From:
sanquatre
Date: 2002-05-03 21:43:00 UTC
Subject: Insulinoma complicatoins?
I'm worried about Mystik.. She's started acting funny since a couple
days ago. She is six now.. so I don't know if she is just getting old
or what. Mystik has cataracts so I don't think she can see at all
anymore and she has insulinoma. She is on prednisone to regulate her
blood sugar and to keep her tumor subsided as me and the vet
concluded surgery wouldn't be the best option for her. She wanders
around rooms aimlessly, more so than usual, which is why I've
concluded she can no longer see anything. She will just bump her head
against things as she isn't cautous at all and it doesn't seem to
hurt her. I don't know what to do to help her with this.. Now,
though, she will often just stop in a corner and just seem to stare
at it or space out, not even laying down all the way when she does
this. When I hold her she gets all squirmy like normal and then when
I put her down she will run around for a time then just go and space
out again. In her cage she has been just standing in her litter box
doing this, really not seeming to care if she gets nastiness on her
feet. This I don't understand at all.. Is she disoriented, sick,
bored, frustrated, scared, unable to go to the bathroom? She has also
been digging up her litter, something she's never done before, well
not since she was a baby. Is that just a sign or boredom? I try to
let my fers out so they will be happy, but I know they often don't
get out as much as they'd like.. Meeko, Mystik's life long room mate,
will throw their food and water bottles around when he doesn't get
the freedom and attention he wants, so I don't know if Mystik is
upset and that is why she is acting so strange. Is that something
that happens to blind ferrets? They get depressed and disoriented or
something? I will do my best to let them out more.. play with them
more.. see if that helps her. Since she has insulinoma I'm wondering
if her blood sugar has been getting too low frequently and she needs
more medicine. A few times in the past couple days she has seemed to
have needed extra sugar as she ran out of energy. If she doesn't
start acting better by the end of the week I'll take her to the vet.
I'm just really hoping that the medicine hasn't stopped working for
her.. The way she's acting has just been strange.. When I hold her
she seems just fine usually and wants to get down, but then often
she'll just go and run into a corner or something. Earlier she went
and stuffed her head into my shoe twice and stayed there till I went
and picked her up. I held her for awhile then she wanted down but
right after she went and put her head into the shoe again. Didn't lay
down, just basically stood there with her head in the shoe.. When
ferrets get older do they just get tired more easily and act weird or
something? Meeko is the same age as her, but he seems perfectly fine,
acting the same as he did when he was like one. He can see, though,
and has no medical problems like Mystik does.. I just don't know
what's up with her. One minute I'm thinking oh she's just fine now
and acting all normal then she's all weird again like there is
something wrong with her.. Just want her to be okay... Right now she
is sleeping fine in here with me. I've tried to think of many things
as to why she's been acting odd.. Maybe the detergent I used to
washed her hammock is irritating her.. Maybe she needs some laxative
because she is having bathroom problems.. Maybe she just needs to be
out of her cage more.. Maybe she just needs a bit more medicine each
day.. Maybe she needs more stimulous.. I don't know.. She seems to do
better when Meeko is out playing with her.. so I have tried to keep
them together as much as possible. Maybe she is just insecure and
scared. Just wish I knew how to help her.. I have been looking at
Timmy's Tonic homeopathic mecicine that can be ordered from
TheFerretStore.com and wondered if I could give it to Mystik while
she is also on prednisone or if that would bad and I should just do
one or the other..