From:
Julie Fossa
Date: 2006-09-03 03:07:05 UTC
Subject: [ferrethealth] Biaxin and Amoxi, Carafate and Hairballs
To: HealthList Ferret <ferrethealth@smartgroups.com>
Dale,
I lost a recent email about Amoxi and Biaxin through the junk folder and couldn't retrieve it, so if it was from you, I deeply apologize for not responding.
Do you have him on a gentle food such as Gerber turkey or Chicken? A good mix is 2 jars Gerber meat to 1 can of Hills AD. Thin with water and warm each meal before using. I add in liquid vitamins called Pet Tinic -now called Pet Tabs- and if he can tolerate sugar, Dyne, to help boost calories. I usually only use Dyne with terminal ferrets to buy them a little time.
I have had some ferrets that did not benefit from Carafate/sucralfate until I greatly increased both the dose and the wait time before feeding. (10 minutes is just not long enough) Carafate is a very safe med. I have given as much as 2.50 mls in a single dose already (with my vet's blessing) and waited an hour before feeding for a couple of ferrets with very poor ability to empty the stomach (their stomachs were huge). You can consistently use this dose, if necessary, as long as your vet will give you a script for enough medication.
Be sure to use Carafate before every feeding, and continue to use for at least a month.
The Biaxin and Amoxi dose is:
Amoxi -0.7 mL daily
Biaxin -2.0 mL daily
I find it is easier (less stressful) to split the dose and hide it in their soup. They don't mind it at all. You need to be sure to give the pred in food, too, so it doesn't upset the stomach. I add it to the same soup. I've had great results splitting the Amoxi and Biaxin dose. Be sure to keep the Amoxi refrigerated and do NOT refrigerate the Biaxin. Room temp only!
I have had a few ferrets that were sick enough that I had to take them through a second 14 days of Amoxi and Biaxin.
The ferrets that I have had that did not respond satisfactorily to the Amoxi and Biaxin had the following problems:
-several had hairballs in their stomachs. They are in pain almost constantly. Hairballs CAN move around and cause intermittent problems OR can move into the exit causing a total blockage. I've seen hairballs completely fill the stomach. If their stomachs get empty, they grind so badly you cannot get anything into them. Their stool resembles a melted hershey kiss. You can help give them a little relief by mixing 1 mL of Pepto and 1 mL of sweet heavy cream together and giving that a drop at a time until you get it into them. An easy way to mix the Pepto and cream is in a 3 mL syringe, with 1 mL of Pepto drawn into it, then draw 1 mL of the cream. Roll it between your hands to mix and warm. Give by drops if necessary, but get it into him. If he is AT ALL a candidate for surgery, I'ld look for a hairball.
I had a 7 year old female surrendered that I was losing and made a last ditch effort to save her by exploratory surgery. We found 4 hairballs in her stomach, she made a rapid recovery, and went on to live around 2 more years.
-another ferret that didn't respond to the Amoxi/Biaxin combo had lymphoma of the stomach.
-another ferret that didn't respond had a constriction at the exit of the stomach. Vet gently 'sliced' the constriction until food would pass. She did improve, but something else took her shortly after that.
-two other ferrets had severely enlarged stomachs that wouldn't empty (no output/no imput so suspected a hairball/blockage). They needed Carafate until the ulcers healed, but needed Reglan to push the food through their systems for the rest of their lives. The contra-indication for Reglan is a blockage, so in order to use that med, your vet may want to open him to make sure there isn't a blockage anywhere.
Good luck and let me know how he is doing?
Julie
Julie Fossa
FL (772)228-9067 winters
OH (419)225-8383 summers
West Central Ohio Ferret Shelter
http://www.wcofs.org
International Ferret Congress
http://ferretcongress.org/
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