Post by bitbyter on Jul 10, 2014 7:52:57 GMT -5
Hello everyone,
I have created this thread as I am starting to run across more people who seem to have ferrets with issues similar to my Wilma. Wilma has tenetively been diagnosed with EE (Eosinophilic Enteritis) but we are not 100% sure as it requires intestinal biopsies for a true diagnosis and I didn't want to put her through that. Her symptoms fit and prednisolone has alleviated the symptoms as has a diet change. Through a long drawn out process of trial and error I have discovered that her trigger is something in commercial meat (most likely an antibiotic or other drug). Once moved to a diet of antibiotic / organic meats (pork, rabbit), mice, rats and guinea pigs her symptoms have severely diminished to the point where only a small dose of prednisolone every 5 days is require to deal with break through symptoms. For those of you that have found this thread via Google, these are Wilma's symptoms in order of appearance:
Increased Itchiness (mostly ears, can scratch them so much they bleed / get infected)
Anal Prolapse (slight) that slowly gets worse if symptoms aren't dealt with
Swelling of paws (random which ones are affected but can get so bad that the skin actually leaks plasma)
Hives on the back of the neck / upper head
Vomiting / refusing to eat (things are dangerously bad at this point).
While I was trying to figure things out, she was slowly getting worse and I almost lost her as she started vomiting regularly and stopped eating. You can read more about our journey here.
holisticferret60.proboards.com/thread/11679/sigh-updated-march-19th-2014
If you have a ferret with similar issues, I advise seeing if a switch to antibiotic free or organic meats helps with their symptoms. If you confirm that this is the case, please post your name and the name of your ferret affected as I would like to start keeping track of those of us with ferrets displaying similar issues.
So once again, the conditions for listing your name and ferrets name are:
If you have a ferret with a diagnosis of IBD (only digestive symptoms). I would also suggest trying antibiotic free / organic meats and seeing if it makes a difference. If it does, then please post here as well listing a vet diagnosis of IBD.
I have created this thread as I am starting to run across more people who seem to have ferrets with issues similar to my Wilma. Wilma has tenetively been diagnosed with EE (Eosinophilic Enteritis) but we are not 100% sure as it requires intestinal biopsies for a true diagnosis and I didn't want to put her through that. Her symptoms fit and prednisolone has alleviated the symptoms as has a diet change. Through a long drawn out process of trial and error I have discovered that her trigger is something in commercial meat (most likely an antibiotic or other drug). Once moved to a diet of antibiotic / organic meats (pork, rabbit), mice, rats and guinea pigs her symptoms have severely diminished to the point where only a small dose of prednisolone every 5 days is require to deal with break through symptoms. For those of you that have found this thread via Google, these are Wilma's symptoms in order of appearance:
Increased Itchiness (mostly ears, can scratch them so much they bleed / get infected)
Anal Prolapse (slight) that slowly gets worse if symptoms aren't dealt with
Swelling of paws (random which ones are affected but can get so bad that the skin actually leaks plasma)
Hives on the back of the neck / upper head
Vomiting / refusing to eat (things are dangerously bad at this point).
While I was trying to figure things out, she was slowly getting worse and I almost lost her as she started vomiting regularly and stopped eating. You can read more about our journey here.
holisticferret60.proboards.com/thread/11679/sigh-updated-march-19th-2014
If you have a ferret with similar issues, I advise seeing if a switch to antibiotic free or organic meats helps with their symptoms. If you confirm that this is the case, please post your name and the name of your ferret affected as I would like to start keeping track of those of us with ferrets displaying similar issues.
So once again, the conditions for listing your name and ferrets name are:
- Symptoms similar to those listed above (please list)
- Vet diagnosis if you have one
- Alleviation of symptoms when a diet of antibiotic free / organic meats is used instead of regular meat
If you have a ferret with a diagnosis of IBD (only digestive symptoms). I would also suggest trying antibiotic free / organic meats and seeing if it makes a difference. If it does, then please post here as well listing a vet diagnosis of IBD.
PLEASE DO NOT POST IF YOU HAVE NOT CONFIRMED THAT A DIETARY CHANGE TO ANTIBIOTIC FREE / ORGANIC MEATS HELPS ALLEVIATE YOUR FERRETS SYMPTOMS. THAT IS THE FACTOR I AM INTERESTED IN TRACKING WITH THIS THREAD