  If everything is working as it should tomorrow,
Bumble may be able to come home in the evening.  I asked if he should be
isolated, but the doctor said it would be better for him to be cuddled up
with his girlfriends.
 
After talking with the surgeon, I tried to think of anything different in
Bumble's life that may have caused such an awful infection.  The only thing
I could come up with was that I'd used torn up newspaper as temporary
litter when I ran out of the regular stuff.  I called the doctor back to
ask him about it, and he said that newsprint was a benign substance, and he
didn't think the infection arose from anything in Bumble's environment.
But he was still very puzzled about the amount of infection...he said he'd
never seen anything quite like it before.
 
I'm still so shocked at the speed with which this came up, and the fact
that it got so bad before Bumble said anything about it.  What if we'd gone
to bed earlier Saturday night?  He'd have been downstairs all night with
that terrible pain.  It's terrifying to realize how swiftly these things
can happen with ferrets!
 
Anyway, if anyone out there has had a similar type experience, please share
it with me.  And please keep good wishes for Bumble in your hearts.  He's a
very wonderful and sweet boy, and very much loved.
 
[P.S.]
I guess my brain's kind of frozen ... I forgot to say that if Bumble can
come home tomorrow evening, it will only be while his tests are evaluated
to find out what further steps should be taken.  That swelling under the
kidneys/bladder is now the main concern.  The doctor is hoping it is from
the infection and will disappear with antibiotics, but it's a whole
different story if it's a tumor.
[Posted in FML issue 2473]