To Chris Haas: >I noticed he wasn't eating/drinking/pooping. So I seperated him from the >rest to monitor him. I gave him some laxative, and when he did poop, it >was very very dark brown (almost black) and like liquid. It looked like >Hershey's Chocolate Syrup. So, on Monday, I had a stool sample analyzed >to check for blood (i.e., Ulcer?). The vet found some red blood cells, >but not enough for concern. When the stol is black, the blood is digested. So you won't find a lot of red blood cells in the stool. This doesn't mean there isn't an ulcer. I would start with ulcer treatment on Bailey right away - the amoxicillin and Carafate certainly won't hurt matters.... >On Wednesday, I had X-rays done to look for an instestinal blockage, >nothing there either. Normal Xrays have a low chance of picking up blockages unless they are due to bone or metal. Most other tissues will not show up. If your vet is pursuing this avenue, a barium contrast study is imperative in these situations, and even if that is negative, you still can't rule out the possibility of a blockage. With the signs and symptoms that Bailey is showing, that would be my first thought, especially considering his age. If he is continuing to worsen, I would have to recommend and abdominal exploratory before he gets too much worse. I would rather go in and look around, than play it too conservative and see a ferret slip away due to inaction... >Still, things weren't looking any better. Today, I found him in his cage >laying on his stomach with his head hanging out over the hammock, and when >I got him up, he started to vommit, but was only throwing up stomach acid. Let's also make sure that he is urinating.....urinary blockages can cause similar signs - vomiting, ulcers, excessive spraying.... Hope he's feeling better soon.... -- Bruce Williams, DVM, DACVP Department of Veterinary Pathology [log in to unmask] Armed Forces Institute of Pathology (202) 782-2600/2602 Washington, D.C. 20306-6000 [Posted in FML issue 1335]