From:
katharine@nettally.com
Date: 2004-05-27 15:17:18 UTC
Subject: Re: Nutritional Needs/Update
To: ferrethealth@smartgroups.com
Message-ID: <7774801.1085671038176.JavaMail.root@thallium.smartgroups.com>
I think we know/surmise a little more now. My vet has put Kingsley on Pediapred and Clavamox. The pred was a total miracle. By the next morning, he started eating voraciously. I am not having to syringe feed him at all now. We should start seeing some weight gain, given the quantity he's consuming. He seems to favor a soup diet and is not eating kibble as far as I can tell. So, I have moved to a little healthier diet; A/D, ground kibble, Pedialyte, Dyne, and Ferretone. I spoke with Hill's this morning. Their N/D (cancer) diet was recommended. Unfortunately, they only make a canine version. Hill's recommended A/D as the closest feline diet.
I talked with the vet who did the original surgery. She gave us her opinion and my local vet concurs with her. When the prepucial mass was removed in December, a swollen lymph node was also removed. It came back as metastatic adenocarcinoma. That lead us to believe that the original mass was indeed malignant, not benign as the vet school had originally said. It is felt that what we are seeing now is that the cancer has probably gotten into his GI tract. That would account for his wasting. Both vets agree that Clavamox and Pred are the way to go. Surgery would not be helpful.
So, I will continue to feed him, monitor his weight, and look out for his overall comfort for as long as he has. That's about all we can do now.