From:
ferretgm
Date: 2007-11-16 01:02:27 UTC
Subject: [ferrethealth] Ripper - Not a blockage, but close
To: ferrethealth@yahoogroups.com
Ripper was improving but still in a lot of pain. I took him to another vet intending to get an ultrasound.
We had a full blood chemistry, and everything was perfect except he looked anemic. His glucose, WBC, etc., were all fine. Then we had the ultrasound.
During the ultrasound, she said that the section of intestine coming down from the stomach was thick and not moveable like it should have been, and suspected it was a foreign body, or that the two glands/lymph nodes (sorry, I forget) that sit outside the stomach on either side of the large intestine where it attaches to the stomach could have been enlarged -- they block off the food from entering into the intestine.
I asked her to go ahead and do the surgery, because waiting wouldn't do any good for either option. Also a factor in going ahead was that she said he was in so much pain that she could tell that it hurt him when she palipated his abdomen even while under the partial sedation they give for the ultrasound.
As it turns out, it was the inflamation of those two glands. She basically debulked them, and said that he should do much better now. Illness of a couple of sorts (I forget which ones) could cause them to swell, and then they just stay swollen sometimes.
That was the reason the stomach was so huge -- the food couldn't go down into the intestine, so it just sat there. Contrary to the other vet's x-ray interpretation, she said she didn't think the stomach lining was thickened. Actually, she thought it was thin, because the stomach had been stretched so much.
Ripper was also, she said, very fat. There was a lot of fat in his abdomen, and it was holding everything kind of apart, which didn't help. It had actually made his liver rounder instead of triangular.
I can absolutely assure you that he got the same diet as all the other ferrets, and *none* of them are overwieght. I have also gone back and looked at pictures of him, and he didn't have any belly at all even six months ago. I *think* that when his stomach got so stretched, it caused a vicious circle: he was really full, then the food would finally make its way down, then he'd have to eat even more to feel full the next time. I think that's what's caused the weight gain. It didn't help that the pain probably kept him from the long romps up and down the stair in my apartment building (he hadn't wanted to go for about a month, and went less than usual for a while before that).
She recommends that he get only kibble from now until he loses all that weight, and that he should have ZuPreem and Marshall's. I asked her about wysong, and she'll look at it for me. No more baby food for him. God, he is going to *hate* that - it's his favorite thing - but it's the best. I feel very, very guilty. I swear that the vets I've had for the past 10 years have told me it was a perfectly acceptable thing to give them.
Ripper is going to have to be confined to a cage without any ramps for at least 7 days. Poor baby! He's going to be so miserable! But maybe he'll be recovering and it won't be as bad as I hope.
He's going to be on amoxi, clavamox, pet tinic (for the anemia), and some pain meds. I get to pick him up tomorrow afternoon, and his follow-up will be in 2 weeks.
Thank you, especially to Sukie and Patti, for the suggestions. I would never have thought to get an ultrasound without you, Sukie, and Patti, you helped me to be a little more open to surgery. Ripper and I are very grateful.
---------------------------------
Be a better sports nut! Let your teams follow you with Yahoo Mobile. Try it now.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Yahoo! Groups Links
<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ferrethealth/
<*> Your email settings:
Individual Email | Traditional
<*> To change settings online go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ferrethealth/join
(Yahoo! ID required)
<*> To change settings via email:
mailto:ferrethealth-digest@yahoogroups.com
mailto:ferrethealth-fullfeatured@yahoogroups.com
<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
ferrethealth-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/