Lupron as a preventative measure
During my last visit to the Veterinarian’s office (actually, Dino and Zoey’s visit not mine), the Vet tech explained that they are now recommending all ferrets be given Lupron shots annually as a preventative measure to stave off Adrenal type diseases. I recall hearing that this was being done as trial periods a while back but did not know that it was now recommended.
Last year, I lost my buddy Bandit to an Insulinoma related cancer and don’t care to repeat that process any time soon. Like most ferrets, Bandit was very active and full of personality. His last few weeks he rapidly lost weight, lost some hair, and was very lethargic. When he stopped eating, lost mobility and we realized that he was suffering, we took him to the Vet and helped him cross the Rainbow Bridge. That was one of my worst days ever.
If there is a chance that annual Lupron injections can help to prevent adrenal disease, I feel it would be well worth the costs. Proper diet of course, is of paramount importance. Since the recommended time for the Lupron administration is in the winter months, I have at least 7-8 months to decide.
I am curious to hear about any reader experiences regarding Lupron and their furries. Did your ferrets suffer from any side effects of the medication ? Have you noticed a difference in their health ? Since this practice seems to be only recently recommended, it may be too early to tell.
In any case, I’d love to hear about your thoughts or experiences. You can leave your comments below.
I have never use lupron as a preventative, however, I have used it as a treatment. I can say I NEVER saw any negative effects from the lupron treatment, and for the cost (I think my vet charged like $29-$39 per shot) it may be well worth it. I heard about this a few years back, and I wish I would have remembered to ask about it when I had antonia spayed. I am not sure, but I think I read that you need to start it in the first winter/spring after spaying or neutering, but I could be mistaken. I think I will ask about this when I take her in for her next distemper shot.
BTW,lupron as far as I know has no effect on insulinoma. Over the years I have found only 2 things that seemed to help with insulinoma that had no additional ill effects (I had them on prednisone the entire time as well) that is the high protein diet (innova evo) I think its the only thing that has kept Dale jr around so long. He had his first insulinomic attack in may of 2008 and has been on prednisone since the fallo of 2008. The second is an herbal supplement they quit making a few years back called devil’s club supreme. Some people told me it doesn’t work, but my girl got another 6 months on it (went from having a seizure every day to just once and a while, regained the use of her back legs)
I am convinced it is worth trying. Spaying females seems to lead to adrenal issues eventually (along with other causes). If I can do anything the prevent the onset of adrenal tumors, it will be well worth the cost. Next winter, I will start.
I’m a small animal vet in KS and we started recommending annual “preventative” lupron shots about 2 years ago. There is definitely enough evidence in favor of adopting this practice. We posted some more information about it on our website: http://olatheanimalhospital.com/1212/annual-lupron-injections-for-ferrets/ I hope it can help save some ferrets!
Thanks for the reply. The annual Lupron injections really seam to be picking up support. If there is a chance that I can help the life of my furries, I’m on board. I notice though that your site specifies that males receive their shots in January while females receive theirs in Feb/March. That is interesting.
Great experience advice. Thanks !