I would firstly like to thank all you wonderful, caring people who wrote to
us about Scully.  I cannot express properly how it helped to ease the pain
but all of you know what a difference it made for me to be able to share
with you.  Thank you again, very very much.
 
We now have another worry.  On Monday, someone brought a female into The
Ferret Centre saying he didn't want her any more.  She is a darling little
thing but she was obviously very much in heat - the guy didn't know (or
care) how long she'd been in that condition for but her vulva was huge and
purple.  It certainly was the biggest I've ever seen.  She had a bald top to
her head, bald paws and most of the fur on her tail was missing.  Apart from
that she was bright and friendly - no lethargy.
 
Philip rang the vet and asked if she should have a jill jab to get her out
of season quickly but he said they were not always reliable.  We took her to
a friend that night who has a vasectomised hob and I rang back the next day
to find out if I could collect her.  It seems that the boy didn't pay any
attention to her so I was advised to leave it one more night  and if nothing
happened, she'd go to another male.
 
After my experience with Scully's haemorrhage, I am absolutely neurotic
about this little one (I have named her Jalapena, as she's such a skinny
thing and has been on heat for so long (!) but Philip and the kids do not
approve!) developing aplastic anaemia so we asked the vet what he thought
and were told that he could sterilise but there was a risk at this stage.
 
The question - do we sterilise now and chance it?  Can anyone tell me if the
risk is huge or minimal?  Do we stay with the vasectomised male, even though
it means 2 more weeks to see if her vulva subsides?  Do we give her a jill
jab?
 
I would really appreciate your opinions and suggestions.  Please understand
I don't think I could go through another haemorrhage event so am feeling
very nervous about the time factor as I honestly think she's been in season
for a long, long while.
 
Thank you for your help in this.
 
Nona
The Ferret Centre
[Posted in FML issue 1696]