Ferrets

Stephanie Howe, DVM

PetMD’s medications content was written and reviewed by veterinary professionals to answer your most common questions about how medications function, their side effects, and what species they are prescribed for. This content shouldn’t take the place of advice by your vet. What Is Advantage®?Advantage®  is a series of medications used to treat and prevent flea infestations in cats and...

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The influenza virus is quite contagious and can be passed on from humans to ferrets, and vice versa. However, it is far more likely a ferret contracts the human influenza virus from a person, than a human catching the flu from a ferret. And much like humans, the ferret flu is caused by the influenza virus. Unlike humans, the flu found in ferrets can sometimes prove to be fatal, especially old and...

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RingwormsRingworms is a typical fungal disease which affects ferrets, regardless of age and gender; however, it is more common in young and infant ferrets. Ringworm infection in ferrets is due to two types of fungi: Micwspomm canis and Trichophyton mentagmphytes. Other fungal diseases like fungal pneumonia (blastomycosis) or fungal infections of the central nervous system (cryptococcal...

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Ingestion of Foreign ObjectLike any other animal, the inquisitive ferret also chews up, eats and can accidentally swallow various kinds foreign objects. These foreign objects usually lodge themselves in the stomach and may even block the ferret's intestines. Symptoms and Types The most common signs seen in ferrets with foreign objects in the stomach are vomiting, diarrhea or difficulty passing...

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Epizootic catarrhal enteritis (ECE) is a highly contagious viral infection in ferrets. It often recognized by the inflammation it causes in the ferret's intestines. Older ferrets develop the severest form of the viral infection, and also take the most time to recover -- about a month. Symptoms and TypesThe viral infection causes damage to the villi -- hair like projections in the lining of the...

PetMD Editorial

Any disease in ferrets not caused by a viral, fungal, parasitic or bacterial infection is referred to as a non-infectious disease. One serious non-infectious disease in ferrets is dilated cardiomyopathy. Dilated cardiomyopathy is a heart disease which causes some of the heart wall cells to die. Over time, the muscles in the walls of the ferret's heart thin out, and every time the heart pumps...