I have looked at previous postings and have found similar symptoms
described with their ferret.  However, I did not find one that was close
enough.  Most of the ones I read don't have a good prognosis so maybe I
am in denial.
 
I have a 6 or 7 year old ferret named Luigi.  He has been healthy up
until last December.  First his fur turned white almost overnight and
then he stopped eating.  Our vet, Dr. Helper, thought he may have adrenal
gland tumor, pancreas tumor, or kidney disease.  Blood sample was sent to
TN for adrenal test.  I can't remember what was measured but the level
was slightly elevated above normal high.  A local lab measured blood
sugar and it was normal so pancreas disease was ruled out.  The urine
was analyzed and was found not diluted so kidney disease was ruled out.
Dr. Helper did exploratory surgery on December 19 and visually verified
what the tests indicated: A small tumor on the adrenal gland and the
kidneys looked clean.  However they was a small tumor on the pancreas.
He removed as much of the tumors as possible.  Both tumors were
non-malignant.  Dr. Helper also removed a fur ball from Luigi's stomach.
After seeing the small tumors and the fur ball, Dr. Helper suspected that
the fur ball was affecting Luigi's appetite more than the tumors.  Luigi
had a hard time recovering since he was so weak for not eating for about
a week.  We gave Luigi prednisone to control his blood sugar so that he
would keep his appetite.
 
Since Luigi was doing so well, we reduced the frequency of prednisone
to every three days and then by March we stopped all together.  Luigi's
appetite remained strong.  So strong in fact, Dr. Helper suggested I cut
back on his food.  He was over 2.5 lbs.  The first week of April, Luigi
was given an injection of Lupron to slow the adrenal gland tumor.
Sometime in May, Luigi's summer coat came in and this time his normal
color came back.  A good sign!
 
Everything looked good until June when he stopped eating again.  Once
again the blood test showed normal blood sugar so Dr. Helper didn't think
his pancreas tumor was causing problems.  The Lupron was controlling the
adrenal tumor so he didn't think that should be the cause.  I thought he
may have another fur ball but Dr. Helper could not feel one.  He even
examined him twice on two different visits and did not detect a fur ball.
I started really looking at Luigi and noticed new habits.  He was
grinding his teeth and would frequently rub his head, chin, and neck on
the carpet.  This would be done chin down and also on the both left and
right side.  He liked to get under something like a shirt or a paper bag
to do the rubbing.  When I told Dr. Helper about this he suspected that
his esophagus was irritated from stomach acid.  He thought he may have a
reflux problem.  Dr. Helper told me to give Luigi a special solution of
Pepsid AC.  Also, he gave me a tube of NutriCal so that Luigi would get
some nutrition.  I also had to use a syringe to get him to drink water.
He did not want to drink from his bowl.  Fortunately, Luigi ate the
NutriCal and gained some energy.  After about a week of Pepsid AC, he
started nibbling his normal food and within two weeks he was eating
normal amounts of dry and moist food.
 
Once again, everything looked good until last week.  He reduced his
eating considerably Wednesday and by Friday he wasn't eating or drinking
anything.  On Wednesday, I took him to Dr. Helper and he suggested I
start the Pepsid AC again.  He examined Luigi's mouth for foreign objects
that may irritate his mouth and once again felt for a fur ball.  On
Friday I started giving him NutriCal by hand and water with a syringe.
Another thing I noticed is that Luigi appears to be hungry.  He is eager
to come out of his cage for his feedings.  He makes a lunge at my finger
with the NutriCal.  However, after about two or three pretty good licks
he is ready to get off my lap and grind his teeth and rub on the floor.
I interpret this as saying that the NutriCal causes pain as it goes down.
But after rubbing for awhile, he is ready to lick more NutriCal.  As I
said previously, Luigi does not drink water out of his bowl but he drinks
the water very willing when I give it to him from the syringe.  I am
starting to get concerned that he has been on Pepsid AC for almost a week
and I don't see any interest with his normal food.  I know he doesn't
like old food so I am changing his food and water twice daily to keep it
fresh but he only sniffs it and walks away.  He even rejects his small
piece of cantaloupe that he ate regularly during the last time this
happened last June.
 
Does an esophagus heal slowly?  Since we started the Pepsid at the first
indication of an irritation, I thought Luigi would be responding to
treatment quicker.
 
Is there a preventative course to take so Luigi doesn't go into the "stop
eating" mode?  Do you have other ideas for Dr. Helper to investigate?
Thanks for any help you can give!
--
William M. Davidson
[log in to unmask]
 
1704 Blume, NE
Albuquerque, NM 87112
505 294 4571
 
Too many people spend money they haven't earned, to buy things they don't
want, to impress people they don't like.  -Will Rogers
[Posted in FML issue 3897]