Ferret ECE Disease - contd.
As of yet, there are no specific tests that conclusively diagnose whether ECE is present. Often, a ferret will be diagnosed as having the disease because of the circumstances surrounding the illness, the lack of other problems that might cause ECE symptoms, and the ferret's response to the supportive care treatment it receives.
Blood tests can help the veterinarian to rule out other diseases; when severe ECE is present, certain changes can be noted in the test results, such as evidence of dehydration or anemia. Blood tests also will reveal abnormalities in liver enzymes that would indicate liver damage, which can occur with moderate to severe cases of ECE.
Usually, abdominal x-rays will show that food is not moving through the ferret's intestinal tract properly. On rare occasions, a biopsy of the intestines will be performed so that a pathologist can observe specific tissue changes indicative of ECE.
