Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I got back from the vet earlier tonight about my ferret's hair loss. See lower post for all the details but he certainly has adrenal disease. The vet said he couldn't feel any tumors but that doesn't mean anything. He suggested taking a steroid, Prednisone, for 2 weeks to see if this works. He stated the usual diagnosis is by ultrasound which would be around $250. He said the other medication (listed below, I can't remember the name right now) costs about $285/mo, whereas Prednisone costs about $10/mo. He advised against surgery for now at least, to see how the Prednisone works. Perry's 5 1/2 and he's already had one surgery (swallowed a volleyball valve) and has a bad eye. I don't want to subject him to more medical procedures than absolutely necessary. Does anyone have a take on the vet's advice? Know anything about Prednisone beyond basic internet research?

I imagine the side effects are similar for both people and animals. I take prednisone myself for alergic reactions; it is a good med. but does tend to cause some swelling usually around the face. I can't complain though it has saved my life several times. As for how much more to subject Perry to, for me it comes down to "is the animal suffering?"
Good Luck,
Dennis

If the link doesn't keep working go to
www.cvs.com
and look up Prednisone at the pharmacy counter

Prednisone info

Pred is the drug of choice for insulinoma not adrenal disease. In fact, I have never heard of it being used for adrenal. If you don't think your ferret is a good surgical candidate you can treat him with Lupron which will run about $100/mth if you go with the 4 mth. depot. Melatonin implants are often used in conjunction with Lupron with good results. There's a lot of really good info on Lupron and melatonin at www.miamiferret.org/fhc. Personally, if my vet prescribed pred for adrenal I'd find another vet.
-----
I've learned that I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy it.