From:
sukieferret
Date: 2002-04-28 18:07:00 UTC
Subject: Scooter has begun nausea, vomiting, and strong grinding
He goes in for tests tomorrow.
This is the little guy who has very bad IBD that is somewhat
responisve to Imuran but that's it. At least pudding to oatmeal
texture is better than soupy. He's also the one who has the
largest stomach -- by a wide margin -- that any of his treating
vets have ever encountered in a ferret. It's not known if that is an
unusual part of his disease process or if it is possibly
something else. He was born with deformities to a hand and
the stomach could be part of something else genetic. It's likley
to be at least partly part of the disease process becuase when
he was openned up twice due to this last year the stomach was
huge the first time but markedly larger the second. No
malignancy either of those times, but stuff does pool in there for
extended periods, even foods that would normally pass easily
since they found food in him about 8 hours after a meal last
time. (Have to be extra careful with him that way.)
We can't try anything like the pumpkin some here recommend
as part of his treatment because it possibly wouldn't pass from
his strange stomach.
So, off to test tomorrow and meanwhile he's on an extra bland
non-poultry (since he appears to have a poultry allergy) diet of
baby foods and water when that can be gotten in, lots of rest,
lots of time being held vertically, and Carafate.
Hopefully, he just has an infection that can be fixed up, but we
know with him that he could be starting to have a bad response
to his Imuran, or could be starting either lymphoma or
megaespohagus as a secondary problems. We are dealing
with a lymphoma clump here. A secondary ulcer is always
another possibility.
So right now we just have to be prepared in case, but to have
hopes rather than borrowing trouble.
Our vets and Steve and I are still looking for any informative
comments on extremely large stomachs that do not function
normally, but when something is rare there often is nothing for
anyone to say.