Pneumonia

[Michaela]

Sunday I took my boy Bowen into the emergency room for rapid breathing. He was still getting good oxygen and they assumed it was pneumonia but wanted to do an X-ray. After the X-ray the vet said it was pneumonia. They sent me home with two weeks of medicine and to make an appointment with his normal vet for a recheck. They also sent the X-ray off to a specialist and yesterday I received a call saying the specialist is worried it might be a tumor. Unfortunately to do a tracheal wash and other invasive things they do not have the means to do it and I would need to drive over an hour away to Boston. For now they’re just saying keep an eye on him and we’ll go from the recheck unless I notice a rapid decline. My question being is anyone familiar with this situation? If anyone has experienced ferret pneumonia what was the recovery like? Also does anyone know what kind of tumor it could be that they could’ve possibly found on that X-ray? Is it instantly thought to be the big C word. I’m just very overwhelmed and looking for any help to ease my mind or at least wrap it around some type of outcome possibilities.

[abbeytheferret6]

Gosh, I have never experienced that.

[caitmonster]

If it is pneumonia it would need to be treated promptly with antibiotics and possibly a nebulizer, depending on how labored the breathing is. They're not doing anything unless his condition worsens? Does he have any other symptoms?--sudden fluid build-up in the abdomen, lack of energy or appetite, coughing?

Hard to say what kind of tumor it might be without knowing exactly where they saw it. Depending on the severity of tumors they can be removed surgically, or else controlled with chemotherapy. I hesitate to say more without knowing too many details--I hope you are able to find answers for your little one soon.

[Michaela]

They did put him on antibiotics he’s on that for 2 weeks and I’ve already scheduled an appointment with his normal vet. No nebulizer though. Any experience/knowledge of how many days on the antibiotics until I start seeing really noticeable improvement? Besides that he’s eating and drinking absolutely fine. No weight loss he is definitely more lethargic than usual. When I hold him and pet him he’s very alert and giving kisses. As soon as I heard they think it might be a tumor I absolutely went into panic mode. Sorry if this is a bit messy or not easy to read I’m just trying to relax and hopefully find a similar experience to help ease my mind a bit. Thank you so much for the responses!

[bree313]

Hi Michaela, sorry to hear about your little guy, hopefully he's on the mend soon.

If your regular vet is experienced with ferrets it might be worth getting them to request the Xray images for another opinion, then they can discuss with you what they find. I'm assuming they sent the image to an imaging specialist rather than a ferret specialist? From my experience with ferrets and xrays is that the lungs can be tricky to get an answer about via xray imaging.

[unclejoe]

Hi. Sorry to meet under such circumstances. Pneumonia should be detectable with a stethoscope and x rays. I hate to say it, but sending it out to a specialist worries me. How old is Bowen? It's quite possible that the experts will find a flaw in the image. I don't want to say more until you have spoken to your vet. As a hooman, when I had a bad case of pneumonia, I started feeling much better after only 2-3 days on abx. Unless your vet tells you otherwise, it's important to finish the antibiotics as directed.  Best wishes. Please update us when you know more.  

[Michaela]

Update on Bowen. Got the very devastating news from his regular vet today that she is pretty certain it’s lymphoma. She drained his lymph node for testing and I’ll hear back tomorrow or the next day. Really looking for some help with anyone who has gone through this. Is chemo worth it? How much is chemo? My vet said if I choose not go with chemo we would put him on prednisone. Of course due to covid all of this is very hardly discussed from the parking lot on the phone. I tried very hard to keep it together on the phone and ask as many questions as I could be but it was just so difficult to think clearly and not cry. She Informed me he’s already gained a pound from the mass going by his last annual. I’m honestly just very overwhelmed so anybody who could help with having experience with this any insight would be so appreciated. He’s a couple months away from turning 5.

[Michaela]

[img src="imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/150x100q90/922/9RpWTD.jpg" src="" alt=" "] trying to insert a picture of Bowen sorry if it didn’t work

[Corvidophile]

So sorry to hear this, I have no experience with lymphoma. Here is another member’s experience going through with chemo: holisticferret60.proboards.com/thread/20906/watsons-chemo

[abbeytheferret6]

I am so very sorry and hope you can find your answers.

[caitmonster]

Aww. My old girl contracted lymphoma at age 6. In her case the symptoms were lethargy and repeated coughing/wheezing, especially at night. Since her condition worsened so quickly--over the course of a few weeks--and because of her age I didn't want to put her through surgery. I also decided not to subject her to chemo, as my vet said the tumor was growing so aggressively the physical side-effects of chemo wouldn't be worth any temporary benefits.

I opted to treated her with the steroid, prednisolone (there is a difference between that and prednisone, I don't remember exactly but I think -isolone is milder). It was more to keep her as comfortable as possible. She perked up for a week or two, but then suddenly grew worse than she had before and I knew she was done.

I don't know what the cost of chemo would have been; I think the steroid was maybe $40 a month.

I'm so sorry, it's so hard to have to make these decisions. You might ask your vet how much he thinks the chemo would affect Bowen, given the condition he's in. If, from what they say, it sounds too traumatic, it's perfectly reasonable to just manage his quality of life with the steroids and take each day as it comes.

[Michaela]

Hi an update he started prednisone 5 days ago. He’s perked up a tiny bit at certain times still quite lethargic. He also started coughing the very night he started the medicine so eventually I got in touch with my vet through email. His lymph node cytology came back “inconclusive” but she said she’s pretty sure it’s still lymphoma. His lymph nodes have almost completely gone down but now the vet says the only problem is lethargy clearly and his stomach is very bloated which is the first she’s said about this today. I told her chemo wasn’t an option I never said further testing wasn’t an option but she made it seem like it’s lymphoma and that’s all it can be so kind of not worth it. But today she said since I said further testing wasn’t an option but I never did we could just take it day by day. She also said the only thing going for him was he still eating which honestly was a bit harsh to hear. Maybe I’m just emotional. I couldn’t ask much in person because I was too choked up. It was a brief visit and I’m just honestly lost. I emailed her to say further testing could be done at the hospital she is recommending 40 minutes away. Even if it leads to lymphoma and chemo at least I would have peace of mind. I’m just so confused and feel helpless. Sure he’s lethargic and uncomfortable but he very clearly is not lifeless and does not want to give up. So breathing a little rapid and a cough occasionally and a bloated stomach and lethargy are the only symptoms. If anyone has any input please let me know. Also to everyone who has responded so far you’ve all been so helpful and so kind and it very honestly means a lot to me.

[Michaela]

She also put him on antibiotic today as well that I picked up from an er. I’m not really sure what it’s for

[caitmonster]

The antibiotic might be a preemptive measure to prevent, or treat any possible infection, since his health is already compromised? I'm not sure either, sorry. If you notice any digestive upset after administering the antibiotic, you can give a probiotic called BeneBac (found online but also occasionally in pet stores), or you could see if he'll eat a bit of plain, unsweetened yogurt.

Does the bloat in his stomach feel squishy? I don't mean to load you down with more information, and I'm sure the vet may have already thought of this, but the symptoms you're describing seem to match with dilated cardiomyopathy, heart disease that manifests in enlarged, weak heart muscle and corresponding fluid build-up in the abdomen (along with pressure on the lungs, leading to breathing problems). It's treated with diuretics to reduce the fluid, and other medication to support the function of the heart. It usually does mean a shortened lifespan, sadly, but sometimes it can be managed for a length of time if caught early enough.

I wish I could be more helpful. I definitely know how stressful it can be trying to figure out what's wrong with these little guys, it's hardly ever completely clear what might be the problem. I'm glad to hear he's still eating. Hang in there Bowen!

[unclejoe]

The lymphatic system has small glands throughout the body. The most likely place for it to appear is probably the axilla/armpit ares, but we've had a couple where it was first found in the abdomen, and both found the liver. We treated with prednisolone, but it only bought a years or a little more. Sorry.