Hello
 
I can certainly relate to the potentially dangerous side affects of
Prednisone.  My dear Bean was incorrectly diagnosed as needing this drug
(that's a whole different story).  Anyway, after a few days on it, he
started to have insulinoma-like symptoms (staggering, disorientation,
etc.).  I took him back to the same vet who prescribed the drug, and she
tested his blood.  She said that Bean now had diabetes and prescribed
insulin!
 
Well, as it turns out, Prednisone can elevate blood sugar levels causing a
drug-induced diabetes.  While raising the blood sugar levels can be helpful
for an insulinomic ferret, please be aware that you can have too much of a
good thing.  Furthermore, if your ferret is not insulinomic and he is on
Pred for another disorder, please be sure that you are monitoring his blood
sugar level to prevent this sort of problem.  My end result?  We took Bean
off of the Pred, and his blood sugar returned to normal levels.
 
Happy Ferreting!
Gina Hart/Sage Ferrets
visit the Sage Ferrets web site at
http://www.geocities.com/sageferrets
[Posted in FML issue 2826]