>From:    Anonymous Poster <[log in to unmask]>
>Subject: LUPRON
>... So she suggested this new treatment with Lupron which I read about in
>Modern Ferret, but I don't know of anybody that has had any experience with
>it.  Is this a daily treatment or a one time treatment?  Does it seem to
>work for anybody?  I know the article said that they had a good success
>rate, but is there anybody in the ferret world, like you good people, that
>had it used on their ferret?  I would appreciate to get any information on
>this, my vet wants to start him on it next week.  Also, is it very
>expensive?
 
We've been using Lupron on some of our shelter ferrets for some time now.
To answer your questions... it's neither a daily treatment or a one-time
treatment.  It is, however, a lifetime treatment if you want to keep the
symptoms suppressed.  Injections will need to be given anywhere from once
every two weeks to about once every four to five weeks.  How much you can
stretch it out between treatments is variable.  We've found that 4-5 weeks
is about the maximum one can go between shots.  Any more than that and the
symptoms begin to return.
 
It does not work with every ferret, but it works wonderfully in most.  It
is VERY expensive if your ferret is the only one the vet is treating with
Lupron.  The smallest amount that can be purchased is around $400.  It can
be stored for about a month or so in a regular freezer, but any more than
that requires liquid nitrogen storage at -70 degrees or colder.  If you're
ferret is the only one on Lupron, and if your vet doesn't have liquid
nitrogen storage capabilities, it can get very expensive real fast.  The
stuff will be unusable long before you'd use it up so a lot would go to
waste.  At $400 per vial, you sure don't want to waste any.  If the vet
treats a number of ferrets with Lupron, the cost can be spread out amongst
them.  Around here, we can get individual Lupron shots for about $25-$30.
 
For the ferrets,
Mike
 
* Michael F. Janke, [log in to unmask]
* Secretary, South Florida Ferret Club & Rescue
* A 501(c)3 not-for-profit corporation
*
* Visit our shelter's web site:  http://www.miamiferret.org
* Visit the Adrenal/Insulinoma web site: http://www.miamiferret.org/FHC
[Posted in FML issue 2687]