To Michaela Maurice:
 
>VET Question:
>I work with a vet and know about treating abscesses on cats and dogs, but
>am wondering if ferrets are treated similarly: is a drain necessary?  (ie:
>can I do it on my own by just pricking and squeezing) ,
 
It depends on the size and location of the abscess (just like a cat or dog.)
Drains aren't usually necessary, as long as a large hole in the dependent
area of the abscess is present and stays open so all of the pus can drain
out.....
 
>what oral antibiotics should a ferret be given, is neosporin or polysporin
>(topical) okay for a ferret, do they ever go away on their own?
 
I'd go with Amoxicillin at 20 mg/lb BID for 5 days, and 10 mg/lb for 5 more,
or Clavamox, or Baytril at 20mg/kg.  I've seen ferrets go septic from
abscesses.  Neosporin is OK.  Do abscesses every go away on their own - yes,
if they rupture and drain - they can go away on their own - but only if they
rupture.  I think intervention is far safer and quicker.....
 
>ps.  I am 99% sure it's an absess but realize that the only way to be sure
>is either by opening up (or by ultrasound--which is too expensive to do).
 
How about a biopsy.  I get a lot of biopsies that vets are sure are
abscesses but turn out to be neoplasms with a necrotic center.  Best to
excise a large portion if you can't get it all, and submit part of the wall
for pathology - that way you get your big drainage hole, and a diagnosis,
too.  I don't think ultrasound will tell you much about a flucutuant mass as
far as diagnosis.....
 
Bruce Williams, DVM, DACVP              Chief Pathologist, AccuPath
Dept. of Veterinary Pathology               [log in to unmask]
Armed Forces Institute of Pathology
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[Posted in FML issue 1700]