From:
"Tressie"
Date: 2008-11-18 02:23:20 UTC
Subject: [ferrethealth] Re: No idea what's going on here...
To: ferrethealth@yahoogroups.com
Hi Kelsey,
It sounds like you've been through an emotional shredder these past few
months. It can be very frustrating and gut wrenching when we don't
know what might be going on with our beloved little fuzzbutts.
I am assuming that when the vet did the surgery since everything else
looked fine he didn't take any additional biopsies of other organs or
the intestines?
Some things to consider is that he's had at least one bacterial
infection that you are aware of and has been treated for - he might not
have resistance to natural bacteria present in raw meat. I am not
intending to get embroiled in the pros and cons of a raw meat diet,
only to say that his particular system may not tolerate the bacteria
present in raw meat.
You also mention that he has allergies, which might suggest EGE. Its
not that common but I have one 5 year-old with it. Certainly the off
and on again abnormal stool is typical of EGE. The need to adjust or
change diet is also part of the clinical picture with EGE since these
guys become intolerant of particular foods after a while and the search
begins again to find something they will tolerate. Frustrating,
difficult but not impossible to manage. Unfortunately, the only
definitive diagnosis is through biopsies.
You did say the pathology report confirmed malignancy but not the type,
stage or primary site. That would be important to know to get the
bigger picture. I've worked in the oncology field for a number of
years and what often happens is that everything that goes wrong gets
attributed to the cancer. In truth, even someone with cancer gets the
flu. In other words, the malignancy may be causing the symptoms you
are seeing or it may not.
Prednosone is part of the treatment for IBD, as it is for EGE. My
personal preference is for prednisolone because it skips that extra
step the liver has to go through to convert it. Pred does help but so
much depends on the individual ferret, concommittant disease and so
on. Dose may need to be adjusted accordingly.
Take a deep breath, you know more than you think you do. IF it is EGE
changing diet is a good thing to do. For now I would also suggest
eliminating all raw food and see if it makes a difference, that is, if
the original infection has cleared up. Let's just pretend that he does
not tolerate the bacteria in the raw food, if he continues eating it
even with antibiotics its not going to clear his system.
The whole picture requires detective team work - you and your vet. You
know your fuzzkid, his habits, his ups and downs, his day to day
history. Your vet has the medical knowledge and savy to help him.
You also have the benefit of the wealth of knowledge and breadth of
experience of the members of the FHL, past and present. You aren't
alone.
Tressie
--- In ferrethealth@yahoogroups.com, "Kelsey" <kelseyjosine@...> wrote:
>
> I'm just feeling like the worst is what's going on right now. ...it
might be healthy poop, and the next it's weird and gross. ... Well
Willy is on prednisone, so if it was IBD,
> wouldn't it be helping?
>
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