From:
Troy Lynn Eckart
Date: 2011-08-31 14:43:51 UTC
Subject: [ferrethealth] re: congestion
To: ferrethealth@yahoogroups.com
If it is actually sinus congestion, Sinupret for kids, proprietary blend of European Elder, Common Sorrel, Cowslip, European Vervain and Gentian, may be helpful. Before starting it for my group that has pasteurella, I discussed it with our vet and he thought it could be helpful. We started with 0.2 orally and have increased to 0.4 twice a day for those that continue to need it. I've used it myself for sinus congestion and it works well and quickly for me. This may be something to discuss with your vet. Several on-line health and vitamin stores carry it, and I've found the best price at amazon.com
Steaming up your bathroom and sitting in there, and/or placing a warmed cloth (I use warm water then in the microwave for a few seconds - make sure it isn't too hot though!) over the bridge of the nose for a couple minutes may be helpful if it is sinus congestion.
Spironolactone I've used in ferrets. It is a milder diuretic than lasix. With lasix the injectable has always worked better for us than the oral. Pam helped me when we were looking into using Spironolactone. I mixed a pill with water and made sure to shake it really well before drawing it up. Then mixed it with soup so they couldn't taste it. I mixed one pill at a time for the week, then tossed remainder at the end of the week and re-mixed each week. Try to get the lowest dose pills, they come in different strengths and not expensive. Lower dose meant less waste since I was tossing what was left at the end of every week. We started at 0.5 mg/kg and went up from there as needed.
I added dandelion root to recipe servings twice daily, 1/3 of a capsule, it is a gentle natural diuretic and contains potassium. Potassium needs to be monitored as lasix will deplete it.
I also added CoQ10, 10mg daily, Vit C, 50 mg daily and Vit E, 50 mg daily, mixed into recipe servings and divided throughout the day. I would take the number of daily servings in one full amount, mix in the supplements, then divide them in baby food jars for the day. Each jar was warmed before serving.
There was an article on Pimobendan in Oct 2006 Veterinary Medicine, pgs 660-668. Pimobendan (Vetmedin) is a newer drug, has good results in ferrets with dilated cardio, and is safer than digoxin.
Enacard can be hard on kidneys, Benazepril is reported to be a little safer. I've used Enacard with mixed results but in most cases we've had to make dosage adjustments.
Another concern with heart conditions is aspiration pneumonia if being syringe fed, which can cause nasal congestion as well. It's important to figure what is causing the congestion to know how to properly treat it.
tle
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