From:
momad30044@aol.com
Date: 2002-06-03 04:11:00 UTC
Subject: Undiagnosed illness...
We've had our ferret, Veil, for about 4 years and she's always been perfectly
healthy. About two months ago, she developed diarrhea. It wasn't horrible,
but didn't hold it's shape and was kind of a golden color, sweet smelling and
birdseedy. She was eating an 8 in 1 ferret food with a bit of Ferretone. I
removed the Ferretone from her diet thinking that might be part of the
problem. She continued with the icky poop. We took her to the ferret doc
and she said ECE was a possibility. She did fecal tests which all came back
normal. We put her on chicken baby food along with her dry food. Weeks pass
and she seems to be shedding an abnormal amount. She usually gets "rat tail"
at the change of seasons, but this time her entire coat from the shoulders
down seemed to be getting thinner. A return trip to the vet. The vet said
that adrenal disease is always a possibility with hair loss, but usually it's
located more over the hips and that her vulva would most likely be swollen.
She's hesitant to do surgery when she's unsure. She said to continue making
sure she's eating well and call again in a few weeks. Her hair is growing in
thicker again except for a small patch on her back, but the poop remains
loose. As she's been itchy, the doc recommended Benadryl twice a day. Any
other possibilities or suggestions? We'd like to get this cleared up for
her.
Debbie