>this week for rabies vaccinations, and my old man Maynard in to adjust his
>heart medication, since he is having a problem with edema, even with being
>on Lasix and Encard.
 
One of my ferrets does NOT absorb Lasix properly through his gut.  If I
use the oral stuff, he struggles to breathe and coughs.  He was gaining
120 grams per *day* before I got this under control.  He probably would
have been dead a year ago had I kept him on the oral stuff.  I switched
over to injectable Lasix 19 months ago and it works beautifully!  Just
remember that the injectable stuff is stronger than the oral stuff so the
dosage needs to be adjusted.
 
In order to control his edema, he is on a dose twice the maximum
recommended dosage and has been there for 19 months.  My vet says that
Lasix is a relatively safe drug and is a "dose to effect" drug.  Since my
guy cannot go more than a few hours without an injection, he gets
injections 4 times a day (6 am, 9am, 6pm, 11pm).  I supplement his diet
with a little potassium since Lasix washes potassium out of the body.
 
To see if the oral stuff would work any better after 17 months on
injectable Lasix, I switched over to alternating shots and oral stuff a few
months back.  Within a couple days, he was coughing and lethargic and had
edema again.  Switching him back to injectable stuff made him his perky
self.  Not bad for a 7 year old who has had heart problems for 19 months!
 
Injectable Lasix is a prescription item.  I get it from Valley Vet for
about $8.65 per 50 ml bottle.  I use a 1 cc syringe and 25 gauge needle.
I get the needles and syringes from Jeffers (the needles are 1/2 the cost
of other places).
 
    -Carla
 
[A later P.S.]
PS.  Kim, I found out about Maynard's passing after I sent in this post.
I am so very, very sorry for you and for Maynard's friend, Buddy.  Please
give Buddy an extra hug for me.
[Posted in FML issue 2797]