[2 posts combined]
Hi, All!
I hope that everyone is having a good New Year... all 2 days of it so far!
Can we talk?
No; can I vent? Thank you.
Today has been a really weird ferret day at our house and only you guys
would understand.
The History: Last week I'd taken Dodger & MoJo to the vet. Dodge was
itching, scratching & gaining some bald patches. Mo is still underweight
after her ECE bout. Well, it looks like Dodge has ringworm (the vet
prescribed Dermazole shampoo & Miconazole spray). He'd also been a bit
lethargic lately but the vet said that that was probably due to having
been itching & scratching so much. Mo just needs some more a/d feedings &
continued PetTinic. If those don't help, we're going to do some bloodwork
to rule out kidney problems.
Ever since that visit, Dodge has become progressively more lethargic. He
will actually lay in my lap or wherever I settle him down. The other day
he slept in the living room chair, snuggled in my jacket, for over 3 hours
without moving. That is NOT like Dodger. He PLAYS HARD. I began to
wonder if he might be having a reaction to the Miconazole spray so I bathed
him using the MF shampoo (man, that stuff is stinky! gotta use something
else...). I noticed that he was becoming dehydrated so I spoon-fed him
some a/d, which he ate readily, even as he was falling asleep in my arms
he'd wake up to lap a bit more.
I called the emergency vet clinic & they advised that I get a stool sample
from him, which meant quarantining him in a carrier for the night. ~ Oh,
BTW, none of the other 4 has itching or lethargy. ~ This morning I pulled
him out of the carrier and set him down on the floor to play with the
others. I watched in HORROR as he dragged himself along by his front legs,
his hind legs limp. He headed straight for the crinkle sack to hide. :-(
I rushed Dodge to the emergency vet and agreed to let them draw blood.
We're waiting for the results right now, but I'm fearing insulinoma. Will
I jinx us by saying that?? :\ The vet says that if it's an allergy to the
spray, he should be okay in 2-3 days.
**OH OH*** The vet just called! She said that his bloodwork looks GREAT!
She said to keep him fed well for the next few days & we'll see if he pulls
out of whatever it is. How's that for specifics? NOT!
ANYWAY - as I was saying before I interrupted myself - I wanted to know if
anyone else has run into this? You know, I always read questions on the
FML, and I'm always certain that "someone else will answer that one better
than I could" but I please don't think that. I really would love to hear
from anyone who might have some feedback, something that I could look into
as a possibility to rule out.
So...now that we have the results... we're no different than we were 12
hours ago, except for now we're $164 more in the hole and maybe have a bit
more peace of mind for things that we're NOT dealing with.
I read on an insulinoma web site
(http://www.rud.dk/ferrets/faqhtml/med/insulin.html) that "[Insulinoma]
is easily diagnosed with a FASTING blood sugar test. You need to withold
food for 4 to NO MORE THAN 6 hours prior to the test. This will show if
the sugar is too low. Normal fasting sugar should be between 90-120. Your
vet can also run an insulin level at the same time, but this is usually (in
my experience) unnecessary."
I DID NOT have him fast before the test, but the vet said that his levels
were within a range that, had they been different, she might have asked
that we do so. Does that sound right to those of you who deal with this on
a regular basis? Should I have requested a fasting test to rule it out,
given his symptoms?
We went & picked him up tonight and he scarfed some a/d before falling
asleep. I was so happy to get him back that I didn't even ask for a copy
of his lab results. Is there anyone who could offer me a laymans
interpretation of them if I were to get them & print them out here??
The vet DID say that his Alkaline Phosphatase level was pretty darned high
and that that has to do with the gallbladder. She said that it may be a
result of his dehydration/not eating much lately, but that in dogs and cats
it can be indicative of Cushing's Disease. She said she'd never heard of
Cushing's Disease in a ferret and I have to say that I've never heard it
mentioned on here, either... maybe a search of those awesome archives that
BIG put together for us :->
I really need some guidance, as he is completely paralyzed from about the
waist down... I can tell he's not feeling well & is upset that he can't
even get to the litter box. His little paws are curled up somewhat, too,
but he still has a good appetite.
(cont'd)
THE SECOND thing that we had happen today was that Cocoa got OUTSIDE!!!
Don't hate me because I live in Florida, but it got into the 80's here
today. It was almost too warm to have the windows open but as the evening
came it was absolutely HEAVENLY. (Sorry, Yankees! Consolation to you: We
absolutely ~SWELTER~ in the summer!) I have windows on either side of my
computer desk that are about 30" wide x 60" tall. They're only about 12"
from the floor. The fuzzkids have always loved climbing onto the cool,
marble sills to escape RockStar or just to stare out into the fenced-in
backyard where my 2 Chows roam. They sometimes go nose-to-nose with the
dogs, who would rather kiss them gently through the screen than try to
scarf them up. Of course, maybe they're just trying to get a taste....
O_O heehee
After dinner I decided to do a "nose count". We could locate everyone
but Co. I started hunting and - don't ask me why - went to one of the
windows. She had crawled under the mini-blinds, pushed the screen out
and ESCAPED!!! Yes; I HAD tested them for "push-ability" & felt sure
that they were push-proof... leave it to a ferret to prove me wrong.
I yelled for my daughter to gather up the remaining 3 and ran outside
with the squeaky toy, squeaking before I hit the door. The porch light
from the back lanai did little to illuminate the backyard and I was sure
that she was long gone. I looked to see if the dogs were showing a
particular interest in anything that might be scampering along the
ground, but to my dismay they weren't.
I was nearly in tears, certain that I would never find her in the dark. I
squeaked that little squeaky toy for all that it was worth and as I turned
around I saw something running up to me. My first thought was (get this!)
that it was a tame rat! D'oh!!! When my eyes could focus better, I
realized that it was Co!!!! She ran right up to me, nose in the air, like,
"Yeah, mom? You wanted something?" I scooped her up and ran inside,
finding my daughter in my computer chair crying, certain that Cocoa was
gone for good.
<HUGE SIGH.> I wish that those of you whose babies got outside (Esther,
Podo, etc..) had had similar experiences to mine. Reading your horrific
stories made it all the more significant to me how truly lucky we were
tonight to have found her and so soon. My heart aches for the babies that
go out on walkabout, never to return home.
Well, kids; that's my day in a nutshell. Sorry I was so long-winded. I
hope that when Dodger is feeling better he'll feel up to sharing some
insight on his days & nights of inactivity... 'til then, he sends quiet
little dooks to all the fuzzies & the hoomans who love 'em.
Thanks for listening. God, I love this place. :0)
Melissa
==================================================================
Happy New Year to All with LOVE & DOOKS from Melissa, Mykah & the
ferrets:
Dexter, Cocoa, MoJo, Dodger & RockStar >^v^<-,--------,''''''
ICQ us! Our # is 6407420.
==================================================================
[Posted in FML issue 2544]
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