Ruffle (being Ruffle) has developed an aberrant HEART problem.  Hanan will
be giving a full description in writing which I'll transpose onto here in
the future, when we both get a chance to have some free time.  Basically,
over 1 and 1/2 days she accumulated 4 oz.  of abdominal fluid (large belly,
no pain, tired, water-balloon feel, rectum prolapsed either from the
pressure, or straining to try to get rid of full feeling, or both (I forgot
to ask Hanan which was more likely), x-ray showing very large heart).
Obviously the most likely thing seemed to be cardiomyopathy, but she was not
completely knocked out, she was breathing normally, there was no coughing,
and she was pink as can be.  Thank goodness the traveling ultrasound person
around here is very responsive and he crunched her into his schedule for the
next day on an emergency basis.  Yes, we only had to spend one night
wondering if she was going to crash with heart failure despite Lasix.  Guess
what the ultra sound showed (besides a benign liver cyst)?  She does have a
very large heart, but the walls are of normal thickness and her
compressibility is great.  So basically we got some bad news, but not at all
as bad as we had expected.  Plus, she is responding very well to Lasix and
Enacard, so we are very relieved and pleased.  She's 'been' all over the
house for the last couple of days, in more ways than one; with the Lasix she
has to piddle a LOT and notice of impending loss of control seems to be
somewhat faster.  On the other hand, she drinks like a little fish so what
comes out is little worse than warmed water.  Being as stupid as Ruff is (no
flames, Ruffle has special medical problems in this regard and in several
others such as her acondroplasic dwarfism and asthma) she is easy as pie to
give pill pieces to; just dip 'em in Nutrical and they are gone since she is
too stupid to spit them out.  (We never thought we'd be glad about her
slowness; just goes to show there are mixed blessings.) Right now she is
happy, has a normal bum again, and spoiled.  Thanks for great care, Hanan!
Can you believe that despite all her birth and developmental difficulties
this little girl will be 6 in less than a month?  Anyone who wants to
imagine Ruffle on April 1st (Yes, that IS her actual B'day.) can imagine a
sterling silver mitt with a body shaped like a skunk's, an almost totally
black nose, long fur, a face like a malamute puppy's, and loving, dark eyes.
Also, don't imagine her biting.  Though she had a real problem for her first
3 years she hasn't nailed anyone in 3 years now.  She may be slow, but she
IS trainable and trusting.
 
Re: LITTER: Many publishers now use vegetable dyes.  Call your local
newspaper and ask.  (If there are colors used ask separately about those.)
Our ferrets make use of some of the N.Y. Times when we are done. We got a
GBC Shredmaster 91S at Staples for $80 last year and continue to be happy
with it, though I had not realized before use that it has a safety shut-off
when it gets too hot.  The time it takes to use is about the same as time
we'd spend sorting, tieing, and carrying papers to recycle for different
reuse plus time we'd have to use buying litter.  Since our normal yearly
litter use would amount to between $200 to $300 we have also saved a lot of
money.
 
Vol. 149, 2/24/96 has an interesting piece about some preliminary research
regarding cancer-related MUSCLE WASTING in humans which left me wondering
if it might lead to some useful info for our guys eventually.  In Nature
(2/22) M. Tisdale, et. al. at Aston U. in Birmingham, England have found a
compound ( a normal protein fragment with some unusual side chains) in the
urine of cancer patients with muscle wasting (which in humans often preceeds
diagnosis), and in that of mice which they gave a wasting form of cancer to.
(It does not say how easy this is to test for, i.e. if it could be useful
for early diagnoses, nor is there any mention of it being tested for in any
other illnesses which cause wasting.) Antibodies to the compound were
developed and when given to the mice they inhibited tumor growth.  Related
to this: there has been a successful trial by K.  Fearon in Edinburgh who
has reduced cancer-related muscle loss with a fatty acid derived from fish
oil (which of the fatty acids, and at what levels I don't know).  It may be
that there could be some interesting directions to investigate for ferrets
here.
 
BTW, I did not suggest that play acting be used to avoid injury to ferrets
(though that is a fine thought for some, I sadly expect), but so that the
person herself would be less likely to receive injury from a pet which is
unsure of hierarchies and challenging often.  That's why discussion of wild
animal handling worked in since I had to use that trick often enough with
apes, monkeys, prosimians, procyonids, and even a jaguar I had to growl down
in Suriname.  So, all of you who wrote me saying "But that was NOT what you
said" are right, but it is NOT WORTH WORRYING ABOUT, okay?  Everyone
over-reacts now and then.
 
NON-BILATERAL PIGMENTATION does have a tendency to be related to a range of
disorders.  In the fetus there is a structure called the neural crest which
is involved in the development of several critical parts (such as face and
heart) and of pigmentation.  Timing is critical in proper formation of many
of the structures; so when head pigmentation is not bilateral it indicates
that the timing may well have also been off for the other things which
derive from the neural crest.  (I don't know specifics on such disorders,
but you may want to search under Maximilian Muenke of U.  Penn.  School of
Medicine who specializes in such disorders in humans which are not
bilateral.  That should lead you to other researchers, too.)
 
We had excellent results with Hjalmar for 14 months with LYSODREN given in
Nutrical starting when he was about your ferret's age, but I gather that not
everyone is so fortunate with it.  Check with the manufacturer.  As I recall
we got optimal results by not letting him have water too close to when the
med was taken because it can cause parts of the reactions to happen
prematurely, but I might be recalling for another of his meds.  You will
find that the developmental pharmacutical researchers tend to be very
friendly, helpful, and interested in how their products are used.  May your
little one have Hjalmar's luck with it.
 
I love rattlesnake shake as a description of the tunneling WAG; our
'Chopper does that.  Hjalmar used to hid with his fat, little bum sticking
out and his tail wagging, but since his head was covered of course we
couldn't see him!
 
        Sukie, Steve, Meltdown, Ruffle, 'Chopper, Spot, Meeteetse, and Warp
[Posted in FML issue 1495]