Message Number: SG7715 | New FHL Archives SearchFrom: AFERRETVET@cs.com
Date: Wed, 4 Feb 2004 20:22:08 EST
To: ferrethealth@smartgroups.com
CC: Haleyking@hotmail.com
Subject: Re: Kodo's insulinoma/ulcer/liver problem
Message-ID: <104.3ed917ce.2d52f4c0@cs.com>
Hi Haley,
2 things about your post just don't sound correct.
Teeth grinding is a response from stomach pain.
This stomach pain is usually from stomach ulcers.
(Sometimes hairballs, foreign bodies, IBD, etc can
also cause it.) Quite simply it is time to treat him for
a stomah ulcer! There is a great article on stomach
ulcers in the new FERRETS magazine (Mar/April)
by Dr Bruce Williams. Time to start using Carafate
about 10 minutes before feeding Kodo and time to just
feed him baby food or Hill's a/d instead of his kibble.
Also use the carafate about 10 minutes before Pediapred.
The liver enzymes are most likely elevated from not eating
enough! This is called fatty liver syndrome. Simply put the
ferret starts to use his body fat for energy. When too much
fat goes to the liver, it causes liver problems. Thus it is time
to feed him easy to digest food (Gerber's baby food 2nd stage
chicken or turkey, or Hill's a/d) to stop the fat from going to his
liver.
Yes, pediapred can add to the liver problem and to the stomach ulcer,
so reducing the amount is a good idea. But please monitor his glucose
closely. If his blood glucose level becomes low, he may become
nauseated and not want to eat. Not eating well will add to his fatty
liver problem.
As far as ammonia production (and hepatic encephalopathy) causing
the teeth grinding- not likely. That would be a very rare situation.
The 2 medicines (Denosyl and milk thistle) are good for liver problems,
but it sounds like Kodo's liver problem is really a lack of eating enough.
Carafate, baby food, and/or a/d are really needed to solve this problem!
Hope that helps,
Jerry Murray, DVM
Send comments to Pam at pjdutche@email.unc.edu. Please note that this address is only useful for questions about the FHL archive. Questions about ferret health, or those intended for the FHL, should be sent to the Ferret Health List.