West_Michigan_Ferret_Connection

Tuesday (Election Day, November 4)I received a call from "Corey". She had a 10-month old female ferret, Diamond, she wanted to surrender.

Diamond was allowed to free roam in an apartment with Corey and 3 kids ( 6-year old boy, 13 year old girl and 17 year old girl).

Diamond "disappeared" Friday nite (October 31, Halloween) and they all went to bed WITHOUT knowing where she was. Saturday (November 1) they discovered her wedged in a box spring. She was taken into our area Emergency Animal Clinic. X-rays didn't show much because her right arm was too swollen. Her right paw looked like a small catcher's mitt. They tapped her twice and discovered lymph fluid, but not much.

She was kept overnight in "ICU" (oxygen and pain meds).

Diamond went home Monday (November 3) with pain meds and instructions to be syringe fed every 2 hours. Corey called me Tuesday to ask if I'd take her because with a full-time job and 3 kids, she didn't have time to give Diamond the 24/7 care she now needed.

I got this call just before I had to go to work Tuesday so my good friends, Gale and Al, picked up her with all her medical records and took her to their home since they had time to help Diamond convalesce.

Wednesday (November 5)I contacted my vet and Gale took the documentation she received from Corey to him for his review. He advised bringing her in when the swelling went down thinking he was looking at possibly a dislocated elbow and possible nerve damage.

Thursday (November 6) she's o.k.

Friday (November 7) she's o.k. The swelling is going down a bit but not as expected. We were looking at a Monday morning appointment at the vet.

Saturday (November 8) Diamond took a turn for the worse. When Rose and I went to visit Diamond at Al & Gales, her breathing was labored. We feared fluid on the lungs and her paw is not pinking up and the pads felt dry. I called my vet. June, who is a vet tech at an area cat clinic, came over with her stethoscope and knowledge. The prognosis didn't sound good but we still had pain meds for her.

Early afternoon Sunday (November 9), Diamond went to the vet. He took x-rays. No fluid on the lungs, thank God; but he feared the labored breathing was from pain. The right leg/paw was dead tissue and bacterial infection was setting in. The left arm is broken so that's another issue. Ferrets have a high tolerance for pain, as we all know, but little Diamond was crying in pain. Surgery for amputation of the right arm (up to the shoulder blade) is scheduled for tomorrow and my vet is taking her home with him so he can keep an eye on her until surgery tomorrow.

IF this 10-month old chocolate point little girl makes it, Gale and Al will take her home with them while she convalesces and then she'll come back to me. I'm kind of at a loss because although I've had ferrets with "rear end damage", I've never had one with "front end damage" like this. She's been "slithering" but it would be nice if we could make her mobile somehow. We're not sure what shape the left arm is or will be in.

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Diamond went in for surgery Monday morning and Dr. Mike called at 12:30pm stating Diamond came out of surgery o.k. He amputated her right arm had to take more dead tissue than he anticipated.

Rose & I went to visit her before I went to work. My heart sunk when I saw her with her right side is all shaved with an ugly incision and her little arm gone. She's sedated loaded with antibiotics. He took her home with him Monday nite. He also showed us the pictures he took during the surgery ...... not pretty.

The other arm is still "crunchy" at the elbow, he said, but he didn't see any problem with it not healing. I generally like the term "crunchy" (e.g. peanut butter, potato chips, Wheat Thins) but this way, not so much.

Al stopped by Dr. Mike's this morning (Tuesday) and was told Diamond should be able to come home Thursday. She will convalesce with Al & Gale.

I've never done this before, but, with the help of some absolutely wonderful ferret friends who have offered to help Diamond, the West Michigan Ferret Connection is going to conduct a Raffle for Diamond. Jack Smith, who maintains my website will be putting the information up Thursday and I'll announce when it's ready, complete with pics of her before, during and after surgery, too. If anyone would like to donate items for this raffle, on behalf of Diamond, I'd be most grateful.

All of us here are just heartbroken about this little girl .... she's beautiful .... only 10 months old .... she's having to endure so much pain because of human negligence.