From:
"Sukie Crandall"
Date: 2007-10-19 03:15:55 UTC
Subject: [ferrethealth] Re: New member with sad news
To: ferrethealth@yahoogroups.com
I am very sorry for your loss of Stuart.
Recently there have been what look to possibly be
several dietary related acute kidney failure cases
which are currently under investigation by Dr. Mike
Garner of NW Zoopath. When enough is known in
terms of the cause(s) the ferret community will be
informed.
One known cause of acute kidney failure in ferrets
(as well as cats and dogs) is too many raisins eaten,
so some people (including us) don't feed any of them
any longer. Dr. Tom Kawasaki has written of several
such ferrets in Ferrets Magazine.
Of course, there could be alternative causes. You said
nothing of the ferret's age, medical condition, or
background, or if an ADV test had been done.
We personally came close to losing a young male ferret
to hydronephrosis from blockage secondary to a bladder
diverticulum and cystine stones. (We also have a second
ferret who is prone to cystine stones so they have to be
on no more than 35% protein diet which works great for
them. They have been free of stones for I guess over 3
years and recently had their regular bladder x-rays.
Kidney threatening stones in ferrets can be of several
types, with struvite (alkaline pH and a need for more animal
protein and less vegetable matter in the diet), calcium
oxalate, and cystine (acidic urine and too much of any of the
four "COLA" amino acids -- cystine, ornithine, arginine, or
lysine -- in the diet so lower protein diets needed).
A more common cause of kidney threatening blockages in
male ferrets is the hormonal changes of adrenal disease
having caused enlargement of prostate.
Certainly, there are more causes than these of sudden kidney
failure, but these options do cover at least part of a well
documented range of causes that are common to not terribly
uncommon.
I sympathize with your loss.
Sukie (not a vet)
Recommended ferret health links:
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/ferrethealth/
http://ferrethealth.org/archive/
http://www.afip.org/ferrets/index.html
http://www.miamiferret.org/fhc/
http://www.ferretcongress.org/
http://www.trifl.org/index.shtml
http://homepage.mac.com/sukie/sukiesferretlinks.html
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