From:
sukiec@optonline.net
Date: 2003-09-08 20:48:41 UTC
Subject: RE: Adrenalectomies
To: ferrethealth@smartgroups.com
Message-ID: <2766044.1063054121543.JavaMail.root@thallium.smartgroups.com>
> 1. How old were your ferrets when their first adrenal surgery was done?
One 3 and 1/2. In her case both needed to come out and they came out fully. She is now 6 and 1/2 and has been thriving on Florinef/Fludrocort and Prednisolone daily. She is very athletic and the amount needed is not only dependent on if the adrenal glands came out cleanly (Many don't so those individuals often don't need meds.) but also on how active the individual is, with very active individuals needing more. She used to have to have her meds twice a day.
She got her's when we temporarily stopped providing a lot of true darkness; whether the resultant reduction in the natural production of melatonin was involved I don't know.
Our next youngest was 5 years old; she was also a fancy and in her case it was a maligancy which pompt surgery cured completely, so she had 3 and 1/2 more years in her future.
Most here have been between 6 or 6 and 1/2 to 8 years old at onset.
I guess that something like 25 to 30 percent of our's wind up with adrenal growths, but that is a guess and I'd have to run the numbers.
One had an atrophied adrenal but that is something like 15 years ago back when Lysodren was usedand Lysodren can do that.
Sherman who is only late in his third year is having his adrenals checked tomorrow when he has GI samples taken. His non-response to Lupron, his test results, and his long term Pred use (He is one of two we've had over the years with IBD and was a rescue with many problems as a kit.) make it more likley that his fur loss is from the Pred. His IBD is worsening recently.
> 2. Did they end up having both removed? If so, how soon after the first?
>From what I have read it sounds like this is partly dependent on if the first adrenal neoplasia was removed in a timely fashion within a few months after symptoms began or if it remained long term. I seem to hear of more malignancies and more double adrenalectomies when a ferret has waited an extended time.
Off hand I can think of only two we've had over the years who had both adrenals removed, but I may be forgetting someone. Ashling lost both at the same time. Sevie lost the second partly a few months after the first. Sevie did not need meds since enough adrenal tissue remained.
> 3. Did you have them on medication after first surgeey like Lupron?
Except for Ashling's meds we have not used meds in such a way, but now our vet is curious about a new hypothesis which involves giving low amounts of Lupron in the Spring when they would normally go into "season", so we plan to try that.
We DO provide a LOT of true darkness and the body produces its own melatonin when enough true darkness is provided: 14 or more hours per day.
> 4. Did all of their hair grow back, or just some?
Usually all. Ashling was unusual. She had a large portion of her trunk go completely bald within about a week, and she lost both adrenals. For a year and a half she did not grow fur, but then she suddenly grew it back, but more thinnly than before. Now any time she is under emotional or physical stress she drops fur from those areas.
We've had ferrets in the family for 21 years, usually with 4 to 7 at a time so you have a feeling for how many ferrets have been here.