From:
"Sukie Crandall"
Date: 2008-03-02 16:34:25 UTC
Subject: [ferrethealth] Re: A vet's thought's on adrenal therapy
To: ferrethealth@yahoogroups.com
Just a quick comment: we like both, and choose depending
on what the vet advises for the particular ferret and what we
feel comfy with.
AND a question that is important to a choice for us:
***Is a ferret who has had a seroma next to an incision more
likely to do that again with later surgeries.***
WE REALLY NEED TO KNOW THAT.
***Also, are albinos more prone to serious skin cysts? The
only two large ones of any type that we have encountered
have been in albinos, both ventrally.***
Lupron depot, melatonin implant, or Lupron depot AND
melatonin implant after adrenal surgery might prevent the
other gland from later kicking up -- though in Whizbang's
case that approach does not seem to have done the trick.
Whizzie actually gets happier with adrenal growths and is
someone who becomes very nurturing. Another albino we
had in the past was like that, too, except that she also
adopted my toes as kits and would not only groom them
but also try to stash them into safe nest spots. Whiz also
is getting a slightly enlarged vulva again and a more
hormonal and sweetish scent. The sweet aspect worries me.
Years ago I had a good nose for detecting malignancy, but
no longer; however, one component of the smell is sweetness.
Her other adrenal that came out was just benign hyoperplasia
and the right appeared normal (but that does not always
mean that it is).
Our choice will be affected by Whizbang having had a seroma
next to her incision the last time. The tissue gave out due to
the seroma (stitches still intact) and we wound up participating
in a pre-dawn emergency surgery when she lost many red ropes
of omentum and finally began having intestine protrude (just
after arrival at the vet hospital). Details are in the FHL Archives.
That is a risk factor we prefer to avoid if she is at a greatly
increased chance of doing it again.
Usually we have had great results with surgery, but I do have to
add that a hefty proportion of the ferrets we have had with
adrenal problems wound up as bilaterals down the line. In that
case we usually go with Fludrocort and Prednisolone, but one
who had IBD needed Percorten and Prednisolone because he
simply passed the oral Fludrocort too rapidly.
Once we had a ferret who could not have all of the tissue removed
from her right adrenal since it had grown right into her Vena Cava
but she lacked enough collateral circulation to ligate that vein safely,
so although she was a bilateral she retained enough adrenal tissue to
not need Fludrocort and Prednisolone. She also later regrew enough
from the adrenal tissue left behind to need it controlled with Lupron
depot and melatonin implant.
Our own rate of adrenal growths over the quarter century plus that
we have had ferrets has been about 1/3rd of them. We had a clump
once a few years after we had not been able to provide them with
constant access to very dark locations. Right now we are a few years
after another time when a different health problem also prevented
our being able to provide constant access to very dark locations.
Basically, what we do depends mostly on the individual. We view the
options as options mostly, but when surgery is safe enough we usually
preferentially go for that due to past good experiences with it, but we
think of the things as options/alternatives when something else is
better suited for the individual, as might be the case for Whizbang.
That's just us.
Any seroma answers, PLEASE?
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