Trill and Rune were doing so much better I left Thursday afternoon and came
back Friday to find Trill half dead.  She was severely dehydrated.  I took
her to the vet knowing she would not make it through but had to try.  She
died early this morning and was buried a few hours later with a nice view
of a crystal lake.  Sigh.  Rune was the one I was worried about leaving and
here Trill who was eating and drinking again relapsed.  I am keeping a VERY
close eye on Rune.  She is not eating but seems to be drinking.  The vet
gave me 8 small bits of Metronidazole which he said was an
anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial.  He concurs as with all of you who
responded that it is viral in nature from the new ferret in the home.  But
it should not have been FATAL.
 
The x-rays and stool samples have come back completely negative.  Though
Rune continues to display loose stools I think it is more from eating duck
soup and pedialyte to try to keep her alive.  But she does not seem to be
improving any more, only remaining stable if not slipping back a bit.
 
I am at my wits end.  I cannot lose Rune to whatever this is as well as
Trill.  She will be very sorely missed.  I'm feeling very very frustrated
and helpless because I have never heard of anything like this before.  They
exhibit no signs of ECE or other nasties that I nor my vet have heard of.
He is calling a colleague in NYC who works ha a great deal of experience
with ferrets.  He does too, but is getting a second opinion and picking
brains.
 
Please, if you have any clue what could be causing this, let me know.  I'll
keep hand feeding Rune every four hours for months if I have to to keep her
stable until I find out what this is if that is what it takes.
 
Dave, Rune, Ash, and Azrael.
[Posted in FML issue 2872]