Hello all,
 
Oh boy, do we ever need help on this one.  One week ago, we acquired an 8
month old, whole male sable hob who we have named "Scrumpy".  We first
noticed Scrumpy was different than our other 3 ferrets in that he is very,
very inactive, and would drop to the floor after only walking around for 5
minutes.  He would stay down for about 2 minutes before getting up again.
 
I took Scrumpy to the vet last week as I suspected cardiomyopathy.  After
X-rays, the vet determined Scrumpy's heart and airway were absolutely
normal.  The vet thought he may be having seizures, and sent me home to
watch to see if Scrumpy was twitching or fluttering his eyes during the
times he "goes down".  Well, it didn't take long to see that Scrumpy is
definitely having seizures.  Not only that, but he does not seem to have
control over his head and front end when he is seizing.  He tries to walk
with his back legs, and he kind of pushes his head and front along.  After
a couple of minutes, the seizure will subside, then he's OK for about 5
minutes.
 
Yesterday, I went back to the vet with Scrumpy.  On my request, the vet did
a fasting blood test and ruled out insulinoma.  As for the seizures, she
does not know what is causing them, and does not believe that the seizures
are caused by epilepsy.  She felt that Scrumpy could have come down with a
virus as a kit, and the virus may have damaged his brain.  The vet advised
me she would consult with a U.S.  vet that she interacts with, and will get
back to me on Friday.
 
When I got home, I called the person I got Scrumpy from.  To make a long
story short, there is a very good chance that Scrumpy was exposed to
distemper, and could have contracted the disease (he was never vaccinated).
 
I am now wondering if Scrumpy could be a distemper survivor, and that the
disease took it's toll and caused neurological damage that is affecting
Scrumpy's motor skills and causing seizures.  I once had a cat that
survived distemper, and for his life he had problems walking and pooping
which was caused by distemper.  There was no medication that could help our
cat overcome the damage done by the disease.
 
I have read over and over that distemper is 100% fatal in ferrets.  I also
read in issue 1284 of the FML archives that if a ferret survives distemper,
the ferret is an active carrier of the disease.  Moreover, I have read that
epilepsy is almost unheard of in ferrets and that insulinoma is normally
the cause of seizures in ferrets.  I just don't know what to think.
 
Aside from the seizures, Scrumpy eats like a horse, and goes to the
bathroom normally.  He is 4.5 pounds of pure cute, although he is a vicious
biter to humans (maybe afraid because of the seizures?).  Scrumpy has his
own bedroom with one of our other ferrets, and the two of them have already
started to form a strong bond.  I have heard Scrumpy dook, and saw him war
dance once with his buddy Finnigan.  I am determined to try to help this
poor creature as he still seems to have a quality of life regardless of the
seizures.
 
If anyone can offer any advice or suggestions on this subject, please,
please either post or e-mail me.  I'm specifically needing to know if
anyone knows of ferrets that have survived distemper, and if so, do they
have any neurological problems that effects their motor skills and is there
any medication to treat this.  Also, I really need to know if a distemper
survivor (if that's a possibility) is an active carrier of the disease.
Finally, if you can think of anything else that could be causing these
seizures, I'd love to hear about it.
 
Thank you so much from Scrumpy and me.
 
Linda, Scamp, Shreddy, Finnigan & Scrumpy
 
Linda Prowse
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[Posted in FML issue 2596]