From:
Lynn Siegel
Date: 2002-02-16 12:47:00 UTC
Subject: VET RESPONSE PLEASE-Ferret: diaherra, mucus in poop,
sometimes blood, nauseas, doesn't want to eat, gagging on medicine
I posted awhile ago about this ferret & didn't receive a vet response &
don't know what to do for him.
He has seen a few vets here. He had surgery, (unnecessary) & nothing was
found to be wrong inside. He had severe gingivitis & ulcers on his gums
which was why we thought he had stopped eating in the first place, found
after a 3rd vet exam. He was on Clavamox to clear up the infection so he
could have his teeth cleaned & dental work done. He just had his teeth
cleaned & one removed. The day after that he did eat dry food on his own.
If he has done it since then I haven't seen him. Once in a while he will
eat duck soup on his own, most of the time he has to be syringe fed. One
day he is up & the next few down.
Yesterday when I gave the others their chicken I put him by it & he sniffed
it & ran away. I watched him & he started heaving, like he was very nauseas
& wanted to throw up, but didn't. Although on other occasions he has thrown
up. When he is picked up as in transfer from cage to floor he immediately
has to go to a litter box where he squeezes out a little bit of poop that
almost always has mucus in it. He also has to use the litter box right
after being fed. He never poops much at all but surgery didn't find any
blockage.
He was put on Metronidazole 250mg. I have mixed it with everything I can
think of & nothing helps. He foams at the mouth for Pred which he is
getting for his Insulinoma, I have tried peach juice to help with the
nausea, that isn't too bad but mixed with the medicine he foams & gags. I
have tried mixing in his duck soup & no go there either, it is only turning
him off his food. He use to like Ferretone & now foams & gags at it & won't
take it voluntarily. It is such a fight to just get him to eat I am afraid
if I keep trying to give him the medicine he won't touch anything. It has
turned into a Catch 22 with him. The vet says the medicine is the only
thing to combat whatever bacteria he has in his intestines, which she
believes is causing the poo problem. He has been checked several times for
parasites & is negative. Last fecal check didn't turn up anything bad.
The vet used a pill popper to get the pill down him but she put it way down
his throat. The pill is broken into either 1/4ths or 1/2 & it looks large
enough that if I tried to use a pill popper I am afraid it will get caught
in his wind pipe or something & then everything will be worse.
Does anyone have any ideas what could be causing the problems? Anything
else to test for? A good way to get the medicine in him? Another medicine?
Anything that could be injected that might help? At this point he is afraid
to ever try the food from the syringe or dish because he thinks there is
going to be medicine in it. Last night I found a pool of what I at first
thought was diaherra, but now think might have been vomit, that was bloody &
mucus. I think it came from him.
Thank you in advance,
Lynn