Ferret diseases: symptoms and treatment

Domesticated ferrets, or ferrets, are highly mobile animals whose energy and emotional behavior is an indicator of their physical health. Therefore, attentive animal owners immediately notice when their pets show symptoms of diseases. Changing habits serves as the first warning of impending disease in ferrets.

Ferret infectious diseases

There are not too many infectious diseases that are characteristic of ferrets, but among them there are very dangerous ones that pose a threat not only to the ferret, but also to humans.

Rabies

Ferrets are susceptible to rabies just like other pets. This viral disease is transmitted by contact with wild or unvaccinated pets through blood or saliva and is dangerous not only for ferrets, but also for their owners. Once in the body, the virus infects the central nervous system, causing irreversible changes in the ferret's behavior. The disease can proceed latently, not manifesting itself in any way for a long time, which varies from 2 to 12 weeks. If the disease is acute, the ferret has the following symptoms:

• strong salivation;
• vomiting and diarrhea;
• an increase in the ferret's body temperature by 2 - 3 ° C;
• increased aggression towards other animals, towards humans and surrounding objects;
• hydrophobia, refusal of ferrets from drinking and water procedures;
• difficulty swallowing due to paralysis of the animal's pharynx;
• dragging the hind limbs by the ferret when moving in the later stages of the disease.

There is no cure for a ferret disease like rabies. The infected animal must be euthanized. The only way to prevent the disease is the timely vaccination of the ferret.

Plague

An equally serious disease in ferrets is the plague, or distemper. As with rabies, it is carried by wild animals, mainly predators. Plague pathogens can often be carried by rodents, birds, and even humans on their own clothes and the soles of their shoes. The virus of this disease enters the ferret's body through the gastrointestinal tract and begins to multiply intensively. Its incubation period is 1 to 3 weeks. After its expiration, the ferret begins to show symptoms of the disease, including:

• conjunctivitis accompanied by yellow discharge from the ferret's eyes;
• loss of appetite to animals;
• an increase in the body temperature of a ferret to 41 - 43 ° C;
• redness of the skin around the nose, lips and anus of the ferret, followed by the formation of dry scabs in these places;
• diarrhea and vomiting in an animal;
• a sharp decrease in the body weight of the ferret;
• purulent discharge from the nose.

In addition to the above symptoms, ferrets show a number of other disorders that depend on the form of the disease. In total, 5 varieties of the plague of ferrets are distinguished, each of which affects certain organs:

• pulmonary;
• nervous;
• intestinal;
• cutaneous;
• mixed.

The latter includes all of the indicated forms of ferret disease that occur at the same time. Unlike rabies, plague is not dangerous to humans.

Although there is cure for the plague, 85% of cases of infection with the disease are fatal for ferrets, due to their small size, in comparison with other animals susceptible to this disease.

Distemper can be avoided by limiting the ferret's contact with suspicious animals and by timely vaccination. The first vaccination against the disease is given to ferrets at the age of 8 - 9 weeks, the second - after 2 - 3 weeks. In the future, the procedure is repeated annually.

Flu

Ironically, ferrets are the only pets in existence that are susceptible to the flu. The virus of this disease can be transmitted to the animal from another ferret or even from the owner. In turn, the ferret can also infect humans with the disease virus.

The symptoms of influenza in ferrets are quite traditional, almost all of them are characteristic of people and include:

• runny nose;
• watery eyes;
• sneezing and coughing;
• temperature increase;
• lethargy and lethargy;
• loss of appetite;
• drowsiness.

Ferrets with strong immunity are able to overcome the disease virus without outside interference within 1 to 2 weeks. If the disease is accompanied by a complete refusal of the ferret from food and loose stools of a greenish tint, then the animal is prescribed antihistamines and antibiotics.

Salmonellosis

This disease of ferrets is provoked by paratyphoid bacteria of the genus Salmonella. The most common source of this disease is believed to be infected ferrets or food. Ferrets are at highest risk of salmonellosis when they eat unprocessed foods, for example:

• meat;
• chicken and quail eggs;
• milk;
• water.

Salmonella is a danger to humans as well. The peak of bacterial activity occurs in the autumn-spring period. The incubation time of the disease is from 3 to 21 days. Often, young ferrets and puppies up to 2 months old suffer from salmonellosis, but infection of adults is not excluded. Moreover, in the latter, it is more difficult to diagnose the disease without special tests due to the blurred clinical picture and the absence of clear symptoms of the disease.

Treatment and prevention of this disease is reduced to the introduction into the body of ferrets of a special serum with antiparatyphoid properties. Serum with mother's milk is also transferred to suckling puppies, therefore, as a prophylaxis of the disease, fractional injections of pregnant and lactating females should be given.

Infectious hepatitis

Hepatitis in ferrets is quite rare, but this acute viral disease can be very dangerous if no measures are taken to treat it for a long time. The causative agent of the disease is a virus from the Adenoviridae family, which enters the ferret's circulatory system through the mucous membranes and causes fever, liver and central nervous system disorders.

Ferret disease has 3 main stages:

• sharp;
• chronic;
• subacute.

The acute form of this disease is recognized as the most dangerous. It is characterized by symptoms such as:

• a sharp rise in temperature;
• lack of appetite;
• thirst;
• vomiting;
• anemia.

This type of disease leads to the fact that the condition of the ferret deteriorates sharply, right up to his falling into a coma. After that, the animal dies in a matter of days, unless immediate action is taken.

The subacute form of hepatitis has the following symptoms:

• the depressed state of the ferret;
• change in gait, unsteady step;
• anemia;
• yellowing of the corneas of the eyes and mouth;
• heart palpitations;
• brown urine when urinating.

The chronic course of the disease is also accompanied by a change in the color of the ferret's eye membranes and some other symptoms:

• refusal to eat;
• changes in stool consistency and flatulence;
• weight loss.

Tracking the movement of the ferret while walking and limiting contact with unfamiliar or wild animals is the prevention of infectious hepatitis. There is no treatment in the usual sense for this disease; immunostimulants are prescribed to infected animals to increase the body's defenses. Ferrets recover from the disease on their own, acquiring lifelong immunity to the hepatitis virus.

Infectious jaundice, or leptospirosis

Ferrets are in a group of animals that are prone to leptospirosis. Animals can contract jaundice by eating infected rodents or through water containing the pathogen. After 3-14 days of incubation of letospira bacteria, ferrets begin to show symptoms:

• there is a fever;
• the skin and mucous membranes of the nose, mouth and eyes of the animal turn yellow;
• lactation of lactating ferrets stops;
• The digestive system of animals does not cope with its functions.

Symptoms may vary depending on the course of the disease in a particular animal, however, treatment is standard in all cases. A sick ferret is isolated from other living things, including from people who can also become infected. Therapy for this disease is carried out in several stages using immunoglobulins and antibiotics. As a preventive measure against jaundice, vaccination is carried out.

Aleutian disease

Aleutian disease is a viral disease that is characteristic only of animals of the Weasel family. It strikes a blow to the ferret's immunity, forcing the body to intensively produce antibodies, which, not finding an infection, begin to destroy the animal's body. The disease is transmitted from infected animals with body fluids and is extremely difficult to diagnose as it can be asymptomatic. The incubation period for the virus of the disease takes from 7 to 100 days, and the obvious symptoms of the disease in the ferret manifest themselves shortly before death. Among them are noted:

• severe weight loss in animals;
• the appearance of bleeding ulcers on the mucous membrane of the nose and mouth of the ferret
• incessant thirst;
• diarrhea;
• fever;
• drowsiness;
• shedding delay;
• yellowing of the nose and pads of the ferret.

There is no cure for Aleutian ferret disease. Symptomatic treatment of the disease will only give a temporary respite to the animal.

Ferret non-infectious diseases

Ferrets have a variety of non-infectious diseases. Although the diseases do not harm the people and animals around them, due attention should be paid to the treatment of a sick pet, since its life may depend on it.

Avitaminosis

Vitamin deficiency, or hypovitaminosis, is understood as a group of diseases caused by a lack of one or more vitamins in the ferret's body. There are 2 types of the disease:

• exogenous;
• endogenous.

Exogenous vitamin deficiency develops in ferrets due to a lack of nutrients in the diet or an unbalanced ratio of available vitamins. Often this disease is observed at the end of winter or early spring, since it is at this time that there is no food that will cover the need for vitamins. In this case, the situation will be corrected by proper nutrition and providing the ferret with vitamin complexes.

Endogenous vitamin deficiency occurs when nutrients are present in sufficient quantities, but they are not absorbed by the ferret's body due to disturbances in the functioning of the digestive system. This type of hypovitaminosis, as a rule, indicates more serious diseases and inflammatory processes in the animal's body. The disease must be treated as part of the complex therapy of the animal.

Lymphomas, benign and malignant tumors

Lymphoma is a type of cancer that affects lymphoid tissue. This disease has several types, depending on the area of ​​the ferret's body that it affects. Lymphoma is subdivided:

• On multicenter, in which cancer cells affect the lymph nodes of the animal, which are greatly enlarged;
• Mediastinal. The disease affects the lymph nodes in the sternum and thymus of the ferret, which can cause a lump in the throat;
• Gastrointestinal. The tumor develops in the gastrointestinal tract of the animal;
• Extranodal. Cancer attacks skin cells, heart and kidneys, complicating the ferret's central nervous system.

Symptoms suggestive of lymphoma are common in many diseases, making it difficult to diagnose in animals. Affected ferrets have:

• weakness;
• diarrhea with blood;
• vomiting;
• enlarged lymph nodes;
• rarely - eye bleeding.

Unfortunately, lymphoma in ferrets is not curable at this time. Chemotherapy and steroids can prolong the life of an animal and reduce the size of tumors, but in most cases of the course of the disease, the medical prognosis remains disappointing.

Insulinoma

Insulinoma, or hypoglycemia, is another ferret disease. With insulinoma, the hormone insulin is produced in large quantities in the animal's body. The disease is associated with inflammatory processes in the pancreas. It is the pancreas that is responsible for the production of this hormone, which, in turn, helps to lower the blood sugar levels of the ferret. A drop in glucose levels leads to the following clinical picture:

• weight loss, disorientation of the ferret in space are observed;
• periods of apathy of the animal are replaced by activity;
• the hind legs are unsteady on the surface;
• profuse salivation and a frozen gaze of the ferret are noted;
• the animal intensively scratches the muzzle with its front paws.

Ferrets with this condition need a special low-carb diet that contains high amounts of protein and fat. In addition, the animals are prescribed therapeutic treatment of the disease using the drugs Prednisolone and Proglycema, which regulate sugar in the body.

The best alternative to treating the disease is surgery. During the operation, the very cause of the problem is removed, namely, the ferret pancreas tumor, which stops the production of excess insulin. The disadvantage of such treatment lies in the fact that many neoplasms in an animal are very small and difficult to operate. However, the chance for the ferret to return to normal life is still quite high.

Adrenal disease

In addition to pancreatic tumors, ferret owners may experience various mutations in the adrenal glands - small glands in the animal that are responsible for the production of sex hormones.

The following symptoms indicate dysfunction of the adrenal glands:

• severe hair loss, partial hair loss of the animal;
• lethargy;
• weight loss;
• increased musky ferret smell;
• weakness and cramps in the hind limbs of the animal;
• swelling of the genitals in females;
• difficulty urinating and enlarged prostate in males.

The causes of the disease include:

• genetic predisposition;
• castration of ferrets under the age of 1 year;
• improper feeding.

Therapeutic treatment in the early stages of the disease allows the ferret to balance hormones for a while and to make the ferret feel good. However, complete recovery of the animal can only be achieved after an operation to remove the tumors.

Enterocolitis, colitis, enteritis

Enteritis and colitis are ferret diseases in which there is inflammation of certain parts of the intestine, small and large, respectively. With enterocolitis, the mucous membranes of both departments are damaged. The bacteria that trigger inflammation are not harmful to humans and other animals, but they can cause a lot of anxiety in the ferret.

The key causes of these diseases include:

• the activity of some viruses and bacteria;
• infection with certain types of helminths;
• trauma to the intestinal walls;
• improper feeding.

As a result of damage to the mucous membranes, malfunctions of digestive processes begin to occur, which are manifested in a violation of the absorption of nutrients and water by the ferret. This often leads to:

• to vomiting of an animal;
• problems with bowel movement;
• increased gas production in a ferret;
• an increase or decrease in the body temperature of the animal.

In most cases, if the intestine is damaged, the ferret is painful by palpation of the abdomen, it looks lethargic and haggard. During the course of the disease, he experiences difficulties during defecation, his excrement is black in color and contains unprocessed pieces of food, green or colorless mucus, and often bloody discharge. At this point, treatment for your ferret should be started immediately to reduce the risk of dehydration and prevent the disease from becoming chronic.

In case of chronic inflammatory processes in the intestine of the ferret, along with the above symptoms, depletion, vitamin deficiency and a low level of hemoglobin in the blood are noted. In parallel with these diseases, there are disturbances in the work of other organs of the animal.

For these diseases, therapeutic treatment and a gentle diet, which are prescribed by a veterinarian, are effective.

Bronchitis, tracheitis

Bronchitis and tracheitis are diseases of the upper respiratory tract in ferrets, and are characterized by inflammation of the bronchi or trachea. Often these diseases are complex, and then we are talking about tracheobronchitis. The reasons can be very different: from allergic reactions to infection of an animal with worms.

The main symptoms of the disease are:

• cough that resembles gagging;
• shortness of breath for an animal;
• increased body temperature of the ferret;
• dry wheezing, turning into moist in the later stages of the disease.

With proper treatment of the disease, ferrets recover quickly. The recovery of an animal after an illness will accelerate significantly if the standard conditions of detention are observed: properly feed, vaccinate in a timely manner and treat the animal from worms.

Ear mites, otitis media

Ear mites and otitis media belong to a group of diseases affecting the ear canals of animals. These diseases are quite rare in ferrets, but the risk of infection is increased if other pets, such as raccoons, cats or dogs, live in the house.

The presence of otitis media is easy enough to determine visually by carefully examining the ears of the animal. So, the presence of a disease in a ferret is indicated by:

• redness of the tissues inside the ear;
• edema;
• mucous transparent discharge from the ears of the animal;
• intensive scratching of the area around the ears with the ferret, up to the appearance of wounds and scratches.

Often, the disease is a complication that develops when an animal is infected with an ear mite of the genus Otodectes cynotis.The following symptoms accompany the onset of this disease in ferrets, which indicate the need for immediate treatment:

• the formation of dark crusts in the ear canal of the animal, as in the photo above;
• unpleasant putrid smell of earwax;
• baldness around the head and neck of the ferret.

Upon closer inspection, you can see small, light-colored mites swarming on the skin around the ferret's ears.

Ear mite medications prescribed by your doctor can help ferrets get rid of parasites quickly enough. The procedure for processing the animal should be carried out 1 - 2 times with an interval of 2 weeks.

Poisoning

Although various poisonings in ferrets account for 1 to 3% of all cases of veterinary care, the ingestion of toxic substances in the body requires the same immediate treatment as salmonellosis or hepatitis. The most common type of poisoning is feed poisoning, which can be caused by the use of poor quality feed.

In case of illness, it is important to be able to provide emergency care to the ferret:

1. It is necessary to stop the intake of poison in the animal's body.
2. If the poison is ingested with food less than 2 hours ago, the ferret should be vomited with a 1: 1 solution of hydrogen peroxide and water. The mixture is poured into the mouth forcibly at the rate of 1.5 tbsp. l. for every 5 kg of animal weight.
3. If more than 2 hours have passed since the poisoning, you need to rinse the ferret's stomach with a cleansing enema with cold water.
4. It will not be superfluous to give the animal 7-10 tablets of crushed activated carbon, combined with liquid paraffin. The mixture is given in an amount of 3 ml per 1 kg of body weight.
5. The ferret should then be taken to the doctor as soon as possible.

Only a qualified veterinarian can name the exact cause of the poisoning of the animal and provide him with the optimal treatment of the disease.

Diarrhea

Ferret diarrhea is a sure indicator that something is wrong with the animal's body. Moreover, loose stools are a symptom of a wide range of diseases, including, sometimes it reports other problems, for example:

• the presence of worms and other parasites in the animal;
• improper feeding of the ferret;
• rejection by the animal's body of new food;
• a weakened ferret.

In addition, diarrhea can be a kind of reaction of the ferret to stress when changing surroundings, being separated from the owner, participating in exhibitions and other situations that cause nervous tension. In case of stool disturbances, it is very important to examine the ferret and monitor its condition for 12 to 18 hours. If the animal does not show signs of anxiety and there are no other disturbances in its lifestyle and appearance, there is no reason to worry. In this case, a sustained diet will help improve the condition of the animal.

But prolonged diarrhea in a ferret, lasting longer than 3 days, is a rather serious reason for contacting a veterinarian, as it causes exhaustion and dehydration, which threaten the life of the animal.

Parasites

The ferret's immunity is also undermined by various parasites that enter the animal's body with unprocessed food or in contact with other animals. There are 3 main groups of parasites localized in the intestines of ferrets:

• lamblia;
• cryptosporidiosis;
• coccidia.

The first 2 varieties are dangerous not only for ferrets, but also for humans, as they provoke severe diarrhea and pain in the stomach and intestines.

Ferrets with strong immunity, as a rule, do not show any symptoms of the disease and live according to their usual routine.For preventive purposes, ferrets should be dewormed once every 6 months and water and food should be treated before giving them to animals.

Inflammation of the paraanal glands

Ferret paranasal glands are skin lesions near the anus that secrete an odorous fluid. In healthy and strong animals, they clear themselves on their own, but sometimes the secret accumulates in the glands and the inflammatory process begins. The area near the anus of the ferret swells, which is why the animal begins to scratch its bottom on the floor and lick itself under the tail for a long time.

In some veterinary clinics, the paraanal glands of ferrets are removed, but very often there is no medical need for this. If inflammation occurs rarely, then they can be dealt with by regular cleaning of the glands from fluid, carried out 1 time in 3 to 4 months. Ferret owners can also do cleaning at home, but the first procedure should be done under the supervision of a professional.

Other diseases

In addition to the aforementioned diseases, the following diseases of ferrets are considered non-infectious:

• mastitis - inflammation of the mammary glands in parous individuals;
• aplastic anemia - accompanied by the release of female sex hormones that limit the production of red and white blood cells in the ferret
• pyometra and endometritis - diseases accompanied by the accumulation of purulent discharge in the uterus;
• cataract - clouding of the lens of the ferret's eye, turning into blindness;
• cardiomyopathy - disruption of the heart muscle of ferrets, provoking heart failure;
• splenomegaly - an ailment that provokes an enlargement of the ferret's spleen;
• urolithiasis disease - characterized by the formation of stones in the urinary tract of ferrets.

Despite the fact that these diseases are not contagious, they can still cause significant harm to the health of ferrets, up to the death of animals, so you should not ignore the alarming changes in their behavior.

In what cases you should urgently contact your veterinarian

No matter how attached the owners are to their pets, not everyone and not always succeeds in tracking the slightest changes in the behavior of their favorite ferrets. Symptoms such as poor appetite, a single sneeze, or short-term diarrhea are often overlooked and not cause for concern. However, individual manifestations that may seem insignificant should still make the owners wary. So, you need to urgently seek veterinary help if the ferret has:

• diarrhea lasts longer than 2 to 3 days;
• severe itching is manifested, which has nothing to do with "flea";
• the color of the skin and mucous membranes of the nose, mouth, eyes and anus changes.
• weight changes sharply;
• loss of hair is not confined to molting or the tip of the tail becomes bald;
• there is no playfulness and shine in the eyes;
• increased or decreased body temperature;
• changed behavior and gait.

Conclusion

Any diseases of ferrets one way or another arise on the basis of improper care, therefore it is important to provide the animal with the necessary conditions for keeping. Treating a pet on your own can be no less dangerous than ignoring the symptoms, and therefore it is necessary to consult a doctor if you suspect the presence of a particular disease.

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