>Today he is in a great deal of distress and I am having to help him void
>by massageing his abdomen, soaking him in a warm bath and gently pressing
>on his bladder.  I am afraid my vet will suggest that he will have to be
>euthanized.  I don't want him to suffer, but I want to do all I can...
>I'm asking for any suggestions people might have as a result of their
>experiences with adrenal tumors in their beautiful little furry friends.
 
Hi HJ
 
I am not a vet - but a shelter.  I certainly empathize with you and the
situation you are in with your ferret.  I can only give you a couple of
alternatives that you and your vet can try to help your ferret.
 
Has your vet considered re-routing the urethra?  This is acheivable and the
results are remarkable.  We have had to do this with one ferret admitted to
my shelter - he came in suffering from adrenals and was completely blocked.
He couldn't pee at all.  The vet performed emergency surgery on Ben,
removed his left adrenal and debulked the right, and made a new opening for
him to urinate.  Ben's prostate was more than 5 times normal size...and
even 10, 12 weeks after surgery his prostate was still cystic and
excreting.  But he could urinate without any trouble.  Ben bounced back
in a very short period of time and never looked back.
 
This is a major surgery - and the biggest problem is that because of the
shortened urethra, he is prone to bacterial infections.  But he is a happy,
healthy, 'normal' ferret now -- unless you looked, there is no way that
anyone could tell that he doesn't urinate from his penis.
 
Another alternative is Lupron shots - Ben received three of these to help
reduce the swelling.  The downside on these shots is that they are
expensive - I paid $50.00 each for these shots.
 
I hope that this information helps - and that you can avoid euthanasia....
poor little ferret.
 
Lisa Leidig, Head Ferret
The Ferret Haven "By-the-Sea"
http: www.ferrethaven.org
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[Posted in FML issue 2935]