From:
"Julie_Fossa"
Date: 2007-08-24 21:01:41 UTC
Subject: [ferrethealth] Re: cardiomyopathy
To: ferrethealth@yahoogroups.com
Hi Heather,
I feel cardiomyopathy is fairly common in our pet ferrets. Four out
of my nine have symptoms. Each case is a little different, and even
if they have the same form (dilative versus hypertropic) they can
progress differently and respond to medication differently.
One of the most basic of medications used for cardiomyopathy is
furosemide (Lasix). If you research this medication online, you can
learn much about how it works to achieve the desired effect -to pull
fluids out of the body. Furosemide is considered a 'dose to effect'
drug. It is very safe, even at very high doses.
Furosemide is dosed at 2 mg/kg 2-3 times a day in a couple of my vet
texts, however the first Ferrets, Rabbits and Rodents recommends 1-4
mg/kg 2-3 times a day. Furosemide works to pull fluids out of the
tissues and pass it out through the kidneys. Here is another post I
sent a year ago, with a link for more information from an excellent
website.
http://ferrethealth.org/archive/SG18257
I still have Valentine, almost a year after the above message was
sent, and although we have had to continually increase his dose of
furosemide, he is still thriving. He is currently getting 60mg a
day, in split doses, depending on need. While that is an enormous
dose, the alternative of not increasing it would have been a mercy
shot.
What I have successfully done when I have a ferret with the wet
breathing sounds is to give an additional dose every 2-3 hours until
their lungs sound clear. If I find I'm having to give the furosemide
more than 3-4 times a day to keep them breathing, I will increase the
dose a little (by 0.1 or 0.2 ml of the 10mg/10ml strength)until the
dose is once more effective. (they become tolerant to the med)
Sometimes Valentine will go a long time without needing a medication
adjustment, other times I have to adjust it quite often. The things
you have to watch for when they are on high doses of furosemide are
dehydration, loss of appetite, or lethargy. With an older ferret,
especially a male, make sure he is able to empty his bladder.
At this geriatric age, we just want to keep them comfortable. I
never dreamed Valentine would still be with me this long, based on
how much trouble he had with his heart, early on. Giving a high
enough dose of furosemide to keep his lungs clear has afforded him
quality of life for well over a year, now.
I hide all Valentine's medications in his soup, which I dilute so he
gets more fluids, and he eats every drop. This removes the stress of
having medications given by syringe.
I do not know if your little ferret is in pain. Usually you can tell
by their squeaks and groans, or see it in their eyes. Valentine has
been on a pain med for the last month or so for overall discomfort
(walking), not necessarily his heart.
I'm sure you and your vet will be able to figure out how much
furosemide it will take to keep your senior ferret comfortable. You
can also inquire about pain meds if he is bothered by other
conditions, such as arthritis (do ferrets get arthritis? why else
would their little toes grow crooked?).
Good luck,
Julie
--- In ferrethealth@yahoogroups.com, "Heather" <standingoak@...>
wrote:
>
I have a 7 or 8 yr old ferret (rescue) who has been diagnosed with
cardiomyopathy. He's presently on Furosemide 2mg TID and Vetmedin
1.25, one quarter capsule BID. He was originally put the Furosemide
BID but it has recently been increased to TID. When he was first
given these meds his quality of life increased by huge amounts, the
swelling lessened and he was more active.
> He's once again swelling up (lower abdomen mostly but you can also
see some swelling in his upper torso as well) Is there anything else
that we can do to help him? His respiration is shallow with
occasional gurgling (this concerns me) and his heart rate is too
rapid to count (nothing we've given him seems to slow this) ...
> I know he's living on borrowed time but is there anything else we
can give him that might ease the fluid build up, thus relieving some
of the pressure on his heart? ..., are they in pain with this? I
will not keep stuffing him with meds (which he hates) if all I'm
doing is prolonging his suffering....
> PS I am working with my vet on this but she has limited knowledge
about ferrets. She has taken courses to upgrade her knowledge about
ferrets but is still very much in learning mode. All the pertinent
information that I get through this message will be forwarded to her.
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