From:
daneedv@aol.com
Date: 2002-06-22 09:53:00 UTC
Subject: Mosby - Insulinoma
On Monday, my Mosby will have a second surgery for insulinoma. I do think it
is the best thing to do at this time, but I am becoming increasingly worried
about the outcome. As the time draws closer, I am starting to think there is
more wrong, and that he may not come through. I am not sure if I am just
being paranoid, or if there is reason for my concern.
Here is the history (sorry, it is long).
Mosby is a 6 year old late alter ferret. About a year ago, after having no
symptoms of insulinoma, we found him comatose on a Sunday evening. We
revived him with Kayro, and the nest morning had a BG test done at the vet's
office. He had surgery a week later, and several large nodules were found on
his pancreas and removed.
He recovered quickly, and returned to normal.
In March, I noticed he was slowing down, so we had his BG checked after a 3
hour fasting - it was 85, so I did not immediately start him on medication.
Within a few weeks, though, he was staggering like he was drunk, and so,
after consulting with my vet, he started on a low dose of Pediapred (dosed at
1/6 ml of pred per lb.) once a day. He immediately perked up.
Recently, he started staggering again, and on June 13 we went back to the
vet. We did a non fasting BG, and it was 82. While that is not bad, my vet
did think increasing the pred was appropriate, given his symptoms. He gave
me instructions for how to increase it in several steps. Initially, we
doubled the dose, but gave it twice a day, so he was getting the same amount,
but twice. There was improvement after 24 hours, but then he regressed, and
I again increased the dose.
By last Monday, I was concerned the pred alone wasn't going to do it, and
after talking with my vet, we decided to try a second surgery, since none of
the actual pancreas had been removed. The earliest they could schedule it
was this coming Monday.
So, for the last few days, I have been trying to keep Mo as comfortable as
possible. Each day, I have increased the dose a little, until he is now at a
maximum dose. He always appears to be drunk, which I know can be due to a
low BG. Because I work full time, I am unable to be here to make sure he
eats every few hours, and I suspect he is not eating on his own. I do feed
him baby food with his pred, which he eats willingly. But he has lost some
weight this week. Fortunately, he was a bit plump before this, so he is still
a good weight. His poops are also now small, and like pudding. However, if
he is only eating the baby food he gets with his medicine, that could be why.
My biggest fear is that he has cancer, and it has spread. My reason for
this is that he does not seem to respond to the pred like we had hoped.
Currently, I am planning to take Monday off, so I can stay at the vet's
office while the surgery is done, so if things are bad, I can decide whether
or not to let him go. Fortunately, my vet is very experienced with ferrets,
and I trust his ability. It is Mosby's condition I question.
Has anyone else had a similar experience? Am I being to paranoid, or do my
concerns sound reasonable?
Since I am home this weekend, I am trying to feed him a little baby food
every few hours, and hope that may bring about some improvement. Meanwhile,
I am preparing to say good-bye, just in case.
Anyone wishing to comment on this should do so to the list. I have a block
on my email address, so only mail from people I normally correspond with can
write directly to me.
Thanks.
Danee [Unable to display image]
ADV - If your ferret hasn't been tested, you don't know!
For more information visit http://www.geocities.com/russiansmom
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