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Post by horse656 on Jan 21, 2011 18:02:38 GMT -5
i'm looking into adopting a ferret(s) from the shelter and i had my eye on this GORGEOUS boy awhile ago, but was so disappointed to find out he was no longer on the adoption "list" thing, so i soon moved on to look at the recently adopted list, not finding him there i was puzzled and just left. now recently i look at the special needs list and find him there! i'm not exactly upset, but i'm extremly curious, as it says he is only 2 and has adrenal? i thought they generally only got that as they were older? but anywho, i want to know information into the care of an adrenal ferret, because i do like him and if there is a possibility of him getting adopted out to me, i would love it
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Post by miamiferret2 on Jan 21, 2011 23:04:50 GMT -5
# 1 try to get a vet to order the deslorelin implant. It should be given about every 9 months. #2 good diet. It helps a lot. Surgery usually doesn't work and the adrenal tumors always grow back. 2 yrs is young for adrenal but not impossible. Try to get a Tennessee panel. Aside from an ultrasound (which is useless if the tumors are very small) the only way to know for sure is w/ Tennessee panel. Could be another reason for hair loss: skin problems, skin allergies, rat tail, bad diet, too much vitamin A, etc. Having an adrenal ferret is not so bad as long as you have a good vet. If you can't get the vet to order deslorelin, lupron shots once a month. There is also the melatonin implant from melatek that lasts about 4 months.
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Post by Heather on Jan 21, 2011 23:30:21 GMT -5
Two years of age does seem young but I suppose it does happen, poor wee thing. I want to thank you for considering taking on this furchild, as he has as much right for a loving home as any but has a lot less of a chance of ever getting one because of this horrible disease. Adrenal ferrets don't necessarily need any special care other than their support medication or opting for surgery. My Loki had surgery when he was about 3 or 4 (before he came into my care). He went on to live a long and healthy life finally passing on to renal failure at about 8 or 9 yrs of age probably directly due to advancing adrenal disease. Pooka is my advanced adrenal right now. She's was diagnosed by symptoms about 3 years ago. The Tennessee panel is much too expensive to run up here. It's far simpler and more cost effective to make the diagnosis by symptoms. She's presently on lupron but I've ordered deslorin for her in hopes to control her IBD symptoms which seem to go with the adrenal in her case. Miamiferret2 is correct in that diet and proper timing of meds go a long way to giving them relief of the symptoms. Remember there is no cure but there are very successful methods that help keep the disease in the background and at bay. Good luck, I really congratulate you if you decide to take this little boy. He will love to get a forever home ciao
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Post by sherrylynne on Jan 21, 2011 23:42:03 GMT -5
I have 3 adrenals at present. One was supposed to have been 2 when we got her. She was showing signs then(we think, however, she was actually 4-5). Zeus and Athena were, however, both 2 years of age at diagnosis. All three are presently on lupron. Sinnead is looking at having her lupron dosage upped for the first time in 2 years.
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Post by miamiferret2 on Jan 22, 2011 10:21:23 GMT -5
The longest I've kept one going without surgery and meds only is 3 years after the *official* diagnosis, i.e. when we saw hair loss or other physical symptoms manifested. they show subtle signs way before that though. Anyway, it is do-able. I would rather deal with adrenal than lymphoma or insulinoma!!
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Post by Heather on Jan 22, 2011 15:13:24 GMT -5
Adrenal is much better than dealing with insulinoma or lymphoma, believe me . ciao
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Post by acodlin on Jan 23, 2011 2:12:40 GMT -5
I have a ferret named Auggie who we got off CL last year. When we met the people to pick him up he was in a very very tiny cage with just shredded news paper and cat litter. No water, he had almost no fur, what fur he did have was infested with fleas. That was in september. He started growing fur back on his own in december (we took him to the vets and he wanted to see if his hairloss was due to flea allergies because he also had alot of red rash spots) we ordered deslorelin for him in november and because of the holidays it took a little while to get, but mid december he got his implant. He's fat, happy and has a very thick coat of fur. When we picked him up we were told that he was 2 years old. Vet confirmed he's around 2-3. Very young for adrenal disease but still possible.
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Post by Heather on Jan 23, 2011 2:51:09 GMT -5
I'm so glad that your little one is doing so well with his implants and in his new home. Thank you for rescuing this little one. There are so many who need homes to give them that extra care, but it's a scary leap of faith to take on a ferret that you already know that has health issues. You already know that this little one is probably going to cost money (some more than others, but he's going to cost) At least when you take on these little ones, the special care ones, you already know that they're going to cost extra....not just in money....they're going to steal a big piece of your heart too . A special thank you to anyone who takes on these special ones, because they need love too. ciao
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Post by acodlin on Jan 24, 2011 20:52:10 GMT -5
One look at him and I couldn't say no. I'd spend every penny I have on my guys, they are totally worth it. Auggie is the most well mannered ferret I've got. Doesnt climb all over everything, always uses the litter box, he doesnt steal everything in sight lol. He just wants to be cuddled a little bit, explore everything, maybe a little romp with Gizmo and a nice comfy pile of fleece blankies to sleep in. He's such a good boy. Dean also is a really good ferret, he's apart of a bonded group of 7 I adopted from the humane society. He's got adrenal disease and it's been two weeks since he got his implant, that group is around 3-4 years old. I'm already seeing lots of changes in him, less aggressive and his skin looks SO much better, no hair regrowth yet but I expect that'll take a litle while longer. That whole group had health problems from the start and I knew it, but they desperately needed someone to care for them, actually FEED them (everyone of them were skin and bones) and get them some vet care. I don't see how their previous owners could let them get so bad, but they did. It broke my heart and while I only went in to adopt 1, I came home with all of them. It's alot of work but I don't regret it, I get lots of wonderful kisses and it makes me so happy to see them dance and dook, because I know that they are feeling so much better and they are happy, just like they deserve!
I'm such a sucker for animals in need! Thats why I have 4 cats, all strays.. one I even hand fed from the moment it was born, and 3 dogs, all rescues... 15 ferrets, most of them rescues (even the pet shop ones are rescues in my eyes!) I'm going to end up on one of those animal hoarder shows lol
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Post by horse656 on Jan 25, 2011 10:18:42 GMT -5
i would love to rescue all these ferrets that need help. but it would become rather expensive to feed 15 ferrets for me i do browse around on kijiji to see the ferrets for sale, just to look. yup, thats what i tell myself. i also look at the shelter ferrets. but i don't see my mom going for another ferret.
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Post by acodlin on Jan 25, 2011 19:24:31 GMT -5
Its not cheap to feed 15 thats for sure lol. I'm spending alot on meat right now trying to figure out what it is they like. I use to spend about 60 a month on kibble, I will probably spend slightly more for raw meat. Probably another 30 on litter, I'd say 40 on cleaning products a month and whatever extra goodies I want for them lol. Like today I bought another bottle of ferretone and a set of doggie steps to make it easier for them to get into their cage.. that was 36 dollars. Glad my boyfriend doesnt care what I do as long as the ferrets and I are happy lol
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Post by Heather on Jan 25, 2011 21:45:28 GMT -5
Feeding and general care is only one consideration. It's the vetting that people should consider. As much as we hate to think of our little ones ever getting sick, they do, frequently. Often the diseases that we have to care for become chronic, the treatments and the medications for those treatments expensive. When you have multiple fuzzes inevitably you find yourself treating 2, 3, 4 or more at one time. Some of those costs can be huge. It is never pleasant to have to consider who is most likely to survive and who gets the most of the treatment dollar. Can you look into a fuzzes eyes and say....I'm sorry sweety you don't get this treatment, not because I don't love you but because fuzz B is most likely to survive.....please consider this option. It's a horrible thing to have to do. I've been lucky so far I can cover my vet expenses but if you're having difficulty thinking about how to cover the costs of feeding the your fuzzes.....you're not going to be able to cover an emergency vet visit, much less multiple vet visits. ciao
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Post by sherrylynne on Jan 25, 2011 23:07:43 GMT -5
A good example of that is the fact that right now, I pay about $145 a month in just lupron for 3 of them. Sinnead's is going to be upped, so add another $40+ tax on top of that every month. And if one of them need emergency treatment, that's another $250-$1800, depending on if they need surgery or not. It adds up really fast!
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Post by Heather on Jan 25, 2011 23:51:05 GMT -5
I just ordered in 5 des shots. I shudder to think what that's going to cost me but Pooka is barely responding to the lupron (she's been adrenal now for almost 2 yrs), Sprite is looking really sad, and I'm really tired of Captain Jack doing the dirty with everyone , Lady "B" has looked really scruffy this season, never actually putting on decent coat, so I'm going to give her a shot just to see if it works. That uses up 4 of the 5 shots. Have you thought of giving your guys a des shot sherrylynne? In the long run it's cheaper. The initial hit hurts but I was considering putting it so everyone's shots were staggered out over a period of months but got a deal with the des and you take what you can when you can ciao
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Post by acodlin on Jan 26, 2011 15:25:59 GMT -5
Oh I know about the vet expenses, I've got a credit card just for them, thats 6000, care credit, another 1000, plus another 2000 in savings just for an emergency. I've spent probably 1200 in the past 3 months on sam naobi dean and auggie. Next month I'm trying to arrange it so everyone can go get a vet check all at once. My vet is about an hour and 15 minutes away from me so with school its not easy to go see him. At 44 dollars an exam plus stool samples and who knows what else, it wont be a cheap visit! I can honestly say I've probably never spent as much in my whole life with cats/dogs as I have on my ferrets this year. After inital vaccinations and spay/neuter for my cats and a once yearly health check, I usually don't have any health issues with my cats and dogs. I did have a cat who swallowed a needle and thread but aside from that mess they've all been healthy. I think all in all I'm okay to take care of them all unless some really really bad emergency happens, if it does.. I'd have to bat my eyes and beg to my father or grandmother lol, both are super animal lovers so I know they would help. My only real worry is in the event of an emergency outside normal vet office hours I'd have to still drive over an hour to the only emergency vet that treats ferrets. Sometimes you just don't have that long =/ The deslorelin is a great way to treat adrenal disease, it is cheaper, but more importantly for me atleast, I don't have to be at the vets every month. It worked great for auggie, and so far dean is alot less aggressive but still no hair regrowth =/ week 3 so far so I'm still really hoping he'll grow his fur back. If it doesnt grow back however I may consider surgery for him. The needle to inject the deslorelin is HUGE though, auggie didnt even flinch but dean cried, even after the shot was done I felt so bad for him.. Hes just now starting to get his energy back too. He was really sleepy for the first 2 1/2 weeks. He looks so pathetic, half of his hair is gone. It only took about a month from him to go from having a full coat to being mostly nakkie from the shoulders to his butt. *sigh* my poor Dean..
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