Warp and Meeteetse had vet appointments today.  Warp will be six in June
and Meeteetse is 7 and 1/2.  They were standard old-age appointments, plus
Warp was having her pre-surgical evaluation (adrenal signs).  Her surgery
will be Friday; she's hard to intubate so that is real concern and she's
lost weight while waiting for the surgeons' arm to heal (skiing accident)
but otherwise she is strong.  Meeteetse's mast cell tumors of course
cleared up in the week between setting the appointment and getting there
so once again we'll just leave them since they aren't infected and don't
really bother her.  Meeteetse appears to have gotten a heart murmur.
That's new.  She'll have a follow-up evaluation late in the week.  Think
she got it so Bob won't feel alone...
 
Anyway, while we were there the vet (Joe Martins at Basking Ridge Animal
Hospital) specifically asked what we were giving as treats.  It seems
that most of the ones that he and some others with whom he has spoken have
been seeing with insulinomae, esp. early ones, have been getting high
carbohydrate treats like Cheerios.  He did say that there is some concern
about carbohydrates (including the amounts in dry foods) for individuals
who have a personal susceptibility to insulinomae.  It's still
hypothetical, of course, but there is some now background to lend caution
for such treats and for some for such foods.  Keep the Cheerios in those
mammals with t -complexes only!
 
One things we've noticed over the last 18 years wiht ferrets in the family
is that often when a ferret goes off food it is DEHYDRATED.  It is usually
not hard to get them to eat again (with attention and lots of time given to
the individual) AFTER THEY HAVE HAD SUB-Q REHYDRATION and evaluation by
the vet.  This can make all the difference in the world between assisted
feeding and getting to the point where the vet says to go with
forced-feeding.  When not eating also CHECK the hydration.  Gums should
NOT be tacky, eyes should not look filmy or dull, skin at the scruff
should bounce back rapidly when pinched.
 
ferrets stop eating with colds because they can't smell well enough to know
what they are eating, and if they get dehydrated (from the cold, from runs,
from high Furosemide doses, etc.) the mucus membranes get dry which worsens
the sense of smell even more.  Sometimes force feeding is needed as per vet
instructions, but sometimes (with or without rehydration -- depending on
evaluation) if you warm up a bit of really STINKY canned food (like A/D
which is available from vet) and then rub a bit inside the mouth you can
get the ferret to have enough of a whiff for eating to start.
 
BTW, things like A/D should be encouraged as treats -- even if you have to
start them by rubbing some on gums -- because then it will NOT be foreign
to them at the time when they really NEED it!
 
Important notes: when we have had ferrets who had to be force-fed, after
all else failed, to get past a hump so that they could go on to live a long
and happy life afterwards we tended to also have the ferret on antibiotics
which reduced the risk of infection.  They typically already had to be on
antibiotics for other reasons.  Oh, and we give yogurt with live cultures
as a treat to keep up the good intestinal bacteria levels at such times.
 
I think that EVERYONE IS AGREED that force-feeding is a last ditch measure,
only to use on those who do have a chance in their future, and that the
many levels of assisted feeding in between need to be known by all, also
that any ferret who is off food, water, or food MUST be gotten in for a vet
evaluation right away.
 
PVs: our's have often had shorter faces and worse teething problems (NOT
attitude but pain often enough) so DO remember -- for ANY KIT -- to buy
Cheweasels!!!!!!!!!!!!  (Ditto for helping keep teeth clean.) The nose
tapping advice is one thing I dislike about PV: it can backfire badly.
We actually used the one year guarantee at PV when Helix died of JL.
[Posted in FML issue 3030]