My Chief Ferret, Bumble B. Bobbitt, had to be hospitalized Saturday night with a very sudden illness. I'm asking for your prayers, and also wondering if anyone has had quite this type of thing happen to one their ferrets. Bumble was fine and playful Friday night. I realize now, however, that I didn't see much of him when he and his friends were out Saturday night. He'd put himself to bed in his cage before I started gathering the rest up, and that was a first for him. While my SO and I were watching TV later, we saw Bumble straining at the litterbox and making a loud clucking sound we'd never heard before. I picked him up and looked at his bottom, and his penis looked very red and infected. We've had a couple of scares about Bumble since the middle of September which some of you may remember: first, I'd become worried about adrenal disease since he was exhibiting rutting behavior, but his regular vet said since he didn't have any of the other signs, we could wait and see. Then a few weeks ago, he drank water tinted pink from some licorice pieces the ferrets had dropped in their water bowl, and was peeing pink. It was a great relief when we figured out what the cause was --- and now this. We took him to the emergency clinic which is, thank goodness, only about 15 minutes away. He had his bladder drained that night (the doctor said it looked as if Bumble had been chewing at his penis, possibly trying to open it). He stayed overnight to have tests done and be stabilized for surgery, which was done late this afternoon. The surgeon found that both Bumble's bladder and abdomen were full of pus. He was too swollen for a catheter, so the doctor did a cystostomy, directing the flow of urine out through the abdomen. This can either be a temporary or permanent measure, depending on how Bumble does otherwise. They found a large swelling beneath the junction of the kidneys and bladder, which they couldn't get at during regular surgery. It would require micro-surgery for the removal and reconnection of the tubes...they are so small in a ferret. The adrenal glands didn't seem to be enlarged. Bumble is resting tonight; the last I heard was at around 8 p.m. He's receiving fluids and the antibiotic Cefazolin. The doctor will call me if an emergency arises. If everything is working as it should tomorrow, Bumble may be able to come home in the evening. I asked if he should be isolated, but the doctor said it would be better for him to be cuddled up with his girlfriends. After talking with the surgeon, I tried to think of anything different in Bumble's life that may have caused such an awful infection. The only thing I could come up with was that I'd used torn up newspaper as temporary litter when I ran out of the regular stuff. I called the doctor back to ask him about it, and he said that newsprint was a benign substance, and he didn't think the infection arose from anything in Bumble's environment. But he was still very puzzled about the amount of infection...he said he'd never seen anything quite like it before. I'm still so shocked at the speed with which this came up, and the fact that it got so bad before Bumble said anything about it. What if we'd gone to bed earlier Saturday night? He'd have been downstairs all night with that terrible pain. It's terrifying to realize how swiftly these things can happen with ferrets! Anyway, if anyone out there has had a similar type experience, please share it with me. And please keep good wishes for Bumble in your hearts. He's a very wonderful and sweet boy, and very much loved. [P.S.] I guess my brain's kind of frozen ... I forgot to say that if Bumble can come home tomorrow evening, it will only be while his tests are evaluated to find out what further steps should be taken. That swelling under the kidneys/bladder is now the main concern. The doctor is hoping it is from the infection and will disappear with antibiotics, but it's a whole different story if it's a tumor. [Posted in FML issue 2473]