From:
Linda Iroff
Date: 2003-02-18 22:26:48 UTC
Subject: pred dosage for lymphoma
To: Ferret Health List <ferrethealth@smartgroups.com>
Message-ID: <2147483647.1045589208@[10.0.1.24]>
I have been babysitting for Howie off and on for the last several months
while his dad has been on business trips. Howie is a 6ish year old MF male.
In December, Howie was diagnosed with lymphoma. Biopsies were NOT done, but
he had large lumps on both sides of the neck, arm pits, in front of rear
legs and a golf ball sized lump in his abdomen. NONE of these had been
noticed when I sat for him a month before.
The vet prescribed 2 mg/kg twice a day for 10 days, then drop to 1 mg/kg
twice a day. Some initial shrinking of the tumors was noticed, but they
have been growing again.
Anyway, all that is background. I'm babysitting again, and owner was
delayed an extra 2 weeks in Europe. Howie is almost out of Pediapred, so I
called the vet on Saturday to have him call in a prescription to the local
drug store. When I went to pick it up, the dosage on the bottle was for 5
mg twice a day. (Howie weighs about 2.75 lbs.) I called the office to
verify the change in dose, but the vet is at a conference in LV until the
end of the week. The other vet in the office verified that 5mg twice a day
was how it had been written on Howie's chart. She recommended I go to that
dosage. She is newly out of vet school and not ferret experienced.
I've not heard of such a high dose of pred for ferrets. Is it ok to give
him that much?
Linda Iroff
Oberlin OH