Hello, We are looking for some help figuring out what to do. Our ferret Farley is not yet three years old. He has two large masses in his abdomen (one on each side, one roundish, the other oval with a pronounced lump on it) each about the size of a golf ball. When Farley was six months old (or less) we took him in for his distemper vaccination booster and he had an anaphalactic reaction that nearly killed him. Fortunately the vet was able to get him through it with a series of injections. About six months later we found a puddle of urine that seemed rusty coloured and assumed it was bloody and rushed him to another vet. Unfortunately we had moved and had to try a new vet (that supposedly knew about ferrets and had been recommended to us but upon seeing his Marshall ear tattoos, she commented on the "strange pigment in his ear"). She did an aspirated urine culture that turned up negative and suggested that probably he had adrenal because he had two small but palpable lumps. We researched and found another vet (vets that know anything about ferrets on the island we live on seem very hard to find and we are still looking). The new vet began his examination at Farley's head and commented on how incredibly healthy he was all the way along his body until he reached his abdomen. The vet was very surprised given his healthy looking condition and behaviour and then gravely told us that Farley has cancer and we would be looking at four to six weeks until he died. That was a year ago. We went back and forth on all the usual questions. Could he have chemo? Was he in pain? Should we proceed with X-rays and ultrasounds? Exploratory surgery? The vet (who seems quite knowledgeable about ferrets) didn't recommend any of these lines of treatment/diagnosis and again stressed that lymphosarcoma in juvenile ferrets is aggressive and untreatable. We did a bunch of research and it seemed that all hope was lost and we would soon lose our beloved Farley. But, that was a year ago and we don't know what to think anymore. When his condition hadn't really changed (save the slight growth of the masses) We saw a third vet who was interning with our usual vet to get her opinion and when she came in to the exam room she couldn't believe that this was the ferret with juvenile lymphosarcoma she'd read the file for, because he looks fantastic. But she again stressed that there was nothing that could be done for him. (Sorry this email is so long but we are desperate for experienced advice and figure that a proper history and understanding of his condition is required.) On the way home from the vet after we dried our eyes, yet again, at the idea of losing Farley we thought we should stop in at the pet store and get them some treats for being so well behaved at the vet. As we were walking out we heard one of the sales people (who also has ferrets) say to another about our boys "those ferrets are like model ferrets" How can this be the case if one of them is on deaths doorstep?? Here is Farley's current condition (for the past eleven months): - He has lost 0.04 lbs, which is essentially nothing but there is some muscle loss around his neck and shoulders, and his backbone is fairly pronounced. - He gets thirsty a lot and pee's a lot, but not much more than a "normal" ferret, and he has been like that since he was a baby. - His masses feel like he has swallowed two golf balls. Which he has not. Basically they have gone from acorn size to golf ball size in just under a year. - His fur is fine, no fur loss or "ratty" appearance at all. Most days during playtime he gets tired out after 15-20 minutes, but still has some days where he plays as hard as any other ferret. - The masses are clearly distracting him and causing him discomfort and he stopped eating dry kibble about 9 months ago so we feed him homemade duck soup three to four times a day. - Initially he had several episodes of vomiting after eating, but he has not vomited at all since we began feeding the soup. - This past month he has started tooth grinding which we understand indicates abdominal pain :( no wonder with the giant masses in his tummy. The main point is that we are skeptical of the diagnosis of lymphoma. There is certainly no denying the presence of the masses but because of the lack of further cancer symptoms over the period of time, we're wondering about other options such as renomegally etc. The masses could very well be his kidneys and the vet agreed this was possible. We don't really want to keep trying (and paying for) other vets, especially if we're just in denial. We have had many sad evenings discussing what we should, or if there is anything we can do. Are we just in denial or does this sound to anyone else like it could be something other than cancer? Has anyone else out there had a ferret diagnosed with lymphosarcoma continue without much change for a year's time? Also, if there is anyone in the Victoria/Vancouver Island, or even Lower mainland of BC area that could suggest a great ferret vet that might be worth consulting that would be very helpful as well. Thank you, the FML is such a wonderful resource for those of us owned by dookers. Ed & Sarah [Posted in FML 7543]