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Post by Deleted on Feb 25, 2014 18:57:50 GMT -5
Hi
one of my ferrets has a round wound on his back, he came from a ferret rescue and the cause of his injury happened there.
since I have had him, the wound hasn't healed, I took him to the vets and they gave him an antibiotic injection to stop it getting infected.
the wound is not getting any better, and I really don't know what to do, I think he's scratching or licking it, is there anything I can put on it ?
its open and wet.
the vet didn't give me anything to put on it as he felt he would just lick it off. I have a picture of his wound.
any advice please would be appreciated
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Post by Sherry on Feb 26, 2014 0:00:39 GMT -5
First two things I think of offhand are colloidal silver spray and sudo cream. Order sudocream from amazon and check any health food stores for colloidal silver. That give in food/water(10 drops daily) for 2 weeks on one off until healed. Sudo cream apply but watch closely. It can heal the surface and leave an infection below.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 26, 2014 10:22:02 GMT -5
Ok thank you, I will try that and see how it goes.
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Post by unclejoe on Feb 26, 2014 13:17:24 GMT -5
For now, you can use triple antibiotic ointment on it. even if he licks it off, which mine haven't, there is nothing harmful in it. Just make sure it has no acetaminophen or ibuprofen in it. The fact that the wound is round makes me wonder if it's adrenal related. Eddie had a couple before he showed any other signs.
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Post by Sherry on Feb 26, 2014 23:24:57 GMT -5
On re-reading this I am also wondering about a mast cell tumour.
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Post by katt on Feb 26, 2014 23:36:20 GMT -5
Can you post the picture? How big is the wound?
I suspect a tumor as well. I would definitely try the sudocreme as it will help with healing and should keep him from licking it (it tastes gross). Silver sulfadiazene is a fantastic antibiotic cream used in both human and vet medicine, you may ask your vet about that also. It should be pretty safe if he licks it, but perhaps you could cover the sulfadine with a layer of sudocreme...be sure you ASK YOUR VET bc I don't know if those 2 would interact.
If you don't see some significant signs of healing within the week, I would have it biopsied. Cancer is extremely common in ferrets. Mast Cell tumors are benign on ferrets, and are usually small. I have seen a few larger MCTs on the boards before though. And I have also seen some ferrets with really bad carcinomas....
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Post by Deleted on Feb 27, 2014 11:54:16 GMT -5
Well I got him from a ferret rescue, they told me another ferret had bitten him, but looking at the wound I don't believe this to be the case to be honest.
It round and has been there for a good few weeks now, I took him to the vets they gave him an antibiotic injection to stop any infection getting in.
It's not got any worse but it's not got better, I have been using sudo cream and a antibiotic powder to try and dry it out as its wet.
I will try and upload a picture
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Post by Deleted on Feb 27, 2014 11:55:06 GMT -5
This is how it looks today, which is the same as last week, it doesn't look like a bite wound or scratch from another ferret to me. He's only 10 months old, he's ok in himself, eating,playing etc, but this wound just won't heal  |
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Post by Deleted on Feb 27, 2014 12:04:47 GMT -5
I can't find the silver sulfadiazene is it available in the uk ?
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Post by katt on Feb 27, 2014 12:20:21 GMT -5
Ouch, poor baby. I would consider having it biopsied, and maybe cultured. A big open wound like that not healing is really bad. I'm thinking either some sort of tumor or a resistant infection in which case you need to find out what antibiotic it is sensitive to...
And no, I agree that does not look like a bite wound at all. I suppose it could have been originally and it got infected with something like MRSA, but I'm not really convinced...
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Post by unclejoe on Feb 27, 2014 12:24:53 GMT -5
Hmm, age and home location just about rule out adrenal, and I would think mast cell tumor as well, but a tumor is still possible.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 27, 2014 12:40:51 GMT -5
Ok thank you, according to the vet it's not infected yet, but I am very concerned about the length of time it's taking to heal and it's quite deep, I have tried phoning the ferret rescue to ask how it happened and they are still saying he was bitten. There are no puncture marks at all, it doesn't help that I don't know what or how it happened in the first place. I will take him back to the vet hopefully tomorrow and see about a biopsy. Is this done whilst the ferret is awake ? I am gutted because I took him on as I had two brothers but one died during neutering, leaving Ollie alone, he became very depressed, so I went and got him Oscar as a mate, now I'm back at the vets so soon after ottos death with Oscar :-( Oscar and Ollie below  |
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Post by katt on Feb 27, 2014 13:32:27 GMT -5
They are an adorable pair. <3 He is young and healthy, don't stress too much yet.
I'd call the vet and ask about the biopsy. If they do want to put him under, you'll want to withhold his food for a little while before to reduce nausea from the sedation. Gas sedation is usually a quick in and out.
Is he particularly itchy? If he is, Mast Cell might be more suspect. Mast Cell Tumors release histamines into the body that cause them to be extra itchy.
If you and the vet think that him itching or grooming is the issue, you can try a tube sock. Get a tube sock, cut the end off and cut some holes for his legs. You can use this as a little jacket of sorts to prevent him from being able to itch or groom it.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 27, 2014 14:24:10 GMT -5
Thank you  Yes I will take him to the vets tomorrow, think he needs the biopsy as it's been there for a while now and it's not healing, he doesn't appear to be scratching it, they live outside in a 8 x 7 run so its hard to know for sure, but his fur is often slightly damp around the wound so I think he probably licks it rather than scratches. I do have them both out every morning and evening for 2 hours and during that time he doesn't scratch it. I think the tube sock is a really good idea. I have tried to look for pictures of mast cell tumours in ferrets but can't find any, Thank you I love your ferrets names! I used to have one called Koda! :-) |
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Post by katt on Feb 27, 2014 14:36:58 GMT -5
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