From:
Debra Thomason
Date: 2001-04-06 10:57:00 UTC
Subject: RE: Bladder Problems URGENT
Terry--
I've had a similar problem in a male ferret at around 4 years. Did the vet
check the adrenals and prostate tissue while in? Is the ferret drinking AND
urinating? My ferret's bladder problem was not readily apparent (even
internally) at the first adrenal surgery. The ferret redeveloped adrenal
symptoms, this time with not just dribbling little puddles of urine around
but also with serious signs of straining that came on pretty quickly.
Surgery found the other adrenal involved, prostate tissue that had overgrown
and was impinging upon the urethra, and the double bladder just as you've
described. The "extra" bladder was built of extremely tough and fibrous
tissue. One side tended to stay backed up and somewhat infected. He wound
up with a surgically contructed opening directly from the bladder through
the abdominal wall. I had to flush the sludgy side of the bladder with
sterile saline at least once a day to keep things flowing. Interestingly,
he did have some control of his bladder functions after the surgery. He
could hold it, but he sometimes had trouble stopping the flow and might
dribble as he left the litterbox. He was eventually put to sleep when
adrenal symptoms returned again along with concurrent insulinoma and a
continued battle with the bladder problems but did get several extra months
of quality life beyond the last surgery.
Debra in Fort Worth