Just an update on Popcorn and Graham.
 
The surgeries went well on Tuesday morning.  Popcorn had 1 1/2 adrenals
removed.  Graham also had 1 1/2 adrenals removed, as well as 1/2 his
pancreas (he had 7 pancreatic tumors), and all but about half an inch of
his tail (he had a tumor near the base).  They were released about 5:00 PM,
and we made the 2 1/2 hour trip home.
 
Unfortunately, that night Graham started staggering much worse than he had
been.  I picked him up and his gums were grey, so we rushed him to our local
vet.  He was admitted into the hospital, where he has been in intensive care
since.  Tuesday night and all day Wednesday he was unable to maintain his
body temperature or glucose level, so he had to be kept in an incubator with
heating pads and given glucose intravenously.  When I visited him he was
absolutely unresponsive.  Awake, but unresponsive.
 
This morning, he started lifting his head and as my vet so wonderfully put
it, started "trying to do ferrety things" such as attempting to burrow under
his blanket, taking a few licks of food, and drinking.  When I visited him
this afternoon, he definitely responded to my being there, licked about 5
fingers dipped in food, and drank a little.  He just acted VERY tired and
weak, and somewhat uncomfortable.  I think the worst of his discomfort is
the IV they have in his back leg.  He just can't seem to get it into a good
position.  But, if he keeps on this course he should be able to pull
through.  (We weren't so sure yesterday, it was very frightening)
 
We don't know what went wrong with Graham.  The surgery went great, and he
was recovering fine for the first several hours.  Maybe it was just that he
had so much done to him, and it was such a shock to his system that caused
him to crash.  Maybe the 2 1/2 hour car ride aggravated his system.  We just
don't know.  Dr. Weiss has said that because of this he will probably
recommend people who aren't local don't drive home the night of the surgery
any more, just in case it had something to do with it.
 
Popcorn is recovering as well as can be expected for a 6 1/2 year old ferret
with the largest adrenal tumor Dr. Weiss has ever seen on a ferret of her
size.  She's always been a finicky eater, so I'm having to hand feed her
duck soup as there is no way she'll eat on her own.  But, she's started
drinking by herself, and she'll eat her cheerios, so she's on the mend.
Today she wanted to wander around and explore a bit.  Tiring quickly, but
obviously pleased with herself.  I was surprised that instead of wanting to
explore the rest of the house as usual, she was most interested in getting
me to open the gate so she could go into the ferret room and look around.  I
guess that so much has happened in the last few days, she felt that she
needed the familiar surroundings of her room.  (I only have the two ferrets,
so it wasn't that she was visiting.  And her and Graham really aren't all
that close, I doubt she misses him very much.)
 
One of my Corgis (dog) has been very sweet.  His station is now laying right
next to the ferret cage, which is temporarily next to my bed.  He's very
concerned about Popcorn, and keeps a close eye on her.  And, today when I
came home from visiting Graham, both of my dogs sniffed my fingers for the
longest time.  They miss their playmate.
 
Keep Graham in your thoughts and prayers, he's still not out of the woods.
 
- Nancy
[Posted in FML issue 2238]