Know how how sometimes the obvious just hits a person over the head?  It
just struck me today how well the good works of the AFA and the IFC
typically compliment each other despite being independent, with the hard
working volunteers of each sweating their rears off to fill different but
complimentary niches in different ways and yet working toward the same
final goal of helping ferrets -- so that the education of each REINFORCES
the education of the other.  Really cool!  I think it popped in because I
was thinking that I hope that it won't be long until there are posts in
the FML and FHL of the full vet speaker line-up for the autumn AFA
veterinary conference, though I have a feel for how much work goes into
the last 6 months of preparing any huge event so I am not nagging -- just
making folks aware of the feeling of happy anticipation and hope that our
vet will be able to go this year (even though I can't myself be there
anymore than I was able to be at the recent symposium).  May I right now
pat both organizations on the back and express my thinks for them doing
incredible work year after year, please?  Volunteers sure have a
marvelous history of being the backbone of the ferret community.
 
Speaking of health education, yesterday I thought that I was past a bit
of a bug I've had for a few days, but Hilbert was acting like I was
really ill.  He insisted on looking at me with mournful eyes and laying
down near me but preferably not having me touch him while at the same
time insisting on more attention from Steve and acting like he wanted
Steve to notice me more (as if that would even be possible).  Well, I
was wrong and Hilbert was right because later in the day I broke with
fever again.
 
This led to Steve asking me: "Has anyone on the FML recently discussed
ferrets noticing illness?
 
I don't think that we have.
 
We have our own stories, of course, but we'd love to read yours and
maybe join in later:
 
***** When have your ferrets been aware that you are sick?  What did
      they do?
 
***** When have they noticed that a consumable is unsafe even though
      you didn't realize it?
 
***** How have they behaved when you are ill or injured?
 
***** How did they alert you to someone else being ill?
 
***** What special ways do any of your ferrets tell you that they
      are ill?  What behaviors do they use?
 
Pred: there is no real set maximum Pred dose for ferrets anymore.  Over
time in practice with many vets it has become more a matter of what a
given individual will tolerate.  Some have been helped by far higher
levels than you mention.  There are some things which may help.  Be sure
that the med is given at least twice a day; some do better with it given
three times a day.  Prednisolone skips the liver processing step so for a
number of ferrets it is more effective than Prednisone.  Try a trial of
compounded Diazoxide.  (See the reference shelf in the FHL Files section
to find compounding pharmacies used to ferrets.  Some ferrets are
different then the norm in an alternative steroid may work better for
those individuals.  There are more options.  The archives of both the
FML and FHL will help you.  Has surgery been discussed?
 
I was looking for something else and came across a neat chart in
http://www.addl.purdue.edu/newsletters/2003/Summer/summ2003.pdf
after page 11 of some of the nasty super-bugs people has created by
using antibiotics in the wrong ways.  Note that people should NEVER use
antibiotics without veterinary okay and guidance and then need to use the
full amount except when the treating vet says differently, time the doses
right, not skip doses, and not over-use antibiotics on their own or use
them casually.  Antibiotic resistance in bacteria is something we humans
create with sloppy medication medication practices and by forgetting to
use caution, and those super bugs are a major health threat.
[Posted in FML issue 4890]