From:
"gilbertd99"
Date: 2009-07-19 09:36:53 UTC
Subject: [ferrethealth] Badger died on July 1, 2009 LONG
To: ferrethealth@yahoogroups.com
I had previously posted about him concerning the wasting area above his hips.
Badger had progressed to weak hind legs, no interest in playing, and a real noticeable lack of hind leg coordination before I took him to the vet. Also every time I picked him up I felt that his abdomen was really warm to the touch.
The day before I took him to the vet he was not interested in eating his food so I fed him the baby food chicken that we have on hand and gave him pedialyte.
I got an appt. with the vet and she ran his blood work and did the fasting glucose which was 50 so she was certain he had Insinuloma.
Bloodwork showed he had Helicobacter. So she said he would need the meds for that but taking the meds for Insinuloma would not be conducive to each other. I guess the prednisone counteracts the antibiotic?
She had left the exam room and while I was holding him he began this strange shaking. Not the usual ferret shaking until the metabolism kicks in upon waking kind either. So I yelled for her and she looked at him. While he was put on the table the top of his head did the movement like when you can feel your jaw own moving but we could see this on him! She said that was a precusor to seizures. And I informed her that he had been doing that over the past several months but only a few times that I saw.
Something made me ask, "so if I give him all of the meds will he last 3 or 4 days or longer?" To which she began shaking her head as soon as I said the "3". I've never ever asked such a question of any of my pets. God must have intervened.
She said given the fact that he had lost weight, the insinuloma and helicobacter it would be best to let him go. So I had the task of informing my husband while he was at work!! He immediately started crying on the phone and was rightfully shaken. We decided to give Badger the dignified death he deserved since we didn't have the money for treatment and he may die shortly anyway.
So he is gone. And now I'm watching his litter mate seem to suffer the same fate. Rascal was healthy and fat although not overweight when Badge left us and now he is getting that wasting look to him. He'd been sleeping a lot which I think was depression over the loss of his brother. Now he has stopped eating his Zupreem food and I'm giving him Pepto Bismal and baby food because about 3 days ago hubby said he had seen diarrhea in the cage. That has cleared up thank goodness.
Tomorrow I will pulverise his kibble in the blender and add it to the baby food. I may add a scrambled egg as we tried that yesterday and he ate it!
I'll call the vet and see if she will prescribe meds without a visit but I already know the answer to that.
I was just diagnosed with Asthma exacerbation, bronchitis and ear infection so what little money we could have scrounged for a vet trip was spent on me. It is 4:40 cst and I'm up cuz I'm having trouble breathing and coughing despite the meds.
Thank you for listening I just had to talk to someone who would understand. Dawn
[Dawn,
See if you can arrange something with the vet such
as paying on time, or doing some work in exchange
for the testing. Just as with your asthma, there are
ferret problems that can be much more easily treated
if they are caught early.
In past posts there will be info on ways to help with
costs and there is info elsewhere, too. See:
http://www.smallanimalchannel.com/ferrets/ferret-health/paying-vet-bills-for-ferrets-in-a-tight-economy.aspx
http://www.miamiferret.org/financial_aid.htm
A news article had resources mentioned in the article:
http://www.creditcards.com/credit-card-news/pet-care-veterinary-financing-options-1267.php
http://www.animalfriendsrescue.org/financialassistance.html
http://www.help-a-pet.org/
http://ferrethealth.org/archive/FHL2775
Be sure to copy the complete URLs or the links
will not work.
There are people who have given up ferrets with
whatever they can afford to donate (often time
helping out) to shelters so that the ferrets could
get the care they need, though not all shelters
are well enough funded now.
-- Moderator]
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