From: Lynn McIntosh [faiml@uswest.net] Sent: Wednesday, September 08, 1999 5:29 PM To: FAIMLanon; FAIML Subject: FAIML #328; Sept. 8, 1999 Ferret Adrenal/Insulinoma Mailing List (FAIML) #328; Sept. 8, 1999 1. Lupron too expensive, any suggestions 2. Need help for Tazz 3. (no subject) 4. Nancy surgery/let her go 5. Both adrenals removed and still no hair! 6. ANOTHER SUCCESSFUL ADRENAL STORY 7. Hair regrowth and stress 8. Insulmina Symptoms 9. your friend's ferret 10. Conn. Vets 11. Proglycem The FERRET ADRENAL/INSULINOMA MAILING LIST (FAIML) is a group that's come together to share support and information about adrenal and insulinoma diseases. FAIML comes out in digest format three to six times per week, depending on the number of posts sent, and their urgency. FAIML information is the opinion, only, of subscribers, mostly ferret caretakers. It is not medical advice, comes with no guarantee of accuracy, and is not meant to replace the examination and medical oversight of a qualified veterinarian. If your ferret is sick or exhibiting signs of illness take your fur kid to the most ferret-experienced vet you can find! A ferret-experienced vet is one of the most important services you can provide to your ferret. TO POST: Write POST at the end of your subject heading (the more specific you can be in your subject heading, the better) and send to . URGENT POSTS: If you feel the message is urgent please mark it POST URGENT and I'll send it out to subscribers as soon as I can, then include the message in the next list. CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS: Please write POST ANONYMOUS after your subject heading if you don't want your address or last name published. SUBSCRIBE/UNSUBSCRIBE: Just use the one address for posts, subscription questions, requests, cancellations, comments, etc. The list is run by hand so just send me an e-mail. ADRENAL/INSULINOMA WEBSITE: FAIML ARCHIVES/PHOTOS: Past FAIMLs are being archived, with a search feature, on Michael Janke's adrenal/insulinoma web site: . Michael is also kindly posting pictures of FAIML subscribers and the ferrets at this site in the FAIML Album. Check out his site for more info. PAM GREENE's FERRET FAQs: I suggest people read (and reread) Pamela Greene's Disease FAQ's on Insulin and Adrenal diseases, as they offer a good background. I forward them to all new subscribers, and will gladly send them upon request. I also send the "Disease Package", a file that tells how to get all six of Pamela Greene's FAQs on ferret diseases. Pam also has excellent FAQ's about general ferret care as well, and a link to these may be found on the FERRET CENTRAL web site: . THE FERRET MAILING LIST (FML): The FML has 3,000+ ferret-loving subscribers and the topic is simply ferrets, ferrets, and more ferrets. Moderated by Mr. Bill Gruber, it's a good source of ferret entertainment and information. Visit FERRET CENTRAL on the web (see paragraph above) for more info on the FML. To subscribe to the FML, send email to its moderator, Bill Gruber, at and ask to be added. You can also try subscribing automatically by sending email to with the command SUBSCRIBE FERRET in the body of the email. 1. Subject: Lupron too expensive, any suggestions From: bussfuss@webtv.net Date: Tue, 7 Sep 1999 15:33:09 -0500 (CDT) ions?? This the first time I have posted on here, So here goes..... I have a wonderful little baby that has adrenal problems. I just found out Lupron is too expensive($198.00 for a 4-month shot). I am heart broken. I wanted to get her started on it, to help her. Now I don't know what to do. Do any of you know where I can get it cheaper??? Or is there anything else I can start her on??? Tawni is furless and her volva is swollen. She is as sweat as can be and loves to give kisses. She is 8 years old, so I don't think she will wake up from surgery. She is blind but that does not stop her, she still gets into everything. She such a little princess and I love her to death. So, Please, Any Suggestions. Thank you all. Tammy 2. Subject: Need help for Tazz From: SexyN40@aol.com Date: Wed, 8 Sep 1999 10:16:06 EDT Hi, I have a 3 year old neutered male DEW ferret named Tazz. For quite a while now he has been losing hair, but not all over, it's sporadic. His skin color some days looks normal and a red color on others. He seems itchy, but no fleas. I took him to the vet and he received 2 shots, 10 days apart. I don't know what is was called, but it was to attack the itching. To say the least it didn't work. He is as active and ornery as ever, but his intake of water and more urination is present. Do you think he may be adrenal?? If anyone has any suggestions please send them to me. Any advice or help would be greatly appreciated. OH---I also live in AZ and I was wondering if the weather here could be the problem, I run my evap and he seems better with the extra moisture in the air. I was wondering if maybe too that he is sensitive to the heat here. I am originally from MI. Thanks for listening, Janet (not Rachel as listed--hopefully this typo will get fixed) and my other fuzzies, Bam-Bam, Duke (rescues), Maxx, Flower, Rascal, Mittens, and Daisy. Most of all Thanks from Tazz who needs your help. 3. Subject: (no subject) From: Asrai3@aol.com Date: Wed, 8 Sep 1999 10:49:58 EDT Hi my Ferret Bandit was diagnosed last year with adrenal gland disease... We since then found that she has now HYPOGLYCEMIA... We've been giving her Pred. for a year up till 2 mnths ago we increased her dos. to now 1\2 tab 2x a day Our Vet is wonderful she gave us her home phone number incase we ever need anything from her and has guided us thru this... Our other ferret Dusty is healty as all can be Dusty is a cinnamon and Bandit is a Sable (our vet informed us that it was more common in sables) anyway lately we've noticed that our Bandit has been weezing and she is lately pooping anyway I know that it is a matter of time and i think that we have been preparing ourselves for it BUT IT IS STILL HARD (im even teary-eyed writting this).. Is it common for her to be wheezing and what is it? Thanks Sue Heron and Bandit 4. Subject: Nancy surgery/let her go From: Debbie Magerr Date: Wed, 8 Sep 1999 15:39:28 -0700 I had to make the decision to let Nancy go. I took her for exploratory = because she had massive fluid in her belly. The vet called after going = in and said her other adrenal had a massive tumor that encased the liver = & vena cava and was infected & bleeding. If she debulked, she only had a = few weeks anyway. So instead of waiting and letting her get sick, we = decided it would be better to let her go now while she still felt ok. = She was happy & active last night. We will miss her, so will her = cagemate Sid. 5. Subject: Both adrenals removed and still no hair! From: Joy Kerin Date: Wed, 08 Sep 1999 20:10:07 -0400 When I took Daisy in about 18 months ago, she was 3 1/2 years old. She was a healthy looking ferret with short legs and a very ferrety smell. I loved the way she ran (waddled) with those legs. Over the next couple months I learned that Daisy didn't have short legs, her lower belly just hung down over her back legs, even though she wasn't a fat ferret. This along with the ferrety smell I've learned could be signs of an adrenal problem. A few more months later Daisy started loosing hair. Daisy had her right adrenal removed, it was abnormal. Five months later, Daisy still was losing hair, Daisy had her left adrenal removed, it was abnormal. The right side not showing signs of spreading. Now it's 6 weeks later and she has a hair here and there but nothing to get excited about. What worries me even more is that she quit going upstairs. She either has no desire (yeah right) or she can't. She went to the vet and they don't know why. Now she doesn't want to get into her litter box which is about three inches high. She's not lethargic, although she's only up playing about 30 to 45 minutes before going to sleep. Now for the good news, she gained four more ounces in the last six weeks to make her 2 lbs, 7 ozs. and I think it all went to her lower belly. When she stands, it almost touches the floor. Any ideas? The only one I had was trying the new shot for adrenal symptoms . . . I thinks it's called Lupron (I'm not sure). I need help. Joy Nala, Meeko, Abu, Quasimodo, Pongo, Pooh Bear, Minnie, Tookie, Daisy, Gurgi, Buzz, Woody, Tinkerbell and Disney (the dog). Sadly Missed - Ariel, Baloo, Zima Belle, Hera & Butterscotch Bo Peep, Zues, Mushu & Pupper (the dog). 6. Subject: ANOTHER SUCCESSFUL ADRENAL STORY From: GMALLISON1@cs.com Date: Tue, 7 Sep 1999 20:14:25 EDT Hi everyone! I am a new subscriber and would like to share my experience with surgery. I have a 2 yr 9mo old little female who under went adrenal gland surgery last May. Phoebe starting loosing her hair last March and I took her to a local vet here in Tampa, FL. The diagnosis at that time was probable spring time hair loss! When it became much worse I did some extensive research on diagnosis and treatment of adrenal disease a sought out an experienced vet since I felt surgery was inevitable. I found a wonderful vet in Brandon, Dr. Funk. He was extremely knowledgeable and told me what I had assumed that Phoebe probably had an adrenal tumor. We discussed the blood test but he and I concluded that it probably wasn't necessary since she had classic symptoms and the fact that she was only 2 1/2 yrs old at the time he felt she could undergo surgery quite successfully. I immediately scheduled surgery for the following week. I cried on and off during that time hoping I was making the right decision. As I hear from many of your stories what a DILEMMA. I had already lost 2 other furry ones that had never been completely diagnosed. I don't think either was to adrenal disease. Anyway, I took her in on that Thursday which was the longest day of my life. Dr Funk finally called me on my cellular phone to tell me that it was the left adrenal gland and Phoebe was waking up and she was fine. I picked her up that evening and took her home for her convalescent recovery. She was a little slow and sore but after 4 to 5 days she started bouncing back. The pathology report concluded it was a tumor and Dr. Funk assured me we had done the right thing. Phoebe now seems very happy and eats like a little pig, however, she has not grown her hair back yet. I was told sometimes the hair will grow back by the time the sutures are out but Phoebe's hasn't. It has now been a little over 3 months so I called Dr. Funk to tell him. He was not real concerned and it make up to 6-8months. He also suggested I might want to have the blood test done in 4 months or so just as a check on things. ---What are your experiences with this test ? ---Do you think Phoebe's hair will grow back? It's great to share everyone's stories and experiences. Sad too! Concerned Gail and Phoebe Tampa, Florida 7. Subject: Hair regrowth and stress From: "danielle.phillips" Date: Fri, 03 Sep 1999 14:01:39 -0500 My now 8 y/o She'ra that actually had her adrenal removed in January (seems a LOT longer though) has finally grown back all her hair. She started just like Hobbes did and lost all her hair but her head. At the time of the surgery she had only lost her back end and tail. With the new season here, she now has a new coat and looks great. She went to the vet and all is well...supposedly the lymph nodes have gone done and she is a hppy 8 y/o girl. If Hobbes is doing fine, I'd say give him time. It may take awhile. It took She'ra 8 months to grow her hair back. Good Luck! 8. Subject: Insulmina Symptoms From: Sunshine Date: Fri, 03 Sep 1999 15:09:33 -0700 I have been hearing tons of symptoms of Insulmina and people not knowing what is wrong with their ferret. So I ask people who have gone thru this to please post the symptoms so we all can learn. Then I can also help people know about this since I go to many sites. There are a few things I know about this myself and all came from reading. Debbie 9. Subject: your friend's ferret From: "Michael F. Janke" Date: Sun, 5 Sep 1999 09:07:02 -0400 Hi Deanna, My opinion is, your friend should listen to his vet and not do the surgery... there. NOT because there's only a 50/50 survival chance but because if the vet is not confident his ferret will survive, then one has to wonder why he/she thinks that. Yes, there are risks with any surgery, but plenty of ferrets have surgery for insulinoma and do just fine. I would say that a 50/50 survival rate is not an accurate ratio for an experienced vet. For the ferrets, Mike * Michael F. Janke, mjanke@miamiferret.org * Secretary, South Florida Ferret Club & Rescue * A 501(c)3 not-for-profit corporation * * Shelter web site: http://www.miamiferret.org * Adrenal/Insulinoma web site: http://www.miamiferret.org/fhc 10. Subject: Conn. Vets From: MLand77420@aol.com Date: Fri, 3 Sep 1999 01:41:37 EDT Hi everyone, I just want to thank all you who wrote with recommendations for a good ferret vet in Connecticut. Several people recommended Dr. Barrios in East Hartford, so Diane called him about Weasel and he spoke with her and order the Lupron and now Weasel has had the long acting shot (3 or 4 mo. I think). Diane said Dr. Barrios was very nice and accommodating and so were the other vets and staff at his clinic. In fact, she received a FREE kitten while she was there! :>) Actually the kitten was there because the dog warden had taken it away from some people who were "training" their pit bulls with kittens. They gave it a Fe-Leuk test free of charge for her. Thanks again for the suggestions and good health to all your ferrets. Kathi (who has no ferrets, but has a computer, for Diane and Weasel who has no computer!) 11. Subject: Proglycem From: "Amy C. Dempsey" Date: Fri, 03 Sep 1999 14:26:34 -0700 Boy, Proglycem taste terrible, no wonder my ferrets hate it! Yuck!!!! (But you know my duck soup doesn't taste so bad!) The things a ferret mom will do! Amy and her 6 fur snakes ----------------- End of FAIML #328 ---------------------