Hello to all of you who have written in support of Patches!  AGAIN, there
are just too many of you to write personally, I apologize, but I hope that
you all know that this message is directed right at YOU, for your caring and
love and dooks and kisses sent our way.
 
Here's the latest; anyone with direct experience please send info!
 
Patches came out of surgery fairly well, came out of anasthesia quickly.
They showed me the spleen in a baggie, it was HUGE, couldn't see how it even
fit inside of him!  The thing weighed almost a pound; he now is down to 1.5
pounds (but looks MUCH bigger, it's wierd...) this is down from 4 pounds in
April.  So, weight is a major concern here.  Most of the lost weight was in
the form of muscle.
 
When the vets were looking inside, all organs looked unaffected except the
spleen (of course) and the liver.  Of coure, they couldn't see the heart or
lungs, just the organs in the abdominal cavity.  I was happy to hear that
there weren't tumors everywhere inside.  We are biopsying (sp) a cross
section of the spleen now.  We have been operating under the assumption that
the illness causing the tumors was lymphoma, but the reality is it could be
that OR systemic mast cells circulating in the blood.  Everyone, keep the
prayers going that it's lymphoma...if it's systemic mast cells "he's a
goner..." in the words of my vet.  Lymphoma we can treat with pred, possibly
for a long time (months to years versus days to months).
 
However, here's the down side.  Remember, we also suspect cardiomyopathy in
this little one.  Now, of all times to start this, he's coughing.  You can
hear the fluid in his cough.  Vet said it *could* be pneumonia, but he's
showing no other signs of it, so it's most likely the cardio.  We can hear a
murmur on the left side of the heart, before, during, and after surgery.
 
The other major problem now is that he has no interest in any food other
than Ensure. I know it can sustain him for quite a while, but it's not in
his best interest to live only on that. I need to get him back on some form
of cat food/ferret food. I am having NO luck. I've tried his normal food
(Pro Plan Turkey and Barley), TF, Meow Mix (come on guys, no flames, I'm
desperate) Tender vittles, Amore moist food, and baby food (beef flavor).
I've also tried the one thing that *always* worked on my other ones, which
is simply crushing his normal food into dust and crumbs, mixing it with
water and spoon feeding. Two licks, then he buried his head under the towel
(he does that every time I try to give him something he doesn't want <g>)
 
I don't have many ingredients for the duck soup recipies I've been sent.
I'll try to locate them but the pet stores here aren't equipped very well
with special stuff.  Anyone have a duck soup recipie with somewhat easy to
locate ingredients?  He loves ferrevite but will sort of tolerate nutrical,
when he doesn't feel like fighting.
 
He also absolutely HATES the prednisone liquid.  I mean he freaks out when
the smell of it gets anywhere near him, he fights and kicks and tries to
slap the dropper from my hands.  I've never seen anything like it.  The
amoxicillin he doesn't like at all either, but he doesn't freak out, he just
squirms and fusses while I give it to him.  Tomorrow I'm going to the
pharmacy that gave me the pred and ask them to exchange the liquid for pill
form.  My vet said she didn't know that the pred came in any pill form other
than 5 mg, but a pharmacist I talked to yesterday said they now have it in 1
mg and 5 mg.  Hopefully the pharmacy will do the exchange.
 
Sometimes he's alert and wants to try to explore, but he tires very quickly.
I'm told that's normal.  I just want him to be happy, and I really don't
want to regret the decision to put him through the surgery.  I may very well
be too impatient, I know I can't expect miracles overnight.  But he's my
baby........
 
Overall the news here is good and bad.  The fact that he tolerated the
surgery so well is wonderful.  If it weren't for the coughing and refusal to
eat, I'd be ecstatic.  So, if you have any experience with cardiomyopathy or
refusal to eat, please send it my way!!
 
Kymberlie Becker
Director, Pennsylvania Ferret Rescue Association
"Forget Puppy Love...There's nothing Greater than Ferret Love!" TM
http://home.sprynet.com/sprynet/ferretlady
[Posted in FML issue 2002]