From:
Cw1046@aol.com
Date: 2002-07-31 20:45:11 UTC
Subject: Diagnosis of Early Renal Disease
To: ferrethealth@smartgroups.com
Message-ID: <17733898.1028148311154.JavaMail.root@scandium>
I have an approximately 4.5 year old MF female (1lb. 13oz.). When I took h=
er to the veterinarian for her yearly vaccinations at the end of June, I me=
ntioned that she had been drinking more water over the last few months =96 =
about double what she usually does. I had posted a question on this list a=
bout her increased water consumption and one response was that it wouldn=92=
t hurt to mention it to her veterinarian since it could indicate some sort =
of problem. Given that and her age, the doctor recommended that we do some=
blood work to rule out any problems and, if something did show up, catch i=
t early enough to do something about it. While we were in the office, she =
conveniently also provided a urine sample. The blood work results were nor=
mal, but the specific gravity of her urine was low (1.018).
The doctor said she could have =93early renal disease with compensation to =
keep kidney values in check.=94 He suggested that I obtain another urine s=
ample and bring it in for testing which I did a few days later. The second=
sample showed a lower specific gravity than the first (1.005). Her doctor=
recommends more blood work and another urine analysis in about four months=
. He has been trying to find information on what can be done, perhaps with=
diet, to delay development of any kidney problems. So far, he has no defi=
nitive information.
Since her blood work was normal, I am reluctant to put her through the trau=
ma of having blood drawn again, especially since she appears healthy. It s=
eems logical to me that if she is drinking more water, for whatever reason,=
her urine is likely to be dilute. I have noticed that whenever she eats, =
be it food or treats, she drinks water between almost every piece of food a=
nd thinks its fun to drink water from the bathtub.
She also has always had the occasional loose stools and recently suffered a=
prolapsed rectum. We always attributed the loose stools to her getting to=
o many treats and her doctor agrees that is the likely cause (yearly fecal =
exams have always been clear). Prolapse was treated with an oral antibioti=
c, warm compresses, followed by application of panalog ointment. Her treat=
intake has been severly cut back, and her stools have returned to a normal=
firm consistency and the prolapse has healed.
I am wondering if the loose stools and dilute urine are related and whether=
too many treats may have also caused her to drink too much water. Or, doe=
s my ferret really have early renal disease and, if so, what can I do about=
it?
I have tried to attach a copy of the blood work results (which are Greek to=
me).
Sorry for the length of this post, but I wanted to include everything that =
might be relevant.
Cheryl and Scooter
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