Bobby:
 
My suggestion to you is FIND ANOTHER VET ASAP.  There are several things you
can do for Tally that may help prolong her life.
 
Many vets routinely prescribe Proglycem or prednisone to help lower the
insulin level - insulin "eats up" the blood sugar causing the ferret to
become hypoglycemic - consequently causing the staggering and drooling that
you are seeing.  Karyo syrup is fine for an acute attack, but is not
something you want to give for maintenance!
 
Surgery may help as well - if the nodules are big, sometimes they can easily
be removed - if they are tiny, nonvisible, and spread throughout the
pancreas, that's a different story, but you won't know until you go inside
and look.  I've heard that ultrasounds don't really give much information.
 
There's also a special insulinoma soup - not Duck Soup - that has been
successful in some cases.  I have 4 ferrets on this soup right now, and I've
given this recipe to others who have used it successfully.  My personal vet
(who is also our Shelter Vet) highly recommends this soup.
 
I don't have it in the computer yet, so I can't email to you, but if you
send me your address, I can stick a copy in the mail to you.  The recipe is
not mine - Mary VanDahm of FAIR put it together and doesn't mind at all if
we pass it around - it works wonders!
 
Debbie Riccio
WNYFLFA
Rochester, NY
[Posted in FML issue 1584]