From:
Bruce Williams, DVM
Date: 2001-03-23 00:00:00 UTC
Subject: Re: Need opinion on Pear shape, Breath odor
--- In Ferret-Health-list@y..., Betty <eikondes@c...> wrote:
> > I have a 5 year old female ferret, Binkey. Clinical presentation:
> Several
> > months ago Binkey's hair began to change and she became more
subdued.
> Her
> > hair was once thick, shiny and soft like silk, but it started
getting
> > course, sparse and dull. She does NOT have bald spots (eg: tail)
it
> is just
> > thin all over and has an unhealthy look and feel to it. She does
> still play
> > but only briefly and then she returns to her cage and crawls
under her
>
> > covers. Her body has gradually taken on a pear shape and her
breath
> now has
> > an odor to it. Binkey's water-drinking has increased noticeably,
> urination
> > increased markedly. Her appetite remains constant and good
although
> she
> > refuses "good ferret food" demanding the junk grocery store kitten
> food.
> >
> > On 1-12-01 lab work was:
> > ALKP 150 U/L
> > ALT 349 U/L
> > BUN 33.3 mg/dl
> > CREA 0.51 mg/dl
> > GLU 92.1 mg/dl
> > TP 8.05 5/dl
> > her normal body weight is around 1 lb 9 oz. on 1-12-01 it was
687 gms
>
> >
> > on 2-5-01 the lab work was redone:
> > ALKP 135 U/L
> > ALT 379 U/L
> > BUN 26.9 mg/dl
> > CREA 0.51 mg/dl
> > GLU 100.8 mg/dl
> > TP 8.82 g/dl
> > body weight: 723 grams
> >
> > Normal range given:
> > ALKP 9-84
> > ALT 82-289
> > BUN 10.0-45.0
> > CREA 0.40-0.90
> > GLU 94.0-207.0
> > TP 5.20-7.30
> >
> > History: On 4-6-99 Binkey was hospitalized. At that time she was
> acutely
> > depressed having just lost her best ferret-friend 2-3 weeks
prior. At
> her
> > "friend's" death, Binkey went from healthy to, on the day of
> > hospitalization, having an ALT of 590 and a body weight of 427
gms.
> > Exploratory laparotomy was done on 4-8-99. The surgeon believed
what
> he saw
> > to be multiple malignant tumors of small intestine, pancreas, left
> adrenal
> > w/ possible metastasis to the liver. He removed as many tumors as
> possible.
> > HOWEVER, all pathology reports were NEGATIVE. A secondary
laboratory
> > confirmed the NEGATIVE finding. Binkey remained essentially
unchanged
> until
> > October of 99 when her depression improved markedly and she has
been
> symptom
> > free until now. Her last normal weight was 9-6-00 at which time
she
> was lb
> > 9 oz.
> >
Well, your description certainly brings adrenal disease quickly to
mind. Sparse poor haircoat and a pear shape. Adrenal ferrets often
assume a pear shape over time due to a predilection to put down fat
in the abdomen coupled with generalized muscle wasting. The odor of
the mouth can be tricky and may reflect periodontal disease. Only
rarely have I seen ammonia odor on the breath of ferrets with kidney
disease, but that is certainly in the realm of possibility.
Regarding the bloodwork - it isn't too bad. The mild elevations in
alk phos and ALT suggest an alternate nutritional status with
mobilization of fat stores to supply energy needs. Everything else
in this limited profile appears to be within normal limits.
With kindest regards,
Bruce H. Williams, DVM, DACVP
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