From:
tg830@hotmail.com
Date: 2004-09-16 15:28:20 UTC
Subject: RE: Episode changes for Boo's Insulinoma??
To: ferrethealth@smartgroups.com
Message-ID: <7990655.1095351930095.JavaMail.nobody@strontium.smartgroups.com>
First, a couple of questions.....so we can address Boo's problems as they currently stand.
How much does Boo weigh? and What dosage are you currently giving Boo?
Now, for some advice....
>From personal experience, I have two ferrets, who both had adrenal surgery after the age of 6 years. Both were back to their normal selves after a week. The male was diagnosed with Insulinoma at the time of his adrenal surgery, but they couldn't find any large Insulinoma islets to remove (too small).
If your vet is telling you your ferret is not a good candidate for surgery, it is probably because they do not want you to have that kind of financial outlay, expecting that your ferret will survive the surgery. Surgery is a risk for any animal, or person for that matter.
Remember, a ferret ages at 12 times the rate of a human. That makes your ferret about 60 years old. Your human doctor would tell you the same thing,if you were that age and having the same surgery done, there are risks involved. It is also why your ferret has such a short recovery time, 1 week is like 3 months to you and me.
Now, for the Insulinoma.....Had I known before my male's surgery that he was insulinomic, I would have done more research first about our options. Read this link about partial pancreatectomy...http://www.afip.org/ferrets/PDF/insulinoma.pdf
I've since spoken with my vet, and discussed this very course of treatment for my own ferret. Once he is fully recovered from his recent(suspected) bout with ECE, we plan on scheduling surgery.
I mention this because my vet had reservations about doing this for fear of doing more harm than good because of a possible issue with pancreatitis. But after making your vet aware of the latest research, they tend to be more open-minded to the idea of performing this kind of surgery.
You might also want to check out this link about the possible causes and treatments of Insulinoma....http://www.ferretsanonymous.com/medical/adrenal.html
Great article, very insightful and helpful. IMHO
I should also ask, is he on prednisolone tablets dissolved in water, or is he on children's PediaPred (6.7 mg/5 ml)?
>From personal experience, my ferret has had better response to the PediaPred.....it tastes better, it's in an electrolytic solution, and appears to be more effective. Again, just my opinion.
I hope you find this helpful....