From:
- Z -
Date: 2001-11-12 11:45:00 UTC
Subject: How do you know when it's time...
I am wondering if those of you who have had ferrets with insulinoma pass on
would mind sharing with me your experiences at the ends of your ferrets'
lives. I've read through the various insulinoma pages and textbooks, but
none of them go into specifics, and I feel like I don't know what to expect.
I've read that insulinoma does not grant a quiet death for the most part,
and I want to do what's right by Amelia while giving her the most time that
I can.
Amelia is 7, on her weight's max dosages of both pediapred and proglycem
(has been for a couple of months). Her blood glucose is still in the upper
sixties, even with these dosages (as a side note, she is one of those
ferrets who is able to get along with a lower blood sugar than you'd expect;
when she was diagnosed with insulinoma she was in the low 40s and her
symptoms were subtle). We had a run in with an ulcer in September, but she
seems to have recovered from that. Eating, drinking, and pooping are all
normal. Until very recently I would say her quality of life has been ok,
although she sleeps subtantially more. Recently however she has started
making pain noises in her sleep-- not that squeal that they sometimes make,
but little muffled whimpers that I have never heard from my little tough
girl before. Occasionally she makes these noises while awake, usually while
being held. She has _never_ in her life let pain slow her down; she's
always been the sort of ferret who after surgery is banging on the cage door
to be let out as soon as she's conscious.
I do have a vet appointment lined up this week; I wish I could bring her
sooner, but her regular vet, an excellent ferret doctor, is away, and in my
judgement it's better for us to wait to see the regular vet, since she knows
Amelia in particular and ferrets in general so well. It kills me to hear
Amelia making those noises, but her behavior hasn't changed dramatically
otherwise, so we wait. I've had experience with insulinoma in one other
ferret, but he also had lymphoma which ended his life before his insulinoma
reached the stage that Amelia's has. So, if anyone is willing to share
their experiences, I would appreciate it-- I know it is probably as painful
for you to remember as it is for me to be experiencing, so when I say I'd
appreciate it, I mean that profoundly.
Thank you,
Regina
(copied to both Ferret-Health and FML-- apologies for the crosspost. Also I
previously sent this to Ferret-Health but it never appeared, at least not in
my inbox, so sorry if there's duplication there)
Regina Harrison regina_z@h... or regina@c...
Gossamer into Spiderweb:
http://www.channel1.com/users/regina/~gossamer.html
So keep your candles burning
And make her journey bright and pure
That she will keep returning
Always and evermore
into my arms
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