From:
Melissa Litwicki
Date: 2003-08-18 23:31:59 UTC
Subject: Had Puff euthanized today
To: ferrethealth@smartgroups.com
Message-ID: <Pine.BSO.4.51.0308181858150.3004@naughty.monkey.org>
Hi,
Puff rapidly declined last night and this morning, and I took her back to
the vet for hospitalization. They gave her dextrose-laced IV fluids, fed
her small amounts, and took an xray. Based on her lack of response - in
fact, continuing decline - to the fluids and food, and the presence of
unidentifiable masses in the xray, as well as the fact that she appeared
to be in considerable pain, I decided to have her euthanized.
While it was obvious that the only thing that could have answered our
questions about her condition was an exploratory, it was not clear from
the xray that it would have been a successful surgery, as we couldn't tell
what even needed to be gone in after. The necropsy showed an infected,
abscessed lymph node that had drained into the abdomen, as well as several
large hairballs in her stomach, and three large insulinomas in her
pancreas. In addition, her lungs showed some fibrous thickening, and
there was some mottling on her kidneys (although the vet felt this could
have just been post-mortem changes).
The decision to euthanize Puff was absolutely not easy, and the necropsy
results don't necessarily reassure me that I did the right thing.
However, after Puff's splenectomy/insulinoma surgery last year, she had
such a painful and long recovery that, given her starting condition, and
the possibility of it being a malignancy, that I could not agree to put
her through that process again. The vet noted that the stomach incision
would had to have been 1-2" in order to get all the hairballs, and the
condition of Puff's lungs might have contributed to problems with
anaethesia. She did not feel Puff would've responded well to surgery or
recuperated well with the abdominal abscess. However, it bugs me that the
hairballs and insulinomas were very treatable issues.
I am not sure, and the vet could not answer, what the cause of the
infected and abscessed lymph node was. If anyone can provide some
information on that, it would be much appreciated.
Thanks,
Melissa
End of ferrethealth Digest
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