Update on all my fuzzies

[rene]

Cinnamon really hasn't improved much. Still sleeps most of the time. He is so sweet . Back when I was trying to improve my relationship with Charcoal, I had made some duck soup per the instructions on this board. He was , lets say... underwhelmed. I couldn't beleive it. Here I had bought all the stuff, and made it just for him. It looked and smelled gross to me. Then, I found out he had the same opinion that I did. I mixed some of it up in my dogs food, but I was afraid it would be too rich and tear up their tummys, so I froze some in a couple of small containers for another time. I remembered it when I read the post about Cinnamon, and since he was not eating at all, I thought I would thaw some out and give it a try. He loves it! Every few hours I go in and wake him up and feed him some from a spoon. He is eating more now, but it still takes him awhile. When he is done, he noses his way between the crook of my arm and my body, and goes to sleep, while I pet him. I noticed a little earlier that some of his hard food was gone from his dish, so he must be getting some appetite back, and he feels a little bit heavier, to me anyway. I can't help but wonder, if he will just slip away in his sleep.
With all of this drama, I had almost forgotten the point of getting the new ferrets. This afternoon, after I had put Cinnamon back in his cage and cleaned out Charcoal and Tobies cage, I let those two out. They had so much fun, chasing each other, rolling around, and war dancing. That was what I wanted for Charcoal, after I got him a larger cage. I will work on getting pictures of them and figuring out how to post them. Toby, has a black mask and alot of black guard hairs and a brown nose. His fur is thicker and softer also. Charcoal must just be a big ferret, because he is larger than the other two, and outweighs Toby by a good bit. They both are food hounds and their food trough is empty twice a day, When they hear the bag, they both go running to wait in front of the trough, like they were starving to death!

[greta]

Thank you for the update on Cinnamon, Toby and Charcoal, Rene. As I read your account of Cinnamon's still rather lethargic behavior, I began to wonder4 if you're giving him enough prednisone. I know for a while when my TT had insulinoma, I was undermedicating him as the measuring marks on the med syringe were confusing to me. Once the vet helped me understand that I needed to increase TT;s prednisone to nearly the top of the syringe, TT began repidly improving. It's great that Cinnamon loves your soup, gf. Giving him this high protein meal every few hours is a sure fire way to help keep his blood glucose at a near normal level. In the event you ever see Cinnamon showing signs of extreme letharg y, drooling at the mouth or even seizures, grab a bottle of light Karo syrup, put Cinnamon on your lap and begin rubbing the Karo on his gums. Use a Qtip if there is danger of your being bitten. You can give your boy up to half a teaspoon of Karo this way. This is what TT's vet told me to do. When Cinnamon is alert again, always follow up the Karo with an offering of duck soup. It's such good news too, to hear that Toby and Charcoal are having such fun together. What a coup le of bouncy baby boys you have there, gf! Post note: The pred will increase Cinnamon's appetite. That's one side effect that is a positive. Hugs, Greta

[huronna]

Thanks for the update. WOW Greta covered everything.
Its good to hear about Toby and Charcoal played so well together. I hope that Cinnamon continues to have a good appetite

[furdawg55]

Greta, I would like your or any other member's input on Karo syrup vs. pure maple syrup when lethargy from insulinoma kicks in. I administered karo syrup for a few years then changed over to pure maple syrup. My reasoning was as karo syrup is derived from corn it's considered a complex carbohydrate, therefore it would take longer to ingest via the gums. Pure maple syrup I presummed would act more quickly than the corn syrup. Any comments regarding this???

[huronna]

I actually have never used kayro syrup. We always have pure honey in the house as my hubby likes to put it on his morning cereal. Years ago I had read that honey was the first choice, but if that was not available then to use kayro syrup.

[greta]

You have a very valid point there, Furdawg. The only drawback I can think of to using maple syrup is that it cost much more than Karo syrup. Some of our members may be living on very limited incomes and consequently have to watch their spending. But I see no reason why a very small container of maple syrup couldn't be purchased especially for one's sick ferret. Something else to consider is that ferrets can be allergic to corn and the Kary (made from corn) syrup could trigger an allergic reaction on top of the insulinomic seizure. I have also used honey as Huronna suggested, and once or twice resorted to pancake syrup. I just grabbed the closest high glucose syrup product that was at hand. Thank you for this observation, Larry, Hugs, Greta

[furdawg55]

Also forgot to mention, I have used glucose tablets purchased from the pharmacy. They are relatively inexpensive and will keep for a good long while. I have also used them with quick results. Take one tablet, crush it up with a morter and pestle, or spoon until it's like powder, add 1 tbsp of water, mix together into a paste, then take the end of a Q-tip, dip it in the mixture and swab the gums.