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Post by bluemoose on Jan 20, 2011 23:29:11 GMT -5
I realize there's no exact answer to this question but approximately how long does a ferret need to eat a low quality food to develop insulinoma? I realize there's probably a large range depending on the individual ferret and just how bad it's diet is but I'm just curious for an idea.
I'm just asking because I saw an ADORABLE ferret with badger looking markings today on CL that I'm trying to resist and it got me wondering if I got an older ferret what the chances are it would already have health problems from a poor diet.
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Post by Heather on Jan 20, 2011 23:35:20 GMT -5
I don't know what the actual breakdown would be. I can tell you out of 30 ferrets of various ages....I've dealt with one, Calypso. She wasn't very old, about 4 or 5 when she was diagnosed, 6 or 7 when she passed on. I've had ferrets that have come to me as old as 9 and as young as 18 months. Maybe, I've been very lucky, I don't know. ciao
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Post by justahannah on Jan 21, 2011 2:58:50 GMT -5
Ovana's been my only experience with insulinoma, she was about 3.5 when I adopter her and her previous owner had her on Friskies forever (she said she fed her "real ferret food" when she first got her as a kit from a pet store but couldn't remember the brand), she was diagnosed this winter with insulinoma and passed away within a few months at the age of 4.5ish. I'm thinking she's an example of a worst-case scenario with her diet history.
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Post by bluemoose on Jan 21, 2011 3:07:06 GMT -5
I'm worried something like that will happen if I get an older ferret. I guess it makes me selfish but I really don't want to set myself up for that kind of heartbreak.
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Post by Heather on Jan 21, 2011 3:21:46 GMT -5
When it first happened we thought that Zena was insulinomic (which would make 2 insulinoma ferrets). She started having seizures but didn't respond well to the whole syrup on the gums thing. When we tested her glucose levels they were well within the normal ranges and couldn't pin down a problem. It appeared to occur when she hadn't eaten but it wasn't consistent. She had a couple of seizures and then didn't have one again for over 8 months. We weren't sure what to think as all her tests kept coming back as negative or inconclusive. She had another seizure, so once again more blood work. This time she had a series of seizures each one getting worse than the previous. Her blood sugar, was again still within the normal ranges. With her final seizure, she turned into a pretzel, her head literally turning to face her rear. It was like an horrible muscle spasm. If put on the floor (she was ok while in your arms, in fact looked almost normal)she would go into violent gator rolls. We couldn't get the spasm to ease off, we also noted an enlarged, unresponsive pupil. The vet feared an aneurysm. I coudn't bear to allow her to suffer and released her. The vet, for her own peace of mind opened her up. Her pancreas was clean, no lesions. Adrenal gland was slightly swollen but not enough to create any problems. Spleen enlarged but considering her age of 9 yrs, not unrealistic. Nothing She then followed the spinal column (only because of the horrible twisting and the one unresponsive pupil). There at the base of her skull, a tumour pressing against the brain and the brain stem. I felt so badly for her, but also realized that it was a good call. Brain tumours in ferrets is uncommon but little Zena managed to get one ciao
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Post by bluemoose on Jan 21, 2011 3:29:03 GMT -5
Oh wow, that's so sad At least you were able to find out what was causing her problems and that type of tumor isn't common. So many things can go wrong with these babies
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Post by justahannah on Jan 21, 2011 3:46:43 GMT -5
I don't know how I feel about it...I mean, it would have been nice to avoid the heartbreak of taking in a sick fert and it would take a very special situation for me to do it again, but at the same time my conscience wouldn't let me not, I felt it would be even more heartbreaking to let her live out her final (I was hoping for multiple) years without the proper care and love....any brand of ferret food would have been better than Friskies, she was a Marshalls which seems to predispose them to problems, and she was already so sick when I took her in.
There are so many factors to consider with an older ferret, but I'm thinking if one is adopted reasonably healthy there's no reason with a raw switch they wouldn't be able to maintain a good quality of life for a few more years... there's guaranteed heartbreak with any of these fuzzies, whether they go young from an accidental blockage or peacefully in old age it's hard to let go. I guess it's just a matter of trying to make it easy as possible on us and them and maximizing the good stuff in between.
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Post by bluemoose on Jan 21, 2011 4:09:55 GMT -5
Well the one I'm looking at is advertised as "super healthy" so I don't know that there's anything wrong with him (people on CL do tend to lie though). And yeah, they'll all die eventually and cause heartbreak but I'm wary of taking one in that's been eating kibble for a long time. I agree though that if I knew one was in dire straits and needed extra special care, I'd have a hard time turning my back.
More than anything, I'm hesitating because I'm not sure I should take another ferret, any ferret, at this time. He's really cute and I'd love to have a male but I don't know.
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Post by mjohn143 on Jan 21, 2011 7:18:20 GMT -5
Beatrice was 6 when she was diagnosed, but her diet was worse than just kibble... it was marshmallows, honey nut cheerios, sweet tea, sugar cubes... I guess with that kind of food she was really lucky to make it to 7. Imagine how long she could have lived on a raw diet? I understand if you can't take another, but if you decide you are able I bet your 3 would like a new boy . Not to mention, you are basically saving a life. I mean the chances of him getting a home with someone who has never and will never even know what insulinoma is...let alone how to treat it... is very high. And, yes it is heart breaking when they pass, but rewarding when you get to see them enjoy a life they never thought existed.
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Post by goingpostal on Jan 21, 2011 7:18:59 GMT -5
My only insulinomic was 4 when she was diagnosed, she was entirely kibble fed but mostly decent quality food (Zupreem, Totally Ferret, etc) She did get Bandits treats and ate part of a bag of that nasty Kaytee stuff when we first got her before I looked at the ingrediants. Other than that I've taken in 4 older ones, around 2-3 years in age who were fed crap before me and none of those have developed insulinoma so far and they are around 4-5 now. A couple passed due to other issues and two are adrenal though, if you stop one disease there's another in it's place it seems. I do test BG at least yearly.
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Post by 3kaw on Jan 21, 2011 9:13:42 GMT -5
I understand the hesitation. I know I`d like to add more ferts someday, but after my experience with Trixie I`m very weary of opening my heart to more then the ones we have. Trix was about 6 when we got her, and was on a diet of no name cat food..... dont know for how long. Like justahannah said once we saw her (and i had asked specifically about health and was told nothing wrong with them) once I saw them and the condition they were living in I could not leave them there even knowing she was sick just by looking at her. I`m so glad i took her in though and was able to provide her with a quality of life she would not have known otherwise. hmm would i do it again.... yes give the similiar situation i would, but i would not go looking for it.
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Post by sherrylynne on Jan 21, 2011 11:01:03 GMT -5
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Post by miamiferret2 on Jan 21, 2011 17:13:46 GMT -5
i would think there is no straight answer to your question and that it depends on what they were eating before you adopted them. i think that a ferret eating totally ferret or zupreem for the first 2 years of his life would have less of a chance of developing insulinoma than a ferret that was fed on count chocula cereal, marshmallows, honey nut cheerios and sugar cubes for the first 2 years of his life. i understand where you are coming from. and you are not being selfish. it really sucks to lose them. i am just as paranoid as anyone. going on 20 years now with these little animals. you run into diseases, tumors, insulinoma, heart problems, adrenal tumors, etc. etc. i always try my hardest to cure them, prolong their life, make them comfortable etc. i have stopped taking vacations just so i can feed them and give them their medicine because i don't trust anyone else to do it. all that and you still lose them in the end. i think it is worth every minute. i would always say to myself "the next one i get i will never feed him this, or i will have him on this supplement to preven this." but in reality, it is always something. something will always take them from us. just enjoy them while you have them no matter how old /young they are when they come to you and even if it is for a short time. the youngest i ever lost was less than 2 years old. renal failure the cause of which is an absolute mystery to me to this day. one of the earliest ferrets that we had ate crappy cat food (purina deli cat--if you want to shudder read the ingredients for that food). he was a marshalls and he lived a long time!! so you just never know.
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sherik
Going Natural
Posts: 105
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Post by sherik on Jan 21, 2011 17:38:05 GMT -5
When I got Roo and Zool they were about 6.5-7ish. They were fed crappy friskies. I knew right away Roo had insulinoma. She left me last New years, she was 8.5-9ish. Zool is still going strong, he is about 10. No insulinoma or adrenal. Just wobbly on his back end, but he is VERY old. He also has no teeth from eating friskies all his life. That food is hard as rock.
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