To Mary:
 
>Merlin, our 14 month old male MF ferret has lost LOTS of weight... has
occasionally thrown-up ... still eats his food on his own, but not much of
>it.... He is doing the occasional grinding of the teeth.
 
Mary - get this ferret to a vet immediately.  Don't ask what type of
medication to give - you need to get a thorough checkup immediately -
especially an abdominal radiograph and possibly a barium series.  I would
suspect a blockage based on signs and age.
 
Vomiting three times a day is a sign of SERIOUS disease.  While I can't rule
out a tumor in the GI tract, I think a blockage is very likely here.
Grinding teeth is signs of abdominal pain.  I would also look for tarry
stools, but ulcers generally don't cause such frequent vomiting.
 
If I've scared you - good.  Don't let the sun set on this case.
 
Bruce Williams, DVM, DACVP              Chief Pathologist, AccuPath
Dept. of Veterinary Pathology               [log in to unmask]
Armed Forces Institute of Pathology
[Posted in FML issue 1681]