Well, I never thought that my medical problems might help the fuzzies, but
it might. <grin>
 
Went to the doctor for stomach pain - nothing serious, but constant.
Nothing OTC worked.  I took a blood test, and Lo and Behold!  I have
Helicobacter pylori!  LOL!  The doctor did say it was *possible* that I got
it from my fuzzies!  So anyway - here is what I was thinking that may help
the ferrets who suffer from gastric problems, like ECE or Helicobacter.
 
The medication that I am taking for the next couple of weeks, Prilosec
(Omeprazole), is a wonder drug - it worked to relieve the pain in about 4
hours.  Its also a once a day medication.  My question is, have any vets
looked at possibly using this when a ferret is diagnosed with gastric
problems?  I know new meds come out all the time, but with a ferrets
propensity towards gastric problems, I was wondering if it had been
considered.  I wouldn't try it without a lot of consultations with my vet,
but this stuff works.  It does say on the bottle that its a delayed-release
drug, and that the capsule should be swallowed whole, not opened, crushed
or chewed.  Is there something out there like this that is a tablet?  Is it
worth pursuing?  Any vets out there with an opinion?
 
A lot of drugs that we use on ferrets now, like sulfacrate, Pepcid a/c,
pepto bismol, kaopectate, are all originally designed for people.  The only
possible downside to this is that Prilosec is a prescription drug, and it
could be expensive.  (I have a $5 copay, so I have no idea what the true
cost is).
 
If anyone finds out, please let us all know - I really think this could be
important!
 
Lisa, Head Ferret
The Ferret Haven "By-the-Sea"
URL: http://www.kozykingdom.com/ferrethaven
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[Posted in FML issue 2682]