From:
AFERRETVET@cs.com
Date: 2001-03-27 17:25:00 UTC
Subject: Re: [Ferret-Health-list] need some advice from vets
Hi Deb,
A bladder infection with sediment that shows up on
an x-ray is interesting. It is time to do an urinalysis.
This will tell us what kind of crystals are causing the sediment,
the ph of the urine, and if there is a bacterial infection. If there
is bacteria found then a culture/sensitivity test can be done
to find out what bacteria it is and what antibiotic to use. I would
speculate that the ph is elevated, this is struvite crystals causing
the
sediment, and it is urease producing bacteria. Treatment would be
to acidify the urine (dl-methionine or a better diet) and use
Clavamox
drops, or Cefa drops, or Baytril, or Amoxi drops. On the other hand
if the ph is too low then it could be calcium oxalate crystals and
a totally different problem.Thus the urine test is the first step.
With adrenal gland disease, one can find prostate problems
with prostate and secondary bladder infections, so yes it could be
related
to adrenal gland disease. Are there other signs (like itchy skin,
thinning haircoat, bald areas, hair that epilates easy, increased
musky
body odor, return of sexual behavior, etc) that would suggest
adrenal gland disease in this ferret?
If so then you would have to treat the adrenal gland disease
(i.e., surgery, Lupron depot, or melatonin) too.
Hope that helps,
Jerry Murray, DVM