I am so scared for Weezie.  Five days ago, she started to act lethargic.
Since she has never been very robust, and tends to sleep a great deal, it
was a subtle change at first.  Also, her stool frequency has never been that
much-- may= be three or four times in a twenty-four hour period (unless
there is a hidden spot= in the house we haven't found).  She has always been
a good eater/drinker (ANF Tami-Ami Kitten food).  Also, she's had all her
vaccinations, including rabies.  Her usual routine is to hide in one of her
cubbies and sleep, emerging every four hours or so to inspect the house and
eat & drink.  She usually has an active period of play in the morning and at
night (we only cage her when we go to bed, or are away from home).
Recently, instead of cubbying, she would follow me around the house more
than usual, and would want to sleep wherever I was sitting.  She also began
to lay down out in the open for longer periods of time.  The other day, she
wanted to sleep in her cage instead of following me or cubbying.  As she was
climbing into her cage (the door is on the roof), she caught her foot and
hung there in a panic, chattering and thrashing.  I put her into her cage,
and her foot seemed okay.  From this point on, I noticed that she did not
want to play, explore, or even leave the cage.  I lifted her out over the
next day or two, and she would go to her bowls and eat and drink, but she
was moving slowly.  She seemed to be listless and weak.  Her coat has become
coarse and her scent very pronounced (she is spayed and descented and
usually you can't smell her at all.  The scent change took place over a
month or two).  After the third day of monitoring her behavior, we took her
to the vet (yesterday).
 
The vet X-rayed her and took a series of blood tests.  The blood tests all
came back normal.  The X-ray indicated a slight possible abnormal situation
on the spleen, but it was a vague, not obvious image.  He looked at her
vulva and found it to be normal for the most part, maybe a really, really
SMALL degree of swelling (I couldn't even see it, and I have been checking
her ever since the tail hair loss).  He thought this illness of hers might
be a flea allergy, and had us put her on Advantage (she had her first dose
yesterday).  She still weighs the same as usual (but she LOOKS thinner) and
was no evidence of a GI obstruction.  The vet also checked her respiration.
She did not put up much of a fight when blood was drawn (unusual for her)
but I did hear her chittering when the X-rays wer= e taken, so she still has
some determination left.
 
This morning, she was just limp and listless.  Her little body is shivering,
as though with the wake-up tremors, but this seems like much more than
normal.  She seems to be breathing faster and deeper than usual.  When I
pick her up, she is just limp.  She has a food dish and water dish & bottle
in her cage.  She ate today but is not drinking much that I can see-- a few
little sips this morning.  I took her out of the cage to her kitchen food
and water to see what she would do.  She ate, and was able to walk around a
little, but seemed weak.  I put her back in her cage and she just lies
there.  We have bought eyedroppers in case we need to force water down her--
I just can't tell how much she is drinking.  I have been giving her
Ferretvite every other day or so, tube is almost gone, & no more available
anywhere here.  We were able to find Ferretone, which I understand must be
dilluted with olive oil, which we thought would be an acceptable substitute.
It seems as though she should have extra vitamins right now (???).
 
As I wrote previously, we have had a flea problem here.  At its peak, I was
combing 20-30 fleas off her several times a day (in July).  She is in her
second month of being on Program and now I find no more than 1-2 fleas,
twice a day.  Therefore, I considered the fleas to be under control.  When
she began exuding her scent, I assumed it was because of the flea combings,
which were several times a day and left her coat in a damp state, logically
making her smell more than usual.
 
She has lost almost all the hair from her tail.  This began at the tip and
moved downward toward the base.  Some has begun growing again at the tip.
She still has healthy hair at the base of her tail for about a quarter inch
or so.  She has lost a small patch of hair from her back, and the hair/skin
in that area appears orangeish.  Since she seems to be shedding (her mas k
is changing) and since most of the fleas were in this spot on her back, I
figured that the hair loss was due to these factors and not something else.
 
Tomorrow she has another appointment at the vet's.  I just don't know what
to do.  I do trust him... he is the only vet in this area who knows about
ferrets ... but I don't know why this is looking like a flea allergy instead
of a poisoning of some kind (something she found and ate).  We have
ferretproofed the house as much as possible, and she has never been a very
adventuresome ferret, so she has never been much of a problem with getting
into things.  I'm just really worried about her because it seems as though
it isn't really clear at all what is wrong with her.  If anyone has any
ideas at all, please let me know...
 
Isabel Two
(also feeling very, very listless and lethargic...)
(carbon monoxide alarm IS working & we sleep with windows open)
[Posted in FML issue 1705]