Post by storm on Mar 25, 2022 17:50:36 GMT -5
Nibbles had a short but scary episode today and we're not sure yet why but it might be insulinoma. She was born in January of 2016 so she's not a young ferret but not well up there yet either. I came home from work this morning and she acted perfectly fine. She and Snowball have their own free roam room and I let them run around in the house a bit when I first get home. I let them out and Nibbles went into a storage room that I deemed safe for her while I kept an eye on Snowball in the hallway. (I keep a closer eye on Snowball because she's much older, between 9-10). There's canned food, stacked blankets and sealed plastic tubs and things like that in there.
Nibbles was in the room a couple of minutes and when I walked in she was staggering and flopping around unable to make it across the floor without falling. It almost looked like what you expect from someone getting wasted drunk. I picked her up checking for injuries but there was nothing. Her staggering was so bad that when I set her back down she tried to walk but stumbled forward with her head dipping down so that she did a front flip and rolled against the wall. Then she just lay there curled up against the wall having trouble righting herself. I quickly put her some place where she couldn't hurt herself and called the vet for an emergency visit. They approved it and I rushed her in but by the time I got there she started acting fine again. (About a 30 minute drive). She was a little withdrawn but she also doesn't like the vet so I can't be sure if it was that or not. She could walk just fine though with no problem. She didn't even act woozy. Overall she checked out except for a very low glucose. They gave her a sugar pick me up there and some more to take home in case it happened again as well as referring me to a specialist.
I thought that she might have been coming out of a seizure or that there was something I missed in the room so I checked it after I got back. There are boxed dry foods in a cabinet but was firmly shut and there is no way she opened the heavy door, messed around and then left closing it behind her. The same with the sealed tubs. It's a stretch that she could get inside let along snapping the lid back on after leaving it. I did find that there was a bag of plain epsom salt on a high shelf behind some cans that had spilled a little on the floor below. The vet didn't think that it was a toxin because it faded so quickly but I'll call and check in the morning.
Other than that, I don't know what it could be. The only issue found was the low glucose and now she's running around like nothing is wrong but that episode has me worried. Could it have possibly been the salt or something else? I highly doubt she would have eaten it but I got rid of it just incase.
Nibbles was in the room a couple of minutes and when I walked in she was staggering and flopping around unable to make it across the floor without falling. It almost looked like what you expect from someone getting wasted drunk. I picked her up checking for injuries but there was nothing. Her staggering was so bad that when I set her back down she tried to walk but stumbled forward with her head dipping down so that she did a front flip and rolled against the wall. Then she just lay there curled up against the wall having trouble righting herself. I quickly put her some place where she couldn't hurt herself and called the vet for an emergency visit. They approved it and I rushed her in but by the time I got there she started acting fine again. (About a 30 minute drive). She was a little withdrawn but she also doesn't like the vet so I can't be sure if it was that or not. She could walk just fine though with no problem. She didn't even act woozy. Overall she checked out except for a very low glucose. They gave her a sugar pick me up there and some more to take home in case it happened again as well as referring me to a specialist.
I thought that she might have been coming out of a seizure or that there was something I missed in the room so I checked it after I got back. There are boxed dry foods in a cabinet but was firmly shut and there is no way she opened the heavy door, messed around and then left closing it behind her. The same with the sealed tubs. It's a stretch that she could get inside let along snapping the lid back on after leaving it. I did find that there was a bag of plain epsom salt on a high shelf behind some cans that had spilled a little on the floor below. The vet didn't think that it was a toxin because it faded so quickly but I'll call and check in the morning.
Other than that, I don't know what it could be. The only issue found was the low glucose and now she's running around like nothing is wrong but that episode has me worried. Could it have possibly been the salt or something else? I highly doubt she would have eaten it but I got rid of it just incase.