Woozel Wednesday

Woozel is another term many ferret owners use to describe their beloved little fur ball. Which makes sense as they are related to the weasel.

We are on our count down to Blog Paws and on the list of things to do was getting the 3 M's their vaccinations and health certificates.

Many people don't realize that ferrets can be exposed to many cat or dog viruses and occasionally get them. The only thing is that many of them are 100% fatal to ferrets no matter how fast it is discovered.
The two main diseases ferrets should be vaccinated against are rabies and distemper. There didn't use to be a vaccine that was made just for ferrets for either of these diseases and while the canine (puppy) vaccines have been used the effectiveness is relatively unknown.

Many ferret breeders/owners were glad to see the release of vaccines make especially for ferrets. Unfortunately the company that makes the distemper vaccine for ferrets has deemed the manufacturing of the vaccine to expensive and has stopped production. Leaving major shortages across the United States.  (Are you listening Merial?)

The reason I bring this up is because we are back to using puppy distemper vaccine for the 3 M's and only certain brands are recommended for ferrets none of which our vet uses.  But thankfully our favorite vet Dr. Sam Doverspike knows that we travel and has given the boys the vaccine he knew that while there are risks I would be ready for them.

Marcuz loves the taste of his vet and always gets in a few licks before trying to take a taste. Marcuz will be turning three this year and that means he is moving out of teenage years and into senior it also means he is a candidate for certain diseases that are very common in ferrets.  One of which is adrenal disease.

One of the signs is called Rat Tail and as you can see Marcuz has one but that is the only sign he is showing and we'll be monitoring him to make a decision about how to proceed. The two major options are an implant and/or surgery both of which can wait a little bit.

Manny has a slightly enlarged spleen also a known issue with ferrets and will be monitored closely. Manny turned 4 in January and really is considered on his way into seniorhood. But you would never tell from the way he was exploring the vet's office.
 

Marylin was the healthiest of them all but then she is only celebrating her 2nd birthday on July 1 at that time she will be a teenager.


While I know my boys are headed into a realm I don't want them to go I've been there done that with adrenal and know what to expect and how to deal with each coming event. The enlarged spleen is new and I will be compiling mounds of research just to keep informed and stay educated about it.

With a total of six shots my fur babies are ready for travel and have their health certificates to prove they've been seen and are allowed to travel the states.

I love that our vet office loves pets as much as we do even the light cover in the bathroom shows off their great sense of humor.




Have a Chittering Good Day,
Jo
15 days and counting.

Flu Bugs and Ferrets

Having the flu sucks and this year’s flu is showing no mercy to those that get it. I know because I came down with the evil virus last week and it is still making me feel very yucky. It is also keeping me from being with my ferrets.

The CDC website reported that the current flu has increased in the last week. Meaning more humans are getting sick with this year’s strain of flu unfortunately, this doesn’t take into account the number of pets getting the flu.

Yes, I did say pets get the flu. Surprised? There is a flu vaccine for Dogs 

but not for other pets.

The flu can be very bad for the very young, the elderly, or those with compromised immune systems. Meaning it can prove to be fatal. This is true for our pets.

Did you know that you can give the flu to your pet and they can give it to you?

Because I don’t want to give this flu to Manny, Marcuz, and Marylin I am taking precautions to limit the chances of them catching the flu.

These include but not limited to:

Using hand sanitizer before and after touching them

Limiting my time in the room with them

Wearing a mask to prevent the spread of germs by sneezing or coughing

Not letting them give me kisses

While I hope, I caught it before I infected them the fact is the flu virus can show up five to seven days after exposure there is a chance they may already be infected.

This means that I will be watching for symptoms.

These include:

Watery eyes

Sneezing

Coughing

Loss of appetite

Sleeping more than normal (Sleep is a big part of a ferret’s life)

Low energy

Yep same symptoms you see in humans that have the flu and the treatment is the same. Rest and fluids and for the most part both humans and ferrets get over the flu in seven to ten days.

The concern comes when a ferret doesn’t eat or drink anything in a forty-eight hour period as they can rapidly become dehydrated.

I have a supply of duck soup . (Duck soup does not contain duck but was named for a ferret named Lucky Duck)   in the freezer for those times I need to have a liquid diet for my ferrets. I make up a small batch every other month and pour the liquid into ice trays. Once frozen I cut the cubes into fourths.

Duck soup should be in all ferret owners’ supplies. There are several powdered brands out there as many recipes for making it from scratch.

When one of the furkids gets sick I defrost one of the small cubes, which is usually all a sick ferret wants to eat at a time until they are feeling better. If a ferret isn’t interested in food and has stopped drinking for a period of time or has immune issues it is time to make an appointment with the vet.

With their small systems the flu can rapidly turn into pneumonia causing other complications. This means while I am sick I am unable to play with my kids and will have to make it up to them when I finally kick this nasty bug’s butt out of my system I would rather they be healthy and happy than to have to be nursing them back to health.

Stay Healthy and Have a Chittering Good Day,

Jo

Traveling With Ferrets Part 3

If you are a long term reader you know that the boys and I are getting ready for a road trip to Utah to attend the Blog Paws conference.

For those just now finding this blog check a few of the earlier posts.

What many people don’t realize is that you need to have a health
certificate for any pet traveling across state lines or around the world. These are obtained from you vet.

Many of us pet owners have a tendency to spell out going to the vet because Fido or Puss have learned that isn’t a fun place to go. I tell the boys where we are going and why. I am sure many will say that they are just animals and don’t understand. I disagree. I have found that by telling my two boys what is going on reduces the amount of stress they have.

So on Wednesday Manny and Marcuz had their vet visit with their vet Dr. DoverSpike. We had to make the appointment in May as Dr. DoverSpike is very popular and is well versed in ferret care.

Both the boys had a physical that Marcuz wasn’t overly happy with and decided he wanted to let doc know it. Marcuz took a nip at him but Dr. DoverSpike was ready for Marcuz and all that happened was a small pinch.

Manny and Marcuz also got vaccinated for rabies and distemper. Unlike dogs and cats who can get a three year rabies shot. Ferrets should be vaccinated every year.

Ferrets can also contract distemper from canines. Depending on how many ferrets a veterinarian clinic treats they might have ferret distemper vaccine but because the Franklin Animal Clinic only sees a few ferrets they don’t keep  the ferret distemper vaccine on hand because it goes bad more often than it is given. Thankfully ferrets can be vaccinated with canine distemper vaccine.

Both boys got vaccinated by the tech. Unfortunately it was given in the hind end. When Manny got certified as a therapy ferret he was given his vaccinations in the scruff of his neck. I am not sure if there is a reason for what location is used or if it was just easier for the tech to given the shots in the butt.

Some ferrets react badly to vaccinations so it is always a good idea to stick around the clinic for 30 minutes encase they do have a reaction. This is also true for ferrets that have never had a reaction before. The old adage “Better safe than sorry.” applies here.

I also discussed heartworm preventative with Dr. DoverSpike which surprised him that I even knew that ferrets could get heartworms and I found out that in our area there is almost no heartworm issue and the two dogs a year he treats often have relocated from down south to the area. But he did look up what is recommended as a heartworm preventive for ferrets. I was surprised to learn that one of them is a topical application of revolution.

Dr. DoverSpike gave my boys the best compliment which was that they were the most well behaved, calm ferrets he has ever seen.

So now the boys are truly ready for the road trip to Utah. Blog Paws here we come! Salt Lake City you ain’t seen nothing yet.

Have a chittering good day,

Jo

Ferret Vaccinations

 

     Vaccines are an important part of caring for our beloved animals. Some of our pets need more than others and in rare occasions are not required to have any vaccines because their physiology isn’t know well enough to know how things will work with them.

     We all should be aware of the fact that cats and dogs are required to have the rabies vaccine but what many new ferret owners don’t realize is that they should have their little buddy vaccinated against rabies as the disease is always fatal to the ferret.

     Most states do not put a ferret  into quarantine after it has bitten someone. The ferret is destroyed and studied. The rabies vaccine of choice for most veterinarians is Imrab-3. This is also the same as the rabies vaccine given to both dogs and cats.

     Another vaccine ferrets should have is for distemper. There are two distinct types of distemper, canine and feline. While ferrets are susceptible to canine distemper they don’t seem to catch the feline version.

     Distemper is an RNA virus (1) and is not stable enough to live in the environment very long. This virus is spread from sick animals by sneezing or coughing in the vicinity of a healthy one. The incubation period of distemper is between six to nine days. During the incubation time a ferret may not show any signs of contracting this disease.

     Distemper is often mistaken as the human cold in a ferret because many of the symptoms are very similar. A ferret showing signs of being depressed, develops a skin rash, nasal and eye discharge should be immediately by a ferret knowledgeable vet before the disease’s nerve degeneration begins.

     Distemper is almost always fatal in ferrets because owners may believe their ferret is suffering from just a cold and do not seek medical treatment. There have been a few cases where the ferret was saved from distemper but because of the high fever that accompanies this disease usually around 104 degrees their personality was never the same due to brain damage.

     Distemper is 100% preventable with vaccination. The recommended vaccination schedule is that a ferret be vaccinated with his/her first shot at 6-8 weeks, which is given when baby ferrets are shipped from breeders to the pet stores. The booster shot should be given at 10-12 weeks and then is given yearly. The vaccine that is approved for ferrets is Purevax manufactured by Merial, Inc.

     While there have been reports of ferrets having a severe reaction to the vaccine many ferret knowledgeable vets will be able to talk to you about the chances of your little one having a reaction.

     The best procedure is to stay at the vet’s office for a minimum of thirty minutes after the vaccine is given so that if the need for emergency care is needed you are in the right place.

     Yearly vaccination is recommended but if you are worried that your ferret will have a reaction or are just concerned that he/she really doesn’t need the vaccine there is a test called a serum titer.

     A sample of blood is drawn from the ferret and tested for the antibodies known as titer against the distemper virus. This could be a costly option as it takes a lot of skill to draw blood from a ferret, as their blood vessels are so tiny.

     The dosage of each vaccine is 1 milliliter or approximately 15-20 drops (2). Some vets will give both vaccines at the same time and others rather give one then wait a week before giving the other.

     Depending on where you live the cost can be almost nothing or up to a hundred dollars. For my boys the cost is around $70 but that includes the office visit and wellness certificate that I need to have for them to travel on an airplane.

(1) RNA is one of the 3 major macromolecules that are essential for all known forms of life. http://www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RNA

(2) Dosage information and other research from Dr. Hines http://www.2ndchance.info/fervacs.html 

     We would also like to thank Dr. Shawn Finch DVM for clarifying information and answering our many questions. Dr. Finch writes for Omaha.net .

 

Have a Chittering good day,

Jo

 

Step 1 Complete.

     Many of you have heard of therapy dogs. These are pets that go to nursing homes and senior centers to visit the elderly. Cats have been added to the list and now ferrets are being allowed to join this great program.

     I wasn’t sure where to begin until I found Paws for Friendship it had all the information I needed. I emailed Jan the founder about starting a chapter of Paws for Friendship in Western Pa. I’ll let you know how that is coming along.

Step 1: Get Manny cleared by vet.

     We just got back from the vet and Manny has a clear bill of health and been vaccinated against Rabies and Distemper. He was such a good boy, even if he did slip his collar and grin at the vet.

     Manny is now a hefty 3lb boy and Dr. Doverspike was happy to help certify Manny, his first therapy ferret certification.

     Manny now has a new shiny tag that says he has had his shots. I am glad I check my paperwork before driving out of the vet’s parking lot. It had the wrong weight on it and had Manny listed as a canine. Don’t think I could pass this little monkey off as a doggy. What do you think?

Step 2: Get Approved

Need to send in the paper work and membership dues.

The boys and I are getting Gibbs’ presents and will be shipping them to him soon.

Have a Chittering good day,

Jo