From:
aussieferrets5
Date: 2002-01-25 17:48:00 UTC
Subject: Blood test results - need vets' opinions please
Hi from Western Australia!
I have a 7-1/2 year old sterilised female silvermitt called Fidget.
She has been losing hair from the base of her tail over the past 8
months and now has no hair on her tail and is bald around her rump,
with it going up slightly on either side of her spine.
I was convinced she had adrenal problems and asked for an ultrasound
to be performed. Here in Perth, the lady who does the ultrasounds is
a specialised vet and our ferret knowledgeable vets have the utmost
trust in her diagnosis.
I was present during the ultrasound and nothing odd was found inside
Fidget. Both her adrenals appeared within the normal size, as did
her spleen, liver etc. This was done just before Christmas.
Fidget also has been having strange temperature spikes over the
period. They seem to happen every couple of months - she gets
extremely hot (40-41C), I rush her down to the vet and they give her
a shot (cortisone?) to bring her temperature down.
I also noticed her gums seemed pale so asked for blood tests to be
done. The results are listed below.
Because of her temperature spikes, the vet is reluctant to do
exploratory surgery. What they did suggest was that there might
still be some uterine tissue left over from when she was spayed, and
that might be causing a mild form of aplastic anaemia. I took her
for a "jill jab" yesterday and now must wait and see if it helps.
I would be most grateful if any of the vets in this Group could let
me know if something has been overlooked at this end. I know my vet
is doing everything possible to help, but I'm hoping that the wealth
of experience found in this Group might point us in the right
direction. I appreciate it is hard to make a diagnosis without
seeing the patient but I will present all opinions to my vet and let
her decide what should be done.
Thank you so much for your help!
Nona
Haematology Report
HB g/L 58
PCV L/L 0.17
RBC x10¹²/L 4.3
MCHC g/L 342
MCH pg 13
MCV fL 39
Retics (Corr) % 23
9
WBC x10 /L 5.2
Neuts % 61 3.17
(Bands) % 1 0.05
Lymphs % 34 1.77
Mono % 2 0.10
Eosin % 2 0.10
Comments :
WBC: Cell types appear normal
RBC: ANISO 2+, POLY/MACRO 2+, HYPO 1+, AGGLUTINATION 1+
Platelets: Adequate number on smear
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
Biochemistry Report
ALT U/L 154
Alk Phos U/L 53
Bilirubin T umol/L 5
Urea mmol/L 7.3
Creat. umol/L 48
Glucose mmol/L* 6.7
S Protein g/L 60
Albumin g/L 29
Globulin g/L 31
A/G Ratio 0.94
Comments:
* Glucose result from clotted sample.
Evidence of a moderate to severe, poorly regenerative anaemia.
All biochemical parameters are essentially normal. The regenerative
response is not as expected for a normal non-anaemic ferret and is
definitely inadequate for a ferret with such a low PCV.
Evidence of ? blood chronic loss ie melena / GIT ulceration /
fleas etc ? Exposure to lead ? Clinical evidence of an adrenal
tumour.