From:
GRFerrets@aol.com
Date: 2001-04-27 22:15:00 UTC
Subject: Sick ferret - help!?!
Hi,
I have a female ferret, age 6 years with some problems and I'm hoping to get
some help here.
Last December, she began to show signs of adrenal - hair loss, itching,
swollen vulva. On January 30, she had her left adrenal gland removed. The
right was checked and was not affected. Insulinomas were not found in the
exploratory.
For much of her life, she's been somewhat more itchy than my other ferrets
and she (with one other) sneezes more than the rest. Both of these have been
normal for her for years. She is one of those ferrets affected with the foot
problem that was recently discussed here.
Now: Her hair has not begun to grow back, but the vulva is back to normal.
The itching has not subsided at all - She is so itchy that she scratches
until she bleeds. She has big scabs all over from her scratching. She is
quite lethargic - she comes out of her bed to eat and use the litterbox and
that's about it. During playtimes out of the cage, she needs to be removed
from her bed and put on the floor and is usually back in her bed within 5 or
10 minutes. If she tries to run around a bit, the itching/scratching
interferes to the point that she can barely take a couple steps before she
has to stop and scratch. She has lost weight, but not enough to be concerned
- I think it's just the natural spring weight loss.
Can anyone help me with this??
Thank you!
Kim