Welcome to February's Case of the Month! A pet that's seen an increase in recent years is the ferret. Because they're not as common as many other pets, there's not as much known about some of their health concerns. This month we learn that they can have some problems that any of us could experience.

FERRETS ARE PEOPLE, TOO

HISTORY

Weeble was a 5-year-old ferret who came to us because she wasn't as active as usual (Any of you who own ferrets know that they're normally VERY active). She also seemed to have some weakness in her back end - her hind legs would drag a little as she moved around, and she'd started coughing periodically. She'd been eating and drinking normally.

PHYSICAL FINDINGS

Weeble's examination was relatively normal. Her hair over her back was a little thin, and she seemed to be breathing a bit harder than normal. Her lungs also sounded a little "rougher" than normal. Because of concerns about her chest, we took x-rays:

A few things are apparent on her x-ray. First, her heart appears rounded. It should be more of a "pumpkin-seed" or football shape. Second, the area occupied by her lung tissue in the upper part of the x-ray is a lot less than we'd expect. Finally, her pulmonary vessels are enlarged. They should look like straight tubes with even sides, but instead they appear to bulge.

All of this points to heart failure. Because her heart wasn't pumping the proper amount of blood, the blood backed up and the heart got distended. The pulmonary vessels, because their walls are very elastic, swelled from abnormal pressure. And some of her lung capacity was taken up by fluid, which appears as a white hazy material throughout her chest. She was started on a diuretic called Lasix, which helped to reduce the load her heart had to work against. The x-rays were repeated a couple of weeks later:

Her heart was more of a normal shape now, her pulmonary vessels had decreased in size, and her lung capacity looked much better. Her coughing had stopped, and although she still seemed less active than usual, she did show some improvement.

She did well for about 6 weeks, then died suddenly, most likely a result of her heart disease.

DISCUSSION

Heart disease in common in older dogs, and less common in older cats. Ferrets can also suffer from heart problems, but often have very advanced disease by the time they can be diagnosed. While a dog or cat with heart failure can live for a year or more with treatment, ferrets don't fare as well.

Congestive heart failure, which eventually involves a backup of fluid in the heart and lungs, is probably the most common manifestation of heart disease in pets, and can show the following symptoms:

• Loss of energy
• Coughing
• Difficulty breathing
• Fainting

• Birth defects
• Valve disease
• Hyperthyroidism (in cats)
• Loss of heart muscle strength from aging
• Heartworm disease

The treatments vary widely depending on the cause of heart failure and how severe it is. Treatments concentrate on reducing the load on the heart, minimizing fluid buildup, and enhancing the heart's pumping ability. Unfortunately, heart disease always progresses once it starts, but we can often slow its progress and minimize its effects.

Weeble also suffered from another disease of older ferrets which is more common than heart disease in this species. More on that later...

see other cases