From:
deborah1477@yahoo.com
Date: 2001-11-28 16:07:00 UTC
Subject: Safe Household if previous ferret had Aleutian Disease?
I am writing in hopes of getting any input regarding the safety of
adopting two new kits into our household. A few weeks ago, my
fiancée and I had to put down our beloved ferret, Miyake. He was
just 4 1/2 years old, and had shown no signs of illness (except
that our vet had noted a `large spleen' on his charts for the past
two years) until this fall.
Our problems began in August. I took Miyake in for his annual
shots on the 2nd (Distemper, Fervac D and Rabies - Merial
Imrab3). He had had these exact shots for the past 3 years with
no signs of distress. However, about 40 minutes after the
injections, Miyake went into shock (vomiting, diarrhea) and I
rushed him back to the vet. He was immediately given Benedryl,
IV fluids and Carafate. Stabilized, we took him home later that
day.
Miyake seemed fine for a few weeks. However, when I went out
of town at the end of August/beginning of September, my fiancée
noted that Miyake seemed lethargic and to be losing weight
when I was gone. Once I returned, though, he seemed his
same perky self and was eating/drinking normally.
Near the end of September, Miyake's health began to
deteriorate. He was pawing at his mouth and was no longer
eating/drinking normally. He was disinterested in any food treats
or playtime, choosing only to sleep. On 9/25, we took him into
the vet, who noted that his spleen seemed to be the same size
as before (a bit large), his teeth were normal (not causing him
any eating problems), a fecal test revealed no complications,
and glucose was normal. Our vet suspected lymphoma of the
spleen and did spleen cytology. We immediately began IV fluids,
oral antibiotics and prednosone. Lab results showed his
kidney/spleen/lymphocyte to be normal. His protein levels were
high, as he was dehydrated. X-rays revealed nothing abnormal.
We continued the prescribed regiment and searched for a new
vet in the Ann Arbor, MI area.
We found a new vet who did a barium X-ray which revealed no
blockage but showed his stomach to be highly irritated. We did
another glucose test (fasting) which was again normal. (I
should note that Miyake's weight which was historically 2.7 or 2.8
lbs., was now only at 1.7lbs). The vet recommended exploratory
surgery, which we did on October 5th. She removed his spleen,
which was now engorged and an adrenal gland which was a bit
large, although we didn't suspect adrenal disease. Lab results
showed no evidence of cancer of either organ, only that his
spleen was congested. In terms of regimen, we were now force
feeding Miyake (A/D), giving him Carafate 2X daily, injecting
Cimetidine and subcutaneous fluids.
A few days after the surgery, Miyake perked up and seemed back
to his old self hiding his rubber duckies, playing, begging for
Cheerios, etc. Eating and drinking normally, we no longer had to
force feed him or give him IV fluids. Unfortunately, Miyake's good
health didn't last and he once again began loosing weight and
not eating or drinking. Vomiting and sleeping were all he
seemed to be able to do.
I won't go into detail regarding the following visits suffice it to
say we were either at the vet or consulting with her every other
day. His weight went down to 1.4lbs. Meds included Carafate,
pepto bismol, Metronidazole, Amoxicillin, Cimetidine and
Prednosone (really, we tried everything, although not all at once).
Force-feeding and IV fluids were resumed.
Sadly, Miyake never recovered on November 16th, we decided
to put Miyake down. It was the hardest decision we ever had to
make, but he was so miserable and we couldn't seem to get
him stabilized and give him a happy, healthy life.
I miss having a `ferret household' desperately. Miyake came
from a Petco store in the Chicago area, so I have no way of
knowing what his genetic history was. At present, we are
considering getting two kits from a specialty pet store in Chicago
(we don't know of any reliable breeders in our area). However, I
am now worried that Miyake may have had Aleutian disease.
(We did not have an autopsy performed.) From what I have read,
this disease can infect other ferrets and I am wondering if our
household is now contaminated.
Sorry for the long message, but if anyone has any comments, I
look forward to hearing them.
Thank you,
Deborah Paul