Message Number: SG12933 | New FHL Archives Search
From: mjanke@miamiferret.org
Date: 2005-02-27 22:50:22 UTC
Subject: RE: Insulinoma
To: ferrethealth@smartgroups.com
Message-ID: <8139425.1109544622460.JavaMail.root@thallium.smartgroups.com>

Gina, every ferret is different in how they react to insulinoma. Our Beasley survived for 3.5 years with insulinoma and I never witnessed a seizure until the very end when he was nearly 7. He never had surgery and was treated with diet and pred only. It's possible he had one when I wasn't around, but as he was never unattended for more than 4-5 hours at time, I don't think so. They're usually pretty wasted after a seizure and saliva tends to make the fur around the mouth look like it has had hair gel applied and I never saw either of those things. Not exactly a scientific method, I know. :)

What do you look for? A ferret that is totally unresponsive, primarily. There may be occasional small spasms, but I've never seen any thrashing about that one might picture as accompanying a seizure. They also appear to be occasionally gasping for breath, but I think that's just part of the seizure response and they're not actually needing the air.

I don't know if he's in remission. Bob has probably just adapted to the low glucose levels. A ferret that normally has a glucose level of 80 or 90 and suddenly drops to 40 is probably going to have a seizure. Whereas ferrets with glucose levels that go down over a long period of time may not.

Beasley's levels checked very low most of the time and even then he showed no obvious symptoms. But his glucose levels were pretty steady, even if in a steady decline over time, so his body probably adapted.

Will Bob ever have a seizure? I am sure that will happen at some point in time. All you can do is be prepared for it. Know what vet you're going to call or emergency vet you're going to see and the quickest way there. These always seem to happen at night or on weekends. Have karo syrup on hand and use a q-tip to paint his gums with it until he comes around. Some say that will be in 10 minutes or so, but I've seen it take as along as an hour and a half, so don't stop too soon. I like to water the Karo down *slightly* as it seems like it just sits there unabsorbed in it's normal thick and gooey state. Be sure he gets a good meal as soon as he's able to eat.

mike

Author wrote:
> I have been reading about Insulinoma ferrets crashing and I am not sure what I should be looking for. Is it possible that Bob is in some kind of remission?