To Nancy Hartman: >...girl has a swollen abdomen that 'feels sort of hard to the touch'. >And she'll bite when he does touch it. Which is very uncharacteristic >of her, indicating it hurts her. Nancy - even though the vet said there wa no blockages - a one year-old ferret with pain in the abdomen - that has to be top of the list. Most ferrets are very stoic - they have to be in pretty severe pain to show it, let alone bite the owner. With an acute abdomen like this, I wouldn't rely simply on a survey radiograph. I'd suggest a contrast study with barium, or possibly, just stabilize the animal and open it up to take a look around... Also some bloodwork is probably in order... -- Bruce Williams, DVM, DACVP Department of Veterinary Pathology [log in to unmask] Armed Forces Institute of Pathology [log in to unmask] Washington, D.C. 20306-6000 (202) 782-2600/2602 [Posted in FML issue 1179]