From:
sukiec@optonline.net
Date: 2005-04-01 19:20:56 UTC
Subject: RE: Cookie''s ruptured cornea
To: ferrethealth@smartgroups.com
Message-ID: <3817985.1112383256990.JavaMail.root@thallium.smartgroups.com>
I think that in your situation I woukld search out a veterinery ophthalmologist. If there is not one close enough to go to then you could find one to be a consultant for your vet. The result might be other possible treatments which are too new for your vet to know about them yet, or perhaps a new eye removal technique which is easier and safer but which also is not yet known by most vets. Most clinical vets have to keep up as best they can on information about many species, and they have to keep up on aspects fo medicine that human physicians -- who specialize more -- don't have to know, so to find the latest it tends to be wise to track down specialists at univeristies and practises. Because of the need of breeders fo some types of dogs which tend toward eye problems and need to be tested for them before showing, the dog show community can also be a way to track down vet ophthalmologists.
There are profressional veterinary ophthalmological associations and I will try to find their URLs for you (since I found them recently when trying to contact a professional to help someone else) and then post them here for you.
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If I could address one aspect of your message: this is yet another reason why it is important to know that there is no reason to think that ferrets get "colds"
The typical rhinovirus cause of colds in humans is not a virus ferrets can get (See pasat posts from veterinary pathologist, Dr. Bruce Williams, and see resources like _Biology and Diseases of the Ferrets_ which has an extensive content of diseases ferrets can share with humans for researchers yet is notably lacking mention of teh common cold, a major money maker for which pharmaceuticals would not at all mind have another easily handled animal model.
When there is dittering it seems to happen for two reasons: one is that people often use the word "cold" for any minor upper respiratory infection no matter what the cause. The other is because there are some other possible viral causes of colds and we don't know if ferrets might be able to get some of those, but we also have no reason to think that they DO get them.
There are two things ferrets commonly get that look like colds. One is a mild case of influenza, but the closer mimic is a bacterial sinus infection. It is very common for humans to get bacterial sinus infection and think that they have colds, but then have to go to the physician when the disease continues past a week or two, and be put on antibiotics because instead of a cold there is a bacterial sinus infection.
Both bacterial sinus infections and influenza can at times develop into more serious disease than a cold can in us, and those infections -- which are zoonotic with ferrets meaning that both humans and ferrets can get them -- can also end up with more serious infections with ferrets. That is the most common reason to need to know that there is no reason to think that ferrets get colds: to be wary enough to jump fast when a respiratory infection becaomes dangerous.
If a person does search in the FHL Archives at
http://fhl.sonic-weasel.org for the statements of Dr. Bruce Williams, who as a veterinary pathologist and ferret pathology expert has the right background to know this best, that person will also note a third reason that it is important to know this bit of information, and that is that sadly there have been deaths of ferrets who were given inappropriate over the counter medications for colds.