[Moderator's note: This is being forwarded to the FML via Kat
[log in to unmask] at the request of Dr. Mark Burgess.  And I trust
Kat 100%, but I also happened to confirm it with Dr. Burgess!  BIG]
 
>Hi Kat, thanks for the note... now for another take on this new illness.
 
In recent months we have seen a number of cases of a new and clinically
unique disease in young ferrets, aged 5 to 12 months, from Marshall
Farms.  The patients exhibit fever, muscle pain and reluctance to move,
and severe depression.  Moderate to severe anemias often occur, but then
suddenly may resolve.  Some patients exhibit lymph node enlargement,
often in only one node.  The main hallmark of this disease, however, is
the extreme white cell (neutrophil) counts in these patients.  Early on
the WBC count may be only moderately elevated, but as the condition
progresses the white count elevates to extreme levels, usually over
20,000 and sometimes as high as 90,000.  Fevers are common, white counts
well over 20,000 (neutrophils) are virtually unheard of until now (and
something which I would have bet considerable money was impossible for a
ferret to achieve, until this disease came along.) My pathogist agrees
this is a new and distinct entity from anything we have seen before,
including widespread bacterial sepsis (which we see with some regularity
in ferrets).  (FYI my pathologist is Dr. Mike Garner at NorthWest
Zoopath, an exotics pathologist with excellent scientific acumen and
very very sharp... large zoos in the U.S. also use him as their chief
pathologist, which should tell you something about the quality of his
work.  Mike and I have discovered a number of new diseases in exotic pets
including ferrets over the years, and I trust his pathology implicitly.)
Mike and I have been working on this disease for awhile, as I've seen a
number of cases myself, and what we can tell at this point is... the
disease does not appear to be bacterial, as the bacteria that have been
isolated in a couple of cases are likely secondary pathogens which
overwhelm the already weakened patient, not the primary pathogen.  Also,
the likelihood of an odd bacteria suddenly appearing which produces
totally bizarre unheard-of white cell counts AND is resistant to every
drug in the book AND is not visible on most pathology samples is
extremely small.
 
This illness's clinical peculiarities mark it as a distinct entity from
anything we've seen before.  The pathology findings are equally unusual,
and no significant unusual bacterial isolates have been found, even in
cases with very active overwhelming disease.  Another interesting note is
the tendency for this illness to attack muscle more than other tissues,
especially the esophagus.  Also the disease is delayed in onset,
affecting apparently only ferrets from Marshall Farms which are between
5 and 12 months old, so they've been in a household and away from the
breeding facility for quite a while when illness strikes them.  To date
no other ferrets exposed to these sick ones have developed symptoms.
Not typical behavior for a bacterial disease.  Dr. Ramsell and myself
recently completed an introductory article on this disease which will
be published shortly, and which describes in accurate detail what the
average veterinarian should look for when seeing this illness.... and the
key is the white cell counts, not just fever or lymph node enlargement,
which diseases such as lymphoma can also produce.
 
In our opinion, as it stands right now, a new viral disease or defect in
the ferret's immune function are the most likely culprits, with bacterial
disease being possible but far less likely at this time.  The only thing
suggesting bacterial disease at this stage is that the white cell
response is mostly neutrophils, but there are definitely viral and immune
diseases that cause the same type of white cell production, so the
presence of neutrophils in the blood and tissue samples is not strong
evidence (by itself) that the illness is bacterial.
 
We would love to have help unraveling the riddle of this new and
devastating illness.  We hopefully are in a good position to figure this
disease out.  Dr. Garner is a first rate exotics and ferret pathologist,
(although he simply works quietly behind the scenes and spends little
time talking to the public, so is a well kept secret to most ferret
owners.)  In addition, at my own clinical practice we have seen probably
more cases of this new illness than most other single practices in the
U.S. at this time (as far as we can determine), which gives us a chance
to note trends and typical clinical appearance of the patients..  Dr.
Garner has looked at quite a few cases of this disease already, both our
clinic's cases and those of other veterinarians in the U.S.  We have some
virologists helping out too, and virus isolation studies are in progress
at this time.  So it would be of great benefit if possible cases which
have had biopsy or necropsy could be referred to Dr. Garner for histopath
review.  Also, if a veterinarian needs to know if he/she is looking at a
case of this new disease, they can call or email for a consultation with
me (Dr. Burgess) or my associate, Dr. Ramsell.  As clinicians seeing live
patients, we can recognize whether a living patient is likely to have
this new disease sooner than a pathologist, and before any biopsies are
taken.  There are other illnesses out there which mimic some of the signs
of this new illness, and we can guide practitioners in weeding out those
other diseases, so as to not confuse the issue.  We offer consultations
free of charge, simply email us at [log in to unmask] or call
at (503-643-2137).  We wish all ferret owners the best, and hope to NOT
see this disease become more prevalent over time!
 
Best wishes,
Mark Burgess, DVM   Southwest Animal Hospital / Exotic Animal Practice
Beaverton, OR 97007   503-643-2137   Fax: 503-626-7392
 
[via:]
=====
KITY=^..^=KAT's Fuzzy Frenzy [+15](-14)...
See how you can HELP SHELTERS...  http://ferretlover97.terrabox.com
 
RAFFLE FOR JEAN...
http://ferretlover97.terrabox.com/shelterhelp-Jean.html
OR: [if my page is down]...
http://www.kwflatbed.com/jean/raffle.html  HELP JEAN,
Ferrets Unlimited, PAGE... http://www.kwflatbed.com/jean/jean.html .....
with links to lots of ebays and raffles to help Jean!!!
 
When you care about others....when you reach out to others....
 ...when you give of yourself to others...YOU MAKE A DIFFERENCE!
[Posted in FML issue 4408]