From:
Sukie Crandall
Date: 2002-04-03 15:29:00 UTC
Subject: The Pocket Primer on Hind Leg Weakness
I was asked to do this for a newsletter, so decided to make it
useable for free to any newsletter, website or magazine as long as
two criteria are followed: it may not be altered in any form or
amount (including alterations to this paragraph) and you have to
credit both the Ferret Health List
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Ferret-Health-list/ and the Ferret
Mailing List (ferret-request@c... to join, and archives at
http://listserv.cuny.edu/archives/ferret-search.html ) since you
read it here.
--Sukie
***Kalinka is falling over***
ANY major health problem can cause hind leg weakness. It is one of
those general signs of health difficulties which call for a vet
appointment, so don't wait -- call now.
One of the first things your vet will do will be to check your
ferret's blood sugar. Have an idea how recently the ferret ate last
and what was eaten. For precise measures of blood sugar fasting
blood tests are used, but it is always a good idea when symptoms of
possible insulinoma exist to do one without fasting first. Some
ferrets have worked their way through to an advanced level of
insulinoma before showing symptoms and a person would not want to
fast such an individual. (BTW, the approaches used if it is
insulinoma can vary depending on the level of disease.)
What if it's not insulinoma causing the hind leg weakness? Then your
vet will look for signs of other possible causes: injury, serious
infection, other diseases. If a fever is present then it may be easy
to figure it out. If not, then the ferret may need further tests
such as a CBC, other blood tests depending on symptoms, x-rays for
injury or maybe for possible heart disease causing weakness if the
other symptoms add up in that direction.
***Sling those Hose***
What if your ferret has a permanent injury to the spine or spinal
cord that prevents walking, or an illness such as lymphoma in these
areas? Years ago the folks at http://www.doggon.com who also make
travel-chairs/wheelchairs for animals in need of such help --
including ferrets -- came up with a much-copied idea: pantyhose
slings. These are easily made, but DO check first with your vet to
make sure that it is not inappropriate for your individual ferret or
that furry's stage of illness or recovery. To top it off, you can
select the size for the person using it to prevent stooping while you
help your ferret, and can even buy different color pantyhose to make
into color-coded slings for each member of the family to use so that
no one gets a sore back. Just place one panty hose foot over the
other and sew these so that they form a flat hammock for the ferret's
belly. Then roll the tops and sew these into a handy sausage shaped
handle. Bingo! You have a sling to help any ferret with mobility
problems be able to get around with your help. Expect to see some
very real joy!
If the situation is one marked by controllable pain do ask your vet
about trying steroids, or possibly opiates, or both to give optimal
quality of life for as long as possible.
***Finding health info***
There is a great deal of absolutely marvelous health info out there
for everyone, much of it written by vets. Here are five more fine
places to begin.
If you begin at the FHL do remember that the site has a search
engine, files, and bookmarks as well as having the list and its
on-going health discussions. The search engine which goes through
archived past posts works in chunks so if the group that has just
been searched does not have the info you need just hit "Next" and
check the next group till you find what you need.
The other sites are ones which provide links to further health info
so can help you narrow the amount of resources in which you need to
search by helping you refine your resource list.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Ferret-Health-list/
http://www.ferret.net/medical/
http://www.trifl.org/medical.html
http://advancedhelp.org
http://geocities.com/sukieslist
--