From:
dr_bruce_williams
Date: 2002-03-13 20:37:00 UTC
Subject: Re: Kramer not doing well
--- In Ferret-Health-list@y..., "nrsl_cartridge"
<nrsl_cartridge@y...> wrote:
> i posted last week about my little boy Kramer not eating very well,
> ok i took him to the vet on friday morning she ran his blood work,
> his glucose came back at 70, ok i know that`s low, she said that he
> was bordrline insulinoma so she put him on 0.3 cc predisone 2 times
> a day, it seemed to helping he started getting his appitite back(we
> blend his food up into a soup and he eats it off a spoon)he`s been
> eating very well since friday but tonight he ate and right away
> began heaving but nothing came up. then he went to sleep, he slept
> for about 2 hrs got up and now he seems to be very sluggish almost
> like he has no energy at all, what i`m wondering is does that
> predisone have to incressed over time???
> i know with insulinoma they can`t have any sugar so i did cut all
> the treats and stuff but should he be having some sort of
> supplements?
Dear Jen:
I would get his blood checked again - the vomiting and lack of energy
strongly suggests the possibility tht that glucose has dipped
considerably below that level of seventy.
Not every case responds well to prednisone or proglycem. If the blood
sugar is still low at this point, then I would strongly suggest
discussing surgery with your vet.
You have this one a little backwards - diabetic ferrets can't have
sugar - this is not a problem with insulinoma ferrets (although you
don't want to give them a lot of sugary treats, either.
With kindest regards,
Bruce Williams, dVM