Hi everyone,
 
This is the first time I write, so I suppose I'd better introduce myself
first.  My name is Tania Jordens.  My husband and I live in Belgium (Europe)
together with our 3 ferrets: Gizmo, Odo and Neelix.  We have been ferret
owners for 12 years.  For about a year now I have access to the internet at
work and a whole new world of information about ferrets opened to me.  Here
in Belgium it is very difficult to get ferret information and even more
difficult to find a vet who has some experience with ferrets.
 
Maybe you can help me.  For a while now our oldest ferret Gizmo (5 years) is
acting a bit unusual sometimes.  He eats, sleeps, plays and poops normal,
but every now and then, he suddenly stops with whatever he is doing, lies
very still and starts shaking his head a little bit up and down.  Sometimes
he falls through his back legs.  But after a few seconds it's over and he's
off again.
 
Our vet took a blood sample and she told us the creatinine level in his
blood was too high: 1,45 (normal level is 0,5 for a ferret).  She also
thinks that the small, lets call it attacks, he gets, are a result of this
high creatinine level.
 
She told us now to put him on a diet with Hill's decription c /d.  (kidney
diet for cats) and hope that this will help.  In three weeks she will take
another blood sample to check if the creatinine level went down.
 
Have any of you experienced these symptoms with one of your ferrets?  What
did the vet recommend you ?  Could it be something else ?  All help on this
subject is very welcome since our vet is not sure about it herself.
 
My E-mail address is: [log in to unmask]
 
Fuzzy greetings
Tania
[Posted in FML issue 2384]