From:
lisaatty@aol.com
Date: 2007-07-02 17:25:06 UTC
Subject: [ferrethealth] Re: hind leg loss of use & incontinence
To: ferrethealth@yahoogroups.com
Thank you everyone for all the valuable feedback on Lily. I see the vet
next week for the fourth time on Lily's condition in recent weeks, and I feel I
am armed with many questions and requests. Lily was previously tested for
ADV, and the vet showed me her xray. I will ask him to look at it again and I
am going to request an ultrasound or MRI. We tried prednisone for 2 weeks
and he didn't want her to continue because it didn't seem to have helped at
all. I have been keeping her clean and comfortable and I have been massaging
her legs and doing my own version of physical therapy to give her movement in
the legs so they don't stiffen or atrophy too much. The thing that is both
encouraging and confusing is how well she seems to be doing despite complete
incontinence for both urine and fecal and very little use of her back legs.
They move a teeny bit (vet said 15% or so) but they just drag behind her as she
moves around. I haven't gotten her wheels or a cart yet as I was waiting to
see what would happen, but that will be the next step. She seems to have
adapted quite well, eats and drinks well and actually looks good. At first,
she didn't look good and that worried me and I thought she was going straight
downhill. But to my delight, she still loves to play, and now looks like a
well ferret if you don't watch her drag herself around. She has even gotten
very good at dragging herself around and has developed good upper body
strength. So maybe, whatever it is, she will be a handicapped ferret who will be
with us for a long time. I just want to make her happy and comfortable and she
seems fairly happy now. The spirit of ferrets is just amazing. Such
wonderful creatures. Her sisters have also adjusted. They sleep with her again
now, even though Lily soils the bedding. They know I will come clean
everything up, so now they cuddle with her again. It is quite precious. For those
of you who have read this far, I have a question. It haunts me somewhat that
she may have had an injury when I let them play unsupervised in their room.
They have their own dedicated bedroom, with a big six level cage, tons of
toys and it is well ferret proofed. I let them out of their cage, to be out in
their room, about 3 or more hours a day. I am in there about half the time.
I can't imagine how she injured herself, unless it was a fluke, or unless a
nail caught (possibly I let their nails get too long, although I absolutely
clip regularly). Maybe she climbed to the top of her cage and fell; she has
never climbed the cage before, although the other two sometimes do. The
question - do you let your ferrets have free unsupervised roam in a room or an
area, or are you always somewhere nearby when they are out so they don't get
into trouble?? I want to give my girls lots of daily time out, and based on
other obligations, I can't stay in their room 3 or more hours a day.......even
though I do spend *lots* of time with them. This may be a good discussion
for the group.
Thanks again. Lisa and Lily and her sisters
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